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ResourcesVisa & Immigration LawUS Immigration LawAmerican Visas and Immigration: The P-3 Visa

American Visas and Immigration: The P-3 Visa

Transcript of the above video:

In this video today, we are going to be discussing the P 3 Visa. Basically, and we’ve discussed the P-2, the P-1(A), the O visa categories in other videos on this channel,  but the P 3 visa is its own specific category. It’s slightly different from the P2 category or the O category. 

I often find it is good to just go directly to the source so I am going to quote directly from USCIS: 

“P-3 artists or entertainers or performers to be part of a culturally unique program. The P3 classification applies to you if you are coming temporarily to perform, teach or coach as artists or entertainers, individually or as part of a group under a program that is culturally unique. (Important there)

Eligibility Criteria

For a P3 visa, you must be coming to the United States either individually or as a group for the purpose of developing, interpreting, representing, coaching or teaching a unique or traditional ethnic folk cultural or musical theatrical or artistic performance presentation. In addition, you must be coming to the United States to participate in a culture event or events which will further the understanding or the development of your art form. The program may be of a commercial or non-commercial nature.  Your US employer or sponsoring organization must submit form I-129 petition for a non-immigrant worker.”

Not to be too opaque in this, but there is some mushiness if you will, there is some sort of, for lack of a better tern,  it’s not overly clear exactly what’s going to fit in this category sometimes and what won’t.  I think that by and large, it’s kind of one of those things, the Supreme Court Justices once said about obscenity, “I know it when I see it”. I think when it comes to the officers, sometimes looking at things that are culturally unique, ethnically important, so unique to the point that they need to be represented in the United States I think sometimes.  You know it when you see it. And there are sometimes you say, “well you know, we feel that maybe that’s quite well represented in the United states but there are certain various there are certain various cultural entertainment activities that I can think of, various cultural entertainment  venues,  theatrical performances etc.  which are unique to a given country and are unparalleled in many ways in so far as they can’t really be provided in any other way in the United States.  To speak specifically, I mean again, things like the Russian Ballet for example. I know Russia isn’t the most popular of countries at the moment in US cultural circles but again, things like various ethic choreographed dancing routines from say South American countries. There is just a plethora.  I can’t even go into total specifics about exactly what they’re looking at because I don’t think they know exactly what they’re looking for but again I think that the officers know it when they see it and again there’s a uniqueness, and I think this is the important thing, there’s a uniqueness aspect that needs to be at the forefront in order to get approval on a petition for one of these visas because, just simply saying, we’ve got a really great opera singer. Well America has opera singers. There needs to be a culturally unique aspect to the individual or the group who is seeking this type of visa because failure to show that could lead to a denial of the petition.