NRILinks Immigration
P - Entertainers and Athletes
 

This category covers those entertainers and athletes who cannot qualify under the extraordinary ability standard for the O category. The only other category in which entertainers or athletes may be admitted to the United States is the H-2B category, requiring a labor certification; the H-1B category specifically excludes from coverage those aliens fitting within the O and P categories. It is important to note that in most cases accompanying aliens are not permitted for P entertainers and athletes even under the stringent standard for such accompanying aliens included in the 1990 Act. It should also be noted that the P category maintains the requirement, deleted for the H-1B category, that the alien have a foreign residence that he or she has no intention of abandoning.