Athletes, coaches, trainers and petitioners are understandably concerned with how injuries and other circumstances affect P-1 and O-1 visas. Both the P-1 and the O-1 visa involve several parties that have an interest in the outcome of terminating a visa. Of course, there is the athlete or coach who serves as the beneficiary of the visa and stands to lose valid visa status in the United States. Then there is the petitioner, usually a sports agent, team, or league, that is worried about the consequences of serving as a sponsor for an athlete who is not able to compete. There may also be third parties that enlist the services of the athlete or coach that may have reservations about maintaining a contractual relationship with a coach or athlete who is unable to compete. Injuries, pregnancies, contract disputes and other situations often arise in sports. The effect on the visa really depends on whether the beneficiary is under an O-1 or P-1 visa and if the main relationship that supports the visa is terminated. 

Terminating a P-1 Visa

P-1 visas are based on a contract with the petitioner and a commitment to compete in a series of competitions with an international reputation. To maintain P-1 visa status during an injury or pregnancy, the underlying contract or athletic itinerary that supports the petition cannot be terminated. The issue is, the injury or pregnancy could make the petitioner or third-party employer unwilling to keep the athlete in a contractual relationship if the athlete cannot compete. If the petitioner allows the athlete or coach to recover, the P-1 visa is still valid. For example, basketball athletes and soccer players get injured all the time, but usually, they are still under contract with their teams. If the injury or pregnancy causes the petitioner to terminate the contract, then the P-1 visa terminates and the athlete will soon be out of valid status. P-1 petitioners have the choice to terminate the contract and notify the USCIS. The USCIS can also find out that P-1 petitioners are no longer employed through other means such as press releases. Typically there are no consequences to the petitioner if they not to notify the USCIS, but the athlete may have difficulty obtaining another visa if the USCIS finds out that they were in the United States without a valid visa because their employment contract was terminated. 

Examples of how P-1 visas are affected by life’s interruptions:  

Injuries – P-1 visas can survive injuries if the athlete is working to compete again and the underlying contract stays intact. 

Pregnancies – P-1 visas can survive pregnancy if the athlete intends to compete again and the underlying contract and athletic itinerary stays intact. 

Contract Disputes – If the P-1 visa is sponsored by the same entity that terminates the contract, then the P-1 visa is terminated as well. If the P-1 visa is sponsored by a different entity and the athlete’s employment contract is terminated, the P-1 visa might survive. For example, an agent sponsors an athlete’s visa but the team terminates the athlete’s contact, the visa will survive because the contract with the petitioner, the agent, is still intact. 

Terminating an O-1 Visa

O-1 visas are more flexible than P-1 visas because they do not have to be based on a series of athletic events. O-1 visas can be used for a variety of purposes at the same time such as coaching, seminars, media content, and other activities. Thus, if an athlete is injured, the athlete could still be performing other activities mentioned in their initial itinerary. In addition, O-1 visas can also support a beneficiary performing services with a variety of third parties if the visa petition was structured properly. For this purpose, pregnancy and injuries should have a more difficult time affecting O-1 visa holders than the P-1. Even still, if the relationship with the actual petitioner sours to the point that they revoke their status as sponsor, then the O-1 visa will terminate. 

What happens when a petitioner revokes a visa? 

Once a contract is terminated the rules are an athlete or coach has 30 days to change their status or find another sponsor in the same visa category. After this period, the athlete or coach is considered out of status in the United States. Also keep in mind that this is becoming easier to discover when a contract is terminated due to online media coverage of athlete and coach’s contract status.