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Certified Translation for an O-1 Visa or an EB-1A Petition
The O-1 visa and the EB-1A green card are for people with extraordinary ability, and both are decided on the evidence of a career: awards, articles about the person, memberships, judging, contributions, salary. For a career built abroad, most of it is in another language. For O-1A and EB-1A, articles about the person must be filed with their title, date and author and "any necessary translation", and every document in another language needs a complete English translation, with the translator's certification that it is complete and accurate and that they are competent to translate it (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3)).
USCIS decides
Form I-129 for the O-1 visa, filed by an employer or an agent; Form I-140 for EB-1A, which the person can file for themselves.
At least three criteria
O-1A: three of eight; EB-1A: three of ten. Or a major internationally recognized award.
Press, awards, letters
Articles about the person, award certificates, membership records, expert letters, contracts.
At a glance
| O-1 and EB-1A | |
|---|---|
| Who files | O-1: a US employer, a US agent, or a foreign employer through a US agent, on Form I-129 with the O and P Classifications Supplement; the person cannot file for themselves. The petition includes a written advisory opinion from a peer group or an expert or, for film and television, from a labor union and a management organization. EB-1A: the person or an employer, on Form I-140. |
| Who decides | USCIS decides both. An O-1 beneficiary abroad then applies for the visa at a consulate, which decides it on its own; the EB-1A green card follows through Form I-485 or the National Visa Center and a consulate. |
| What has to be shown | O-1A (sciences, education, business, athletics): a major internationally recognized award, or at least three of eight criteria. O-1B (arts, film and television): a significant national or international award or nomination, or at least three of six criteria (8 CFR 214.2(o)). EB-1A: a one-time major internationally recognized achievement, or at least three of ten criteria, and then a final merits determination (8 CFR 204.5(h)). |
| Usually in another language | Award certificates and the rules of the award, membership certificates and the association's admission rules, articles about the person, judging invitations, letters from experts, contracts and salary records, programs and catalogues. |
| Translation rule | Every document in another language needs a complete English translation, with the translator's certification that it is complete and accurate and that they are competent to translate it (8 CFR 103.2(b)(3)). For O-1A and EB-1A, published material about the person must include its title, date and author, and any necessary translation. |
| Page count | Grows with the press: a career covered in newspapers, magazines and websites can mean hundreds of pages of articles. |
Documents that usually need translating
Which documents go into the file is your attorney's decision; we translate what is chosen, completely, with every stamp, seal and handwritten note. In O-1 and EB-1A files, the documents in another language are usually these, criterion by criterion:
- Awards: the certificate, and the rules or announcement of the award that show who grants it and how widely it is recognized.
- Memberships: the membership certificate, and the association's bylaws or admission rules that show it requires outstanding achievement.
- Articles about the person: each article in full, with the publication, its title, date and author, and what shows the publication's reach.
- Judging the work of others: invitations and letters from the organizers of competitions, journals or panels.
- Contributions and authorship: patents, scholarly articles and their citations, and letters from experts on the significance of the work.
- Role and salary: letters from the organizations about the person's role, contracts, payslips and tax records.
- Arts and entertainment: programs, reviews, festival selections, box office or sales records.
- For the family: marriage and birth certificates.
Who reads the translations
USCIS reads the I-129 or the I-140 and everything filed with it, and any answer to a Request for Evidence; the rule for every translation is 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3).
The advisory opinion for an O-1 is written for USCIS and is usually in English already. After an O-1 is approved, a beneficiary abroad applies for the visa at a consulate; approval of the petition does not by itself make the person eligible for the visa.
How many pages to expect
Each sheet of the original counts as one page, whatever its word count. In these files the count follows the press: an article printed from a website can run to several pages, and each one filed is translated in full. Award rules, bylaws and long expert letters add more.
Files of hundreds of pages are quoted as a project and delivered in dated batches: business immigration translation.
Official sources
Every requirement on this page was checked against these sources on November 5, 2026.
- 8 CFR 214.2(o), extraordinary ability or achievement (ecfr.gov)
- Policy Manual, Volume 2, Part M, Chapter 4, O-1 beneficiaries (uscis.gov)
- 8 CFR 204.5(h), extraordinary ability (ecfr.gov)
- Policy Manual, Volume 6, Part F, Chapter 2, extraordinary ability (uscis.gov)
- Form I-129 instructions, edition 09/09/26 (uscis.gov)
- Form I-140 instructions, edition 06/07/24 (uscis.gov)
- Policy Manual, Volume 1, Part E, Chapter 6, evidence (uscis.gov)
- 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3), translations (ecfr.gov)
Frequently asked questions
Can you translate only the paragraphs of an article that mention me?
Not for a document that is filed: USCIS requires a full English translation of any document in another language, and its Policy Manual says a summary prepared by a translator is unacceptable. What can be chosen is which articles to file.
Do you translate web pages and screenshots?
Yes. Send a PDF or a screenshot; the translation keeps the publication, the date and the address as they appear on the original.
Do expert letters written in another language need translating?
Yes, like any other document filed in another language. Letters from the same person in English need nothing.
Do the translations need to be notarized?
Not for USCIS: 8 CFR 103.2(b)(3) asks for the translator's certification, not a notary. If another office asks for notarization, it is $34.90 per order.
Have the documents in front of you?
Upload them and see the page count, the price and the delivery time before you pay. For a file of hundreds of pages, ask for a project quote.