Entity type
Beyond Border
Not a law firm
Alma Immigration
Not a law firm
For a founder, choosing between Beyond Border and Alma Immigration for an O-1A petition isn't about comparing service fees or credentialing. Both firms use tech-enabled, hybrid legal models with identical upfront costs, but their value propositions differ in risk mitigation and execution timelines.
All details below reflect information published on each company's website as of September 2026. Pricing and terms change, so confirm current details directly with each provider before deciding.
Choose Beyond Border if a cash refund matters more than a second attempt. Its O-1A service runs US$8,000 to US$10,000, includes RFE support, and a denied O-1A petition qualifies for a refund of up to 50% of legal fees. It works in four employment-based categories only, and its self-reported 98% rate is based on more than 4,000 cases.
Go with Alma Immigration if speed and the long game matter more. A new O-1A service fee is US$8,000, case preparation is published in about two weeks, and a denial gets you one free refile. It covers roughly fifteen categories.
Beyond Border is a technology-enabled immigration firm that works on U.S. employment-based visas for founders, engineers, researchers, and executives. It focuses on four major categories: O-1, EB-1 (A, B and C), EB-2 NIW and L-1.
Beyond Border provides immigration document-preparation services, and affiliated licensed attorneys handle its legal services. Its client base includes professionals from Salesforce, Google, Yelp, Chime, Visa, and Mastercard, as well as startup founders from pre-seed to Series B.
What Beyond Border publishes about its model:
Alma Immigration is also a technology company, working across a wider slice of U.S. immigration. Its published list runs to roughly fifteen categories, temporary and permanent.
Alma is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. All legal services are provided solely by Alma Legal Services, P.C. pursuant to a separate attorney-client agreement.
What Alma Immigration publishes about its model:
Alma Immigration publishes the faster number. It states about two weeks to prepare a case once evidence is collected, and puts the full O-1A path at roughly 31 business days: about 15 for its own work plus about 15 for premium processing at USCIS.
Beyond Border commits to drafting and submitting "within one month of receiving all supporting documents." This timeline is uniform across all cases and visible to every client.
Neither timeline begins until you complete your evidence. Evidence gathering takes months: letters, press coverage, salary evidence, and the judging record. This segment is all on you.
Both Alma immigration and Beyond Border handle the O-1A, and both handle the EB-1A and EB-2 NIW that most founders move to afterwards.
Alma Immigration's published list includes roughly 15 categories: E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1A, L-1B, O-1A, O-1B and TN on the temporary side, plus EB-1A, EB-1B, EB-1C, EB-2 NIW, EB-2 PERM and EB-3 for green cards. Beyond Border focuses specifically on four categories.
Both charge US$8,000 for a new O-1A. Beyond Border's O-1 service fee ranges from US$8,000 to US$10,000, depending on category and complexity. So, in a harder case, it costs more. Alma, on the other hand, charges US$8,000 flat for O-1 visa filings.
In practice, a founder filing a first O-1A pays US$8,000 with either.
With Beyond Border, that covers case strategy, evidence mapping, petition drafting, attorney review, filing and RFE support, plus a refund of up to 50% of legal fees if the petition is denied. With Alma Immigration, the same US$8,000 covers RFE and NOID responses, administrative costs, ongoing support, a software subscription, and one free refile if the petition is denied.
The difference shows up afterwards. An O-1A is granted for up to three years, then extended in one-year increments, and the sponsoring entity often changes when the company restructures.
Alma Immigration publishes what each of those costs: US$3,000 for an extension, US$5,000 for a change of employer, US$3,000 for an amendment. Beyond Border publishes none of them. That does not mean it will not do the work or that it costs more, but you cannot compare the five-year cost today.
Both quote USCIS filing fees separately, which is correct because you pay those to the government, regardless of who you hire. Our O-1A guide for startup founders carries the current government figures.
Beyond Border positions for:
Alma Immigration positions for:
Immigration is high-stakes for careers and families, so what happens when something goes wrong is important
In a denial, Alma Immigration includes "One free refile in case of initial denial" in the base fee.
Its refund is much narrower: service fees are "refundable only if a refund is requested before the case is filed, and any refund will be adjusted based on legal work already completed." Once the petition is with USCIS, the money is committed, and what you get back is another attempt.
Beyond Border does the reverse. A denied O-1A petition qualifies for a refund of up to 50% of legal fees, and there is no published free refile. However, the refund is only for a few select cases.
The one you want depends on what you actually need. If a denial means your status runs out and you have to leave, cash does not solve the problem, and a fast second attempt might. If a denial means you regroup and possibly change providers, a refund is worth more than a second attempt from the team whose first attempt didn't work.
Neither company publishes the conditions on its remedy, so ask both. The published terms don't answer what counts as a denial, how long a refile stays available, or whether either applies to a consular refusal rather than a petition denial.
Beyond Border groups the entire process into four stages: documentation collection, case strategy review, case production, and approval. Once documents are complete, Beyond Border commits to drafting and filing within one month.
Beyond Border is not a traditional law firm. It handles document preparation, project management, and case coordination, while an affiliated network of independent contracted attorneys does the legal work.
That suits a founder who wants one accountable counterparty running the process, and it is worth knowing if you would rather engage a law firm directly.
Alma Immigration runs the same basic split. They are a technology company partnering exclusively with Alma Legal Services, P.C., which holds the attorney-client agreement and provides the legal services. Its published process includes case preparation, exhibit list, evidence organisation, legal analysis, recommendation letters and forms.
For founders, researchers and technology professionals who want a specialist team on a cap-free pathway, Beyond Border offers honest advice on whether your record clears the standard, including when it does not yet. Book a free consultation with Beyond Border today.
No. Its site states that Alma is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice, and that all legal services come from Alma Legal Services, P.C. under a separate attorney-client agreement.
For a new petition, both start at US$8,000. Beyond Border's published range extends to US$10,000 on a more complex case. Essentially, they cost the same.
Alma Immigration publishes it as "One free refile in case of initial denial," included in the base fee. The conditions aren't published, so ask what counts as a denial, how long the refile stays available, and whether it applies when the petition is approved but the visa is refused at a consulate.
No, they don’t. Both firms publish an approval rate of about 98%, and state that past success doesn't guarantee future outcomes.
Yes, with the right corporate structure. Our O-1A guide for startup founders explains what the ownership and control arrangement should look like.
Address: 4 W 4th Ave, San Mateo, CA 94402, United States
Email: info@beyondborderglobal.com
.avif)
