Some U.S. immigration paths let you file for yourself, with no employer and no job offer. EB-1A and EB-2 NIW are the two self-petition green cards; O-1A cannot be self-filed but is reachable through your own company or an agent. Here is how they compare.
Most U.S. work-based immigration requires an employer to sponsor you. A few paths do not — and for founders, researchers, and independent professionals, knowing which is which is often the whole question.
There are two true self-petition green cards: EB-1A (extraordinary ability) and EB-2 NIW (the National Interest Waiver). A third option people ask about, the O-1A work visa, cannot technically be self-petitioned — but a company you own or an agent can petition you, so it belongs in the same conversation. This page compares all three and links to the full, citation-grounded guide for each.
Two of the three options here are true self-petitions: EB-1A (file for yourself on extraordinary ability) and EB-2 NIW (self-petition once the National Interest Waiver removes the employer). O-1A is not — the regulation bars petitioning for yourself — but an employer you own or a U.S. agent can file it, which for many founders and independents is a workable path. So the practical answer to "can I do this without a traditional employer?" is: yes, through at least one of these three, depending on your profile.
The three side by side. Follow the linked guide for the full requirements and citations of any one.
You must meet: pick the path that fits your profile
EB-1A and EB-2 NIW are both filed on Form I-140; O-1A on Form I-129. Each has its own filing fee, and premium processing is available for each for a separate fee. See the individual guide and the linked USCIS fee schedule for current amounts.
The green-card paths (EB-1A, EB-2 NIW) depend on both I-140 adjudication and visa-bulletin priority-date availability for your country. O-1A is a temporary status granted for up to three years initially. Timelines differ enough that they are covered in each guide rather than summarized here.
This page is a comparison; the specific fees and timelines live in each linked guide, where they are kept current.
How to choose, in one pass: if you have a standout record — major awards, high-impact original work, press, judging, a leading role — EB-1A may fit and self-petitions directly. If you have an advanced degree or strong expertise and your work has clear national importance, EB-2 NIW is often the more accessible self-petition. If you need to work in the U.S. now and have a company you control or can work through an agent, O-1A is the temporary route while you build toward a green card.
Many people qualify for more than one, and some file both a green-card petition and an O-1 in parallel. The evidence assembled for one frequently supports another.
Across all three, the pattern is the same: the mechanics are increasingly within reach of a motivated applicant, but the qualitative argument — extraordinary ability, national interest, or a defensible petitioner structure — is where a licensed immigration attorney earns their place. JustiGuide organizes your evidence and maps it to whichever path fits; the attorney owns the legal strategy and judgment.
The hard part of Self-petition is structuring your evidence to the criteria above. Drop your documents and our team will organize them into a JustiGuide profile mapped to each requirement — so you (and any attorney you work with) start from an organized record, not a folder of PDFs.