EB-1A Approved for an Education Entrepreneur
Field
private education, franchising of educational projects
Immigration category
EB-1A (extraordinary ability)
Case type
business / entrepreneurship
Outcome
EB-1A petition approved
Visa category: EB-1A (extraordinary ability)
Outcome: case approved — Ilya is preparing to scale his business in the US
Ilya is an education entrepreneur, the founder of a network of college-entrance exam prep courses and a private school franchise. His professional journey began with teaching and tutoring, after which he scaled his education project into a network of educational programs and schools.
Ilya's case is an example of how an entrepreneur from the education industry can obtain the EB-1A talent visa and build a strategy for business immigration to the United States.
For the immigration service, simply owning a business is not enough. In the EB-1A category for entrepreneurs, the applicant must prove that they play a key role in the growth of the business and the industry, hold professional recognition, and demonstrate sustained results in the market.
In Ilya's case, the Migrator team assembled a body of evidence confirming his professional influence in private education, the scale of his education business, and the significance of his role in growing the projects.
The petition was filed on September 17, yet as early as October 7, USCIS issued a Request for Evidence (RFE). After preparing a response in December and a re-review of the case, the EB-1A petition was approved in January.
Despite the difficult process and the additional request from the immigration service, the case was successfully carried through to a result. This case illustrates an important feature of the EB-1A category: even tough requests from USCIS do not mean a denial when the strategy is built correctly and the evidence base is genuinely strong.
Client video testimonial
An entrepreneur's review of working with Migrator
In this interview, Ilya walks through his journey in detail — from the idea of moving to the US to obtaining an EB-1A talent visa in the field of business and education.
He shares how the idea of immigration came about, what doubts he had before starting the process, and what turned out to be the hardest part of preparing the case.
According to Ilya, the desire to move to the US took shape many years ago. Working in the education business, he could see that the same effort, applied in a more stable and balanced market, could deliver a far greater return.
Among the factors that held him back for a long time were the language barrier, the lack of contacts in the US, and the need to run an active business in Russia.
The decision to start the immigration process came after he saw the successful case of an entrepreneur from a similar field and realized that the EB-1A visa could be a realistic US immigration strategy for entrepreneurs.
In the interview, the client also shares:
- —his review of Migrator and his experience working with the Migrator team
- —what doubts he had before starting the process
- —which stages of case preparation turned out to be the most challenging
- —what happened during the additional USCIS request (RFE)
- —what emotions he felt when he received the approval
This video review of Migrator shows what preparing an EB-1A talent visa case looks like from the client's side and which stages the immigration process involves.
Case Breakdown
How an EB-1A was obtained in the business field
Starting point
Ilya is an entrepreneur, the founder of a network of educational courses and a private school franchise. His professional work includes developing educational programs, managing a network of projects, and scaling the business.
For the EB-1A category for entrepreneurs, the key task is to prove that the entrepreneur plays a critical role in the growth of the business and the industry and that their work has a meaningful impact on the market.
In Ilya's case, five EB-1A criteria were claimed initially.
Case details
The result
After the response to the RFE was reviewed, the EB-1A petition was approved.
The approval marked a major milestone for the client: he can now continue growing his educational projects and building a business in the US.
This case demonstrates an important feature of the EB-1A category: even when USCIS initially rejects the criteria, a sound strategy and a well-prepared response to the request can lead to a successful approval.
Ilya's advice for those planning to immigrate
Ilya advises those who are only beginning to consider the immigration process not to put off preparing the case.
In his words, what matters is regular, consistent work on documents and evidence. Even if the process takes time, steady forward progress significantly increases the chances of a successful outcome.
He also recommends choosing your legal team carefully and looking at real, successful cases.
Why Ilya recommends Migrator
EB-1A visa consultation
If you are an entrepreneur, a business owner or building your own project and considering immigration to the US — submit a request and we will assess your case and map out the right strategy.
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