EB-1A · EB-2 NIW · AI-powered petition support
Your status has an expiry date. Your petition shouldn't be an afterthought.
MERIT IQ pairs an AI-driven gap analysis with one-on-one mentorship from people who filed their own EB-1A and EB-2 NIW petitions successfully — so you stop guessing what USCIS wants and start building a record that actually clears the bar.
GAP ANALYSIS
6/10 criteria mapped
STATUS RUNWAY
14 months to OPT expiry
The real problem
It's not that you're unqualified. It's that no one ever told you what counts.
Every year thousands of strong candidates miss their own H-1B lottery, watch their OPT clock run down, or get stuck in a cap-gap with no backup plan — while sitting on a body of work that could clear EB-1A or NIW. They just never recorded it as evidence, because nobody mapped it to a criterion.
The lottery isn't a plan
Relying on a random draw for your entire future in the US means every March is a gamble. EB-1A and EB-2 NIW don't need a lottery win, an employer sponsor, or a labor certification.
Generic templates miss your case
A DIY template treats a physicist and a product manager the same way. Petitions that get denied usually aren't weak on merit — they're weak on how the evidence was organized and argued.
RFEs cost you the one thing you don't have — time
A Request for Evidence can add 6–12 months to a case. On a ticking OPT or H-1B clock, that delay is not neutral. Catching the gaps before filing is the only real defense.
How MERIT IQ works
AI finds the gaps. Humans who've done this build the plan.
One system, three deliverables — a diagnostic, a documentation structure, and a mentor who has actually filed and won.
01 / Diagnose
AI-powered gap analysis
We map your record against all 10 EB-1A criteria (or the 3-prong NIW standard) and flag exactly what's met, close, or missing.
02 / Structure
Structured documentation
Every recommendation letter, publication and impact report organized into a petition-ready structure — not a folder of loose PDFs.
03 / Mentor
1:1 mentorship
Paired with someone from your field who filed successfully. Weekly check-ins, honest feedback, real deadlines.
04 / De-risk
RFE / NOI risk review
A final pass built from patterns we track across filings — the same weak points USCIS flags, closed before you submit.
See it in action
The same profile, before and after a structured gap analysis.
This is the exact framework we run against your record on day one. Toggle between "today" and "after 10 months of directed work" to see how a case actually moves.
Built for your visa reality
Wherever you are on the timeline, there's a next step
F-1 & OPT
Start the record early — publications, projects and awards during OPT compound fastest when they're captured as evidence from day one.
STEM OPT (24-month ext.)
Your extended runway is a filing window, not just breathing room. We help you use it to close specific criteria before it closes.
H-1B holders
Tired of re-entering the lottery every year? Build a self-petitioned path that doesn't depend on your employer or the draw.
Researchers & creatives
Publications, citations, juried work and press coverage are exactly the evidence EB-1A and NIW are built around.
Why MERIT IQ
The agency files for you. The software leaves you alone with it. We do neither.
| Immigration agency | DIY software | MERIT IQ | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diagnosis | Rarely tells you if it's too early | No judgment — you self-assess | Full gap analysis against every criterion, day one |
| Documentation | You send files, they assemble blind | Templates with no field-specific guidance | Structured, criterion-mapped documentation build |
| Guidance | Case manager, rarely a practitioner | None | Mentor who filed the same route themselves |
| Risk review | Often after drafting is done | Not offered | RFE/NOI pattern review before you file |
A characterization of two common models, not any specific company. Good agencies and useful tools exist — the point is the gap between diagnosis and filing that most people fall into.
In their words
Built by watching real petitions get filed and won
★★★★★
"I was two months from my H-1B lottery result with no backup. The gap analysis showed I already met three NIW criteria — I just never wrote any of it down as evidence."
★★★★★
"My mentor had filed EB-1A in the same subfield two years earlier. She knew exactly which reviewers mattered and which of my papers to lead with."
★★★★★
"The structured documentation report is what I actually handed my attorney. It cut our prep calls from six down to two."
Common questions
Before you reach out
Is EB-1A or EB-2 NIW right for me?
It depends on your field, your record and your country of birth's visa queue. Our gap analysis compares your profile against both standards and tells you honestly which one — or whether neither is realistic yet.
Can I do this while on OPT, STEM OPT, or H-1B?
Yes. Building the record — publishing, reviewing, speaking, being cited — is generally compatible with maintaining status, and neither route requires an employer sponsor. How filing interacts with your specific status is a legal question best confirmed with a licensed attorney.
What if the analysis says I'm not ready?
You get a specific, sequenced plan instead — what to close, over what horizon, and what evidence to start capturing this month. Finding this out now costs an evaluation. Finding it out from a denial costs a year.
Do you replace my immigration attorney?
No — and we don't want to. We build the evidence record and documentation structure; a licensed attorney should always review your petition before it's filed.
Find out where you actually stand — before your status forces the question.
Ten minutes, one honest read on your case, and a plan either way. No cost, no obligation.