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What specific visas did Melania Trump hold during her modeling career and when were they issued?
Executive summary
Available reporting identifies multiple visas tied to Melania Trump’s move to and stay in the United States but does not provide a single, fully documented timeline of every visa type with issuance dates. Sources state she first came to the U.S. in 1996 on a tourist visa, that she was later granted permission to work (reports cite an H‑1B claim beginning Oct. 18, 1996), and that she ultimately obtained an EB‑1 green card around 2001 after applying in 2000 [1] [2] [3] [4].
1. How contemporary news outlets summarize Melania Trump’s visa history
Reported timelines converge on three phases: an initial entry on a tourist visa in 1996, a later transition to work authorization (with the Trump camp saying she began H‑1B status on Oct. 18, 1996), and a later immigration route to permanent residence under the EB‑1 “extraordinary ability” category applied for around 2000 and granted around 2001 [1] [2] [3] [4]. Major outlets, including the BBC and Newsweek summaries of congressional scrutiny, repeat that sequence while noting debate over the merits of an EB‑1 award for a model [1] [5].
2. Evidence and documentary reporting about early U.S. work
The Associated Press published contemporaneous ledger entries and contracts indicating Melania Knauss was paid for roughly ten U.S. modeling jobs in 1996, totaling roughly $20,056, during “seven weeks before she had legal permission to work,” and lists an October 18, 1996 date tied to work‑authorization claims [2] [6]. The AP’s documents and follow‑up coverage form the chief basis for questions about whether she worked before lawful authorization [2] [6].
3. The disputed H‑1B claim and legal commentary
Melania’s lawyers asserted she began work on H‑1B status on Oct. 18, 1996; independent commentators and immigration attorneys noted that this specific H‑1B documentation was not publicly produced and that the AP reporting left open questions about timing and legality [3]. VisaLaw.com and other legal analyses said the Trump team’s claim was unproven in public records, and that the issue largely hinged on documents the family did not release at the time [3].
4. The EB‑1 (so‑called “Einstein”) green card: reporting and controversy
Multiple outlets report she obtained permanent residence under the EB‑1 category — commonly called an “Einstein visa” — after applying in 2000 and receiving approval around 2001; news coverage emphasizes that EB‑1 is reserved for “extraordinary ability” and that some lawmakers have sharply questioned whether a fashion model’s resume met that standard [1] [4] [5]. House members during a 2025 hearing criticized the apparent discrepancy between that award and the administration’s tougher immigration enforcement, while defenders and some analysts argued the category can apply broadly to arts and business success [4] [5].
5. First‑hand assertions from figures connected to her modeling career
A former modelling agent, Giovanni Zampolli, has said he obtained a work visa for Melania while at Metropolitan Models in the mid‑1990s; AP reported his claim and that Melania’s own statement at the time did not specify which visa she held during her early U.S. modeling [7]. That agent’s statement supports the existence of some form of work authorization secured by the agency, but available reporting does not publish the underlying immigration paperwork itself [7].
6. What sources do not confirm or fully document
Available sources do not provide a single, government‑issued chronological file showing every visa stamp or approval letter. Public reporting cites an initial tourist entry in 1996, an asserted switch to H‑1B status (Oct. 18, 1996) as claimed by her lawyers, and an EB‑1 green card around 2001, but original USCIS approvals, consular stamps, or full adjudication documents have not been produced in the cited coverage [1] [2] [3] [4] [7]. Where claims are contested — notably whether her modeling resume justified EB‑1 extraordinary‑ability criteria — news outlets record both the criticism and defenders’ counterarguments [5] [8].
7. Context and competing viewpoints to weigh
Critics argue the EB‑1 should be tightly reserved and that issuing it to someone of modest international modeling stature reveals inconsistency in enforcement [4] [5] [8]. Defenders point to legal counsel statements and industry testimony that work permission was in place in the 1990s and that EB‑1 can legitimately cover arts or business accomplishments, but publicly available reporting has not produced the adjudicative files that would conclusively settle all factual disputes [7] [3] [1].
Conclusion — what is known and what remains open: Reporting documents an initial tourist entry in 1996, disputed-but‑claimed H‑1B/work authorization tied to Oct. 18, 1996, and an EB‑1 green card obtained around 2001 after an application circa 2000; however, the underlying government records enumerating each visa issuance and exact dates are not contained in the cited sources and therefore remain not publicly documented in current reporting [2] [3] [1] [4] [7].