Law Offices of Chris M.

Ingram
Guide to Drafting Your Leading / Critical Role Letters

Please incorporate the following 6 bolded headings verbatim into each of your
Leading/Critical Role letters.

Introduction to the Author

The reason we have a whole section on the author is because we designate this section at
the beginning to show that the person who is attesting to this role on your behalf isn’t just
some regular person. This section should talk about the author and why he/she is qualified to
write this letter on your behalf. This section should include professional biography, career
accomplishments, and what makes this author special. We ask that the letter author have
witnessed you performing this role and understanding the significance that the role had on
the company. The person who writes this letter should be from the same organization and
also be reputable in your industry.

About the Company and Its Industry Achievements/Recognition

The organization/company for which you performed your role must have a distinguished
reputation. We must explain to USCIS what the company is and what the company does.
This section helps paint the scene before we dive into what the role is. We have to explain
why this company has a distinguished reputation, talk about recognition that the company
has, awards received, if the company has a global presence, etc. How this company stacks
against its competitors. Does this company have distinguished clients? Any positives that will
paint the organization in a positive light would be good to add in this section. Also, citing any
industry awards the company may have won is very helpful.

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Description as to Why the Position Should Be Considered as a Leading Role

This is the most important section in the letter and will show the USCIS officer adjudicating
your petition an inside look from the author’s perspective into what you actually did. The
Leading role explains how you were the leader of this project. A leader is the decision maker
and organizes the plan of action. For example, have you led a team, been a project
manager, directed or been responsible for the performance of other people in your
organization? This section can sometimes be the most difficult for someone to understand if
the work done is very technical. USCIS will really scrutinize this section of the letter, so the
more detail and actual examples you can provide, the better.

Description as to Why the Position Should Be Considered as Also a Critical Role

Along with describing your Leading role, describing the critical nature of your role is equally
important. We need to provide the USCIS officer adjudicating your petition with an inside
look from the author’s perspective into what you actually did. We need to show USCIS that
without you and your work, the company would not have been successful – put all modesty
aside, lay it on thick. Do not simply list job duties. Not all job duties are critical and essential
to the completion of the critical role. The question I would ask is, can this be done by
someone else? If so, it does not prove that your role was critical and wouldn’t be beneficial to
what we are trying to prove. So, you need to go above and beyond in highlighting how you
are head and shoulders above your peers in this field according to the author’s remarks.

How and Why This Person’s Work Impacts the Company as a Whole

When writing the critical/leading role argument, the Impact on the Company section is the
second most important section that we must address besides explaining the actual role. For
any impact explained in the letter, we must be able to back it up with evidence. If we do not
back it up with evidence, then the letter is just a “he said, she said” account of what
happened and may not be deemed persuasive enough by the USCIS adjudicator. Did the

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company win an award or recognition? Did the company generate more revenue? We need
to be able to explain to immigration with facts and evidence the impact that your role had on
the company. Again, put all modesty aside, you really have to make bold claims that can be
backed up.

Why This Person Should be Considered as Being at the Top of This Field

This section is important because there are hundreds of other people who have the same job
title and who also work for distinguished organizations. What sets you apart from others in
your field? Why are you and the work you have done deemed worthy of Permanent
Residency in the U.S.? Show how you went above and beyond and were the ideal candidate
for this project.

Conclusion

Ideally, we must develop at least two Leading/Critical Roles that we can cover.

A good leading/critical role letter needs to be 3-4 pages of detail, example, and outcomes.

Upload to the online portal a Word draft of each letter for review and we’ll go over it and
determine if any further changes need to be made. Basically, even as a lay person, we want
to be able to understand the significance of all of your achievements so try to bear that in
mind.

Let us take this opportunity to wish you every success in tackling this task.

We look forward to reviewing your drafts shortly.

Law Offices of Chris M. Ingram