C holds a bachelor's degree in economics and accounting and a master's in finance, and founded a U.S. startup less than a year old whose only employee is C, a typical self-employed H-1B.

We had to show that, as the company's founder and CEO, C's day-to-day duties still met the specialty occupation standard.

We described in detail the job duties requiring professional training in economics and finance, such as market analysis, financial modeling, and strategic decision support, and added a business plan and hiring plan to support the specialized nature of the role.

Approved within a week of responding to the RFE (filed 05/09 · RFE received 07/28 · response filed 08/08 · approved 08/14, 2025).