Employers › Comparisons
Decision aids

Compare the routes like a hiring manager

Every route has a best case. These pages tell you which is which — including when the answer isn't us.

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O-1 vs H-1B

Cap, lottery, filing season, employer role and process risk

O-1 vs Waiting for the lottery

The next H-1B registration window is months away and the odds are a lottery's

O-1 vs OPT / STEM OPT

OPT hires come with an expiry date and a lottery dependency

O-1 vs Cap-exempt H-1B

Cap-exempt H-1Bs avoid the lottery but require a qualifying employer and still make you the petitioner

O-1 vs Keeping the role offshore

Offshore-forever has real costs: time zones, IP boundaries, customer access

O-1 vs TN (Canada/Mexico)

For USMCA-listed professions the TN is fast and cheap

O-1 vs L-1 transfer

The L-1 needs a year of prior employment at your own foreign entity

O-1 vs E-3 / H-1B1

Australians, Singaporeans and Chileans have their own treaty categories