Can I help someone draft a recommendation letter that will endorse me?

You can, but within a clear limit. In the EB-2 NIW, recommendation letters carry weight precisely because they express the sincere, independent assessment of someone who knows your work. Helping is acceptable; replacing the author’s voice is not.

Your involvement should be limited to providing material and context: your professional background, publications, projects, and the most significant evidence of your contributions. With that information, the person signing the letter can address those points in their own words and from their own perspective.

What should be avoided is drafting the entire letter for the recommender to simply sign. This weakens the endorsement, which loses value when it no longer sounds like a genuine opinion and instead reads like a templated text. The strength of the letter lies precisely in the independence of the person who writes it.

Act with transparency and, if in doubt about the ideal format, check the updated guidelines at the official source (USCIS) or consult a specialist to structure this support properly.

About the author

Victoria Harper

Editor-in-Chief

Meet the author

As a journalist and lead editor at Visto n’ Visa, Victoria helps ensure that immigration topics are covered in a clear, trustworthy, and easy-to-understand way. Her focus is on delivering useful, human, and relevant content for people exploring new paths abroad.