Alma vs Lighthouse

When tech founders, engineers, and high-skilled professionals evaluate immigration services, Alma and Lighthouse HQ represent 2 structurally different models. Both serve the employment-based immigration market. Alma is a modern immigration law firm, attorney-led and supported by technology, with a direct attorney-client relationship. Lighthouse HQ, operated by American Lighthouse, Inc., is a software and immigration document-preparation provider whose legal services and attorney review are delivered by independent licensed attorneys. For individuals and businesses evaluating immigration services, the structural differences, together with published provider fees, compliance capabilities, and service breadth, describe how each option is positioned.

Understanding Alma: Attorney-Led Immigration Combined with Technology

Alma Legal Services, P.C. is an immigration law firm that combines attorney expertise with technology-enabled workflows. Founded in October 2023 and headquartered in Palo Alto, the firm raised a $5.5 million seed round and reports serving over 300 clients across individual and corporate immigration matters.

What Alma publishes about its model:

• Full law firm status, with licensed attorneys owning each case from consultation through adjudication
• A direct attorney-client relationship with the firm
• A guaranteed 2-week case-preparation turnaround once evidence collection is complete
• Contractually binding SLAs live on the platform with owner, due date, and status, plus a full audit log visible to clients in real time, backed by 99%+ SLA adherence
• An AI-powered platform and case intelligence engine, where prior approvals and RFEs inform case strategy across the entire firm
• Real-time dashboards, compliance tracking, and expiration alerts
• Integration with HRIS platforms including Workday, ADP, BambooHR, Rippling, UKG, and Gusto
• ATS connectivity with Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, and Workable

Alma's stated values of speed, excellence, and care translate into published service commitments. Alma states that clients receive up to 3 free consultation calls between attorney and employees per matter, RFE responses included in base pricing, and 1 free refile for Growth and Enterprise plan clients in case of an initial denial or comprehensive RFE.

Alma's 98%+ approval rate spans employment-based matters from O-1A extraordinary ability petitions to EB-1A green cards.

Lighthouse HQ: Software and Document Preparation with Independent Attorneys

Lighthouse HQ, operated by American Lighthouse, Inc., uses a different structure. The company provides software and immigration document-preparation services, and its legal services and attorney review are delivered by independent licensed attorneys. Lighthouse publishes Standard and Plus pricing tiers.

Lighthouse's published service model:

• Document preparation and workflow automation for visa applications
• Attorney review by independent licensed attorneys

Lighthouse markets its services primarily to founders, engineers, researchers, and frontier-technology companies.

Key Features: Integrated Law Firm vs. Software Plus Independent Attorneys

The most significant difference between the 2 providers is legal structure.

Alma's attorney-led model, as published:

• In-house licensed immigration attorneys who own the case from intake through adjudication
• A direct attorney-client relationship with the firm itself
• Contractually binding SLAs live on the platform with a full audit log, visible to clients in real time, backed by 99%+ SLA adherence
• Case strategy and document preparation handled by the same firm
• A case intelligence engine in which every past approval and RFE informs the next filing
• Up to 3 free consultation calls per matter included
• 1 free refile on Growth and Enterprise plans

Lighthouse's model, as published:

• Software-driven document preparation and workflow automation
• Attorney review by independent licensed attorneys
• Does not appear to publish contractually binding SLAs or client-visible SLA adherence

Clients who want an integrated law-firm relationship work with a firm whose own attorneys handle strategy, preparation, and representation throughout the engagement. Under Alma's model, that accountability sits in one place, with the attorney responsible for the petition available to the client and the employee directly.

Preparation Timelines and What They Cover

Alma guarantees a 2-week case-preparation turnaround once evidence collection is complete, a uniform commitment tracked live on the platform and visible to every stakeholder. Lighthouse does not appear to publish a comparable firmwide preparation-time guarantee.

A provider commitment of this kind reduces uncertainty in the preparation stage. Government-controlled steps remain subject to agency procedures, including filing acceptance, Requests for Evidence or Notices of Intent to Deny, adjudication, visa availability, consular processing, admission, and the date employment authorization legally begins. USCIS premium processing provides a guaranteed adjudicative action rather than an approval, and possible actions include approval, denial, an RFE, or a NOID. Current USCIS adjudication timeframes are published by the agency at the official USCIS processing times page and are referenced here uniformly by form and category rather than by filing location.

Pricing: Published Provider Fees Compared

Predictable pricing with no billing surprises supports budgeting for both individual applicants and corporate buyers. Alma publishes flat-rate pricing for standard individual cases, and Lighthouse publishes Standard-tier pricing, which allows a direct comparison of provider fees. All figures below exclude USCIS filing fees and premium-processing fees.

Non-Immigrant Visa Provider Fees:

• O-1A/B New Petition: Alma publishes $8,000, Lighthouse Standard publishes $10,000, a 20% difference
• H-1B Cap/Cap-Exempt: Alma publishes $3,500, Lighthouse publishes $4,500, a 22% difference
• H-1B Lottery Registration: Alma publishes $500, half of Lighthouse's $1,000, a 50% difference
• TN Visa (New): Alma publishes $3,000, Lighthouse publishes $3,500, a 14% difference
• E-3 (Australian): Alma publishes $3,500, Lighthouse publishes $4,500, a 22% difference

Immigrant Visa (Green Card) Provider Fees:

• EB-1A/EB-1B/EB-1C: Alma publishes $10,000, Lighthouse publishes $15,000, a 33% difference
• EB-2 NIW: $10,000 with Alma compared with $15,000 at Lighthouse, a 33% difference

Alma's pricing is all-inclusive from day one, with no separate charges for RFE responses, assessments, or complexity fees.

What Alma states is included in its base fees:

• Response to any Request for Evidence (RFE)
• Administrative charges including FedEx, printing, copying, and postage
• Up to 3 free consultation calls between attorney and employees per matter
• Platform and software subscription
• 1 free refile in case of initial denial or comprehensive RFE (Growth and Enterprise)
• Implementation, including white-glove migration from an existing vendor
• Bi-weekly status calls with the lead attorney and immigration manager

Modeled 10-case comparison: Using both providers' published standard fees, a company filing 4 O-1s, 3 H-1Bs, 2 EB-1As, and 1 EB-2 NIW would pay $72,500 with Alma and $98,500 with Lighthouse Standard, a modeled difference of $26,000, or approximately 26.4%, excluding government and premium-processing fees. The Alma total consists of $32,000 for the O-1 matters, $10,500 for the H-1B matters, $20,000 for the EB-1A matters, and $10,000 for the EB-2 NIW matter. The Lighthouse Standard total consists of $40,000, $13,500, $30,000, and $15,000 for the same matters.

The size of any difference depends on case volume, the mix of visa categories, the applicable plan tier, and whether dependent filings, adjustment of status, government fees, or negotiated pricing are included. For startups managing tight budgets, provider-fee differences of this kind compound as the team grows.

Visa Coverage: Comparing Published Service Portfolios

Both providers handle core employment-based matters, including O-1, H-1B specialty occupation, L-1, TN, E-3, and the EB-1 and EB-2 NIW green card categories.

Matter types both providers address:

• O-1A and O-1B (extraordinary ability)
• H-1B and H-1B1 specialty occupation
• L-1A and L-1B intracompany transfers
• TN (USMCA professionals)
• E-3 (Australian specialty workers)
• EB-1A, EB-1B, and EB-1C green cards
• EB-2 NIW and PERM-based green cards

Matters Alma prices directly, which Lighthouse's principal pricing and visa-pathways pages do not appear to list:

• J-1 No Objection Waiver applications
• STEM OPT EAD extensions
• DACA EAD renewals
• TPS (Temporary Protected Status) applications

Alma also publishes dedicated guidance for E-2 treaty investor visas alongside its core employment-based categories.

Broad published coverage is relevant for organizations with mixed immigration needs and for individuals whose status may change over time. A single firm handling temporary work visas, STEM OPT transitions, and later green card petitions keeps case history in one place.

Compliance and Data Security: Enterprise Infrastructure

For HR teams and global mobility managers, compliance capability is often a deciding factor. Alma publishes a set of enterprise-oriented features that support audit readiness.

Alma's published compliance infrastructure:

• SOC 2 Type II compliant infrastructure
• HRIS integrations with Workday, ADP, BambooHR, Rippling, UKG, and Gusto
• ATS connectivity for Greenhouse, Lever, Ashby, and Workable
• Automated LCA and I-9 compliance tracking
• Expiration reminders and status alerts
• Source-linked records traceable to the underlying document on demand, with audit-ready exports for HR documentation
• Self-serve reporting across status, spend, approvals, and compliance, plus natural-language reporting through MCP for Claude and Cowork
• Role-based access controls for employee-facing portals

Why compliance capability matters:

Immigration compliance violations can carry significant consequences, and the specific consequence depends on the violation. The Department of Labor states that certain H-1B violations can result in civil money penalties and debarment. USCIS states that Form I-9 violations can result in civil fines, criminal penalties in some circumstances, and debarment from government contracts. Built-in compliance tooling supports clean audit trails, expiration tracking, and I-9 documentation across a workforce.

For enterprise organizations managing 250+ foreign nationals, these features are typically treated as baseline requirements.

Lighthouse does not appear to publish comparable named HRIS or ATS integrations or a SOC 2 certification status on its public pages.

Client Experience: Support Throughout the Process

Immigration matters carry high stakes for careers, families, and long-term plans, so communication quality shapes the experience.

Alma's published client experience features:

• A dedicated attorney and paralegal team assigned to each case, with the attorney who owns the petition accessible to the client
• Real-time dashboards showing case status at every stage
• Bi-weekly status calls with the lead attorney and immigration manager
• A secure document vault for evidence organization
• A guided beneficiary portal that prefills case forms and runs a completeness check before filing
• An employee communication portal with in-app comments for employees and HR
• 86 NPS

Alma's published client testimonials describe responsiveness and transparency. 1 O-1A client noted a case prepared in 2 weeks, and another reported an O-1A approval in 12 days using premium processing.

Lighthouse's published client support model:

• Document upload and signing workflows

Both providers emphasize client communication. Under Alma's model, strategy, preparation, and representation sit within the same firm, backed by contractually binding SLAs that clients and their employees can see in real time. Under Lighthouse's model, document preparation and software sit with American Lighthouse, Inc., while legal services and attorney review are delivered by independent licensed attorneys.

Target Audiences: How Each Provider Positions Itself

Alma positions its services for:

• Individuals seeking employment-based immigration support, from founders to professionals
• Startups with 0 to 25 foreign nationals seeking predictable pricing with no billing surprises
• Growth-stage companies with 26 to 250 foreign nationals requiring compliance tools and structured workflows
• Enterprises with 250+ foreign nationals requiring SOC 2 Type II compliant infrastructure, HRIS integration, and audit-ready records
• Organizations with mixed needs spanning temporary work visas, STEM OPT, DACA, TPS, and employment-based green cards
• Clients who want an integrated law-firm relationship with direct attorney ownership of every case

Lighthouse positions its services for:

• Founders, engineers, and researchers in frontier-technology sectors
• Individuals pursuing O-1 and similar extraordinary ability matters
• Clients working with a software and document-preparation model paired with independent attorney review

The publicly visible distinction is scope of positioning: Alma markets across individual applicants through enterprise workforce management, while Lighthouse markets primarily to founders, engineers, researchers, and frontier-technology employers.

Where Alma's Model Stands Out

Integrated law firm structure: Alma is a law firm, so the attorney-client relationship sits directly with the firm handling the matter, and a licensed attorney owns each case end to end regardless of company size.

Published approval rate: Alma reports a 98%+ approval rate across employment-based matters, 99%+ SLA adherence, and 86 NPS. Lighthouse does not appear to publish a comparable firmwide approval rate.

Lower published provider fees: Alma's published fees are 20% to 33% below Lighthouse's published Standard fees on O-1, H-1B, EB-1A, and EB-2 NIW matters. Based on the published fee schedules, the 10-case portfolio modeled above produces a $26,000 difference, excluding government and premium-processing fees. Actual differences vary with case count, category mix, and plan tier.

Uniform preparation commitment: The guaranteed 2-week case-preparation turnaround once evidence collection is complete provides predictability for the provider-controlled portion of a case. Government adjudication, consular processing, visa issuance, admission, and work-authorization timing remain governed by agency procedures and case-specific factors.

Contractually binding SLAs: Alma's SLAs live on the platform with owner, due date, and status, plus a full audit log visible to clients in real time, backed by 99%+ SLA adherence, so cases move by system design rather than manual follow-up.

Refile provision: Alma's 1 free refile on Growth and Enterprise plans, available on an initial denial or comprehensive RFE, represents $8,000 to $10,000 in contingent value per complex matter, based on Alma's published fees.

Published coverage breadth: Published pricing spanning H-1B, O-1, L-1, TN, E-3, EB-1A green cards, EB-2 NIW, PERM, STEM OPT, DACA, and TPS keeps mixed immigration portfolios and case history with one firm.

For high-skilled professionals pursuing extraordinary ability recognition, founders exploring investor visa categories, or companies building global teams, Alma is a modern immigration law firm, attorney-led and supported by an AI-powered platform and case intelligence engine. More information is available when you get started with Alma.