[HN Gopher] I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does wo...
___________________________________________________________________
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and
startups. AMA
I'll be here for the next 3 hours and then again at around 4 pm EST
for another 3 hours. As usual, there are many possible topics and
I'll be guided by whatever you're concerned with but as much as
possible - because we've received so many questions about this the
past few months - I'd like to focus on the impact of the new
administration on U.S. immigration law and policy. Please remember
that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases for liability
reasons because I won't have access to all the facts. Please stick
to a factual discussion in your questions and comments and I'll try
to do the same in my answers. Thanks!
Author : proberts
Score : 163 points
Date : 2025-01-20 16:20 UTC (6 hours ago)
| ReaLNero wrote:
| What's your outlook on work green-card timelines for the next 2
| years, esp. given the recent change in administration?
| proberts wrote:
| There's not much that an administration can do to impact the
| delays because they primarily are the result of statutory
| backlogs and demand. So, unless there is a significant change
| in the law or a significant drop in demand, these delays are
| likely to persist.
| fertrevino wrote:
| I heard russian citizens were having troubles getting any kind of
| U.S. visa due to the political situation in the world. Does this
| situation still persists? Asking for a friend who still hasn't
| heard back for his tourist visa.
| proberts wrote:
| Yes, it still persists and can result in visa processing delays
| of more than one year.
| muddi900 wrote:
| How much do you expect to fight the government in the next 4
| years?
| proberts wrote:
| We had a window into the administration 8 years ago and as a
| result we changed the way that we assessed and prepared cases
| to preempt fights and we continued with this approach during
| the Biden administration and will continue under the new
| administration until the fights start up again. I think that
| the most immediate significant changes in the area of legal
| immigration will be the imposition of international travel
| bans. We'll probably learn a lot in a few hours when the
| administration starts to roll out its Executive Orders.
| peterldowns wrote:
| What kind of travel bans are you expecting?
| proberts wrote:
| The Supreme Court during Trump's last time in office upheld
| versions of the travel ban that covered the nationals of
| certain countries (Burma, Eritrea, Iran, Kyrgyzstan, Libya,
| Nigeria, North Korea, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tanzania,
| Venezuela, and Yemen). It is expected that most if not all
| of these countries will be included in a new travel ban.
| It's unclear what other countries will be included but
| China and India could be added.
| kubb wrote:
| As an EU citizen, what are my chances of being able to get a visa
| if hired by an American company?
| DiggyJohnson wrote:
| What industry, size of company, and role(s) are you targeting?
| kubb wrote:
| I'm a senior SWE in big tech. Targeting big to mid tech and
| financial companies or startups. I'm weighing my options in
| case of layoffs and whatnot.
| proberts wrote:
| Schedule a consultation with me or another immigration
| attorney to go over your options (because a detailed
| analysis is required) but likely your only real option will
| be the O-1 and as senior SWE at big tech, you should be
| able to qualify for an O-1 or take steps to qualify for an
| O-1.
| proberts wrote:
| If you are currently employed abroad by a related company, then
| the L-1 visa might be an option. If you are not, then -
| assuming that you are not from a country with its own visa,
| such as Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Singapore - the
| potential options are the E-1/E-2, H-1B, and O-1.
| kubb wrote:
| L-1 is primarily for intracompany transfers, right?
|
| O-1 would require demonstrating acclaim - not sure how that
| is done.
|
| E1/2 - the significant trade part isn't that clear to me. Not
| sure who qualifies.
|
| H1B is a lottery.
|
| I can't quite gauge my chances to be honest.
| angott wrote:
| Just apply for jobs, and the immigration attorneys hired by
| your prospective employer will figure it out. U.S.
| immigration by employment is sadly almost entirely based on
| petitions filed _by your employer_. The choice of which
| visa pathway to pursue is not up to you.
|
| If you're curious: the vast majority of Europeans currently
| moving to the U.S. for tech jobs typically do so on L-1A or
| L-1B visas. To qualify, you must work for at least 12
| months at the European subsidiary of a U.S. company before
| being transferred to a U.S. office. There are the
| occasional O-1 cases but you need significant work
| experience and recognition to qualify. Lawyers will
| definitely ask you questions to determine whether you are a
| good candidate for it.
|
| In the past, H-1B was a way more common route, especially
| when there was no lottery or at least when selection odds
| were higher. However, with current lottery odds at just
| 10-15%, many companies now prefer hiring you abroad and
| then going for an L-1. As long as you satisfy the foreign
| work requirement, you are more or less guaranteed approval
| for an L-1 and there is no uncertainty.
|
| Companies also love transferring employees on L-1 because
| unlike H-1B it is an employer-tied visa. This means you
| cannot switch to a different employer, effectively locking
| you in for the duration of your employment until you obtain
| a green card, if and when that happens. Keep that in mind
| if you are offered an L-1: you should carefully consider
| the green card pathways offered by your employer before you
| move.
| kelh wrote:
| How often do you see bootstrapped founders get an O-1? How much
| revenue do they typically have before applying?
| proberts wrote:
| All the time and there's no explicit revenue or funding
| requirement. In the O-1 context, the company-related
| requirements are minimal; it's much more about the
| applicant's/beneficiary's qualifications.
| kujin88 wrote:
| Hi Peter, thank you for doing this AMA. I am on H1B and I
| recently lost my job. I only have about 50 days left to get a new
| job but I have a spouse who is on his own H1B. I wanted to see
| and find out legal and smooth options to buy more time for myself
| to find a new job - If anything, it would be those options that
| do not need me to leave the country and get stamping, if at all.
| My country of citizenship is India, by the way. If you can help
| us out, it would be really great. Thank you.
| proberts wrote:
| The best and easiest option because your spouse is in H-1B
| status is to apply to change your status to dependent H-4
| status using USCIS Form I-539. As long as this is filed during
| your grace period, you can remain in the U.S. while the
| application is pending/until it is approved.
| safog wrote:
| What happens if / when you eventually find a job? Can you
| file another change of status to a H1B? Does the status of
| the original change of status app matter? (e.g., can you
| apply for a COS to H1 while the COS to H4 is still pending?)
|
| Thank you!
| proberts wrote:
| Yes, a COS from H-4 to H-1B is an option. However, if the
| H-4 COS is still pending, you might not be able to get the
| H-1B petition approved as a change of status but all this
| means is that to "activate" the approved H-1B petition, you
| would need to leave the U.S. and reenter with your existing
| visa stamp (obtained through the previous company) or leave
| the U.S. and apply for an H-1B visa (if you don't have a
| valid H-1B visa stamp obtained through the previous
| company).
| TeeMassive wrote:
| What is the typical route for Canadians to work in the US tech
| sector?
| proberts wrote:
| Canadian and Mexican citizens have their own visa
| classification, the TN, and so this is almost always the first
| option to look at because it is often very quick and easy (and
| relatively cheap) to get. Other work visa options for Canadians
| (and the citizens of most countries) are the E-2, L-1, and O-1.
| a_square_peg wrote:
| I understand there is updates being made to the space export
| control rules (https://www.space.commerce.gov/new-space-
| export-control-rule...) regarding space/satellite components
| that were previously classified as ITAR. I've been curious to
| know if this will enable Canadians to apply to some
| space/aerospace technology companies in the US that were
| restricted to US citizens only?
| proberts wrote:
| We've done a lot of work for satellite and space weather
| companies and the feeling I've gotten from my clients is
| that these changes will open up jobs at space/aerospace
| technology companies for foreign nationals but right now,
| it's too early to tell.
| a_square_peg wrote:
| Thanks for sharing!
| RobertRoberts wrote:
| I have a friend who is a foreigner, and is in a master's CS
| degree program in the US. He's married to an American woman as of
| a few months ago.
|
| What is the reasonable amount of time it should take for him to
| be able to get a green card and work here in the US?
|
| And is there something he can do to help expedite any process(es)
| (maybe not a greencard?) so he can legally work and support
| himself and his new family?
| proberts wrote:
| Largely because of the Biden administration's policy of waiving
| the in-person interview requirement in marriage-based green
| card cases, the process has been very fast over the last 4
| years, often taking less than 6 months from the time of filing
| until the approval of the green card application. If the new
| administration brings back the interview requirement, then I
| suspect that the processing time will go back to what it was
| before, which typically was at least 1 year. While a green card
| applicant is waiting for their green card application to be
| reviewed and approved, they will receive a temporary work card.
| The processing of work card applications is all over the place
| but has been better over the past 2 years and can take less
| than 3 months now (although it also can take much longer).
| There is a way to request expedited approval of a work card
| application but the standard is high. Instructions for
| requesting expedite review of an immigration application are
| available on the USCIS web site.
| RobertRoberts wrote:
| Thank you!
| blindriver wrote:
| How viable is the effort to overturn birthright citizenship?
| proberts wrote:
| It's in the Constitution (14th Amendment) I would say extremely
| unlikely.
| willmadden wrote:
| I wouldn't. The wording of the 14th Amendment is ambiguous
| and was arguably misinterpreted by the courts.
|
| "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, AND
| (capitalized for emphasis) subject to the jurisdiction
| thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State
| wherein they reside."
|
| If they can get the SCOTUS to reconsider United States v.
| Wong Kim Ark from 1898 it could go either way - the court is
| conservative and public sentiment has shifted.
| proberts wrote:
| I still think it's extremely unlikely. In other immigration
| contexts, "subject to the jurisdiction thereof" has been
| interpreted to exclude only diplomats and those not subject
| to the laws of the U.S. even though they are in the U.S. So
| children born in the U.S. to diplomats aren't considered
| citizens at birth.
| willmadden wrote:
| The same is true for people born into war zones not fully
| under US control. I still wouldn't write this off. All it
| takes is a compelling argument for a new interpretation
| of "and subject to the jurisdiction thereof".
|
| It's pretty easy to make a compelling argument.
|
| The 14th Amendment was intended to address the
| citizenship status of freed slaves and their descendants
| post-Civil War. It was not meant to apply to the children
| of immigrants, particularly those who were not legally
| present or had not pledged allegiance to the U.S.
|
| A stricter interpretation of "subject to the
| jurisdiction." means it should require complete,
| exclusive allegiance to the U.S., which might not apply
| to children of undocumented immigrants due to their
| parents' legal status or nationality.
|
| You could also argue that the current interpretation
| dilutes national sovereignty by automatically bestowing
| citizenship without a clear reciprocal pledge of
| allegiance from the parents.
|
| The fact that children of diplomats do not automatically
| gain citizenship due to not being "subject to the
| jurisdiction" in the fullest sense could be expanded to
| include children of undocumented immigrants, arguing that
| these parents, too, are outside full U.S. jurisdiction.
|
| Finally, United States v. Wong Kim Ark was decided under
| different circumstances. The socio-political context has
| changed. This could be used to justify revisiting the
| original interpretation.
| anigbrowl wrote:
| Are you seriously suggesting that undocumented immigrants
| are _immune_ from US jurisdiction in some respect? This
| sounds like a reverse version of the odd legal theories
| proffered by sovereign citizens as to why they should not
| be subject to judgements in US courts.
| pockmarked19 wrote:
| Are you saying aliens are not subject to US jurisdiction
| while here? Like "sovereign citizens"? That's what it seems
| like you're saying.
| proberts wrote:
| Diplomats (not all foreign nationals) and their families
| who remain subject to the laws of their own country.
| pockmarked19 wrote:
| Thanks, that's interesting to know! Although my comment
| was addressed to willmadden, and I think they just do not
| know what jurisdiction means.
| dragonwriter wrote:
| > The wording of the 14th Amendment is ambiguous?
|
| It is only ambiguous read in a vacuum. Read in the comtext
| of the US legal tradition in which it was written and the
| way the prior English common law tradition was incorporated
| into that tradition, it is...rather unambiguous. (Most
| notably, its exactly how the Supreme Court had applied the
| principles of English common law involved in multiple
| citizenship cases before the 14th Amendment establishing a
| uniform Constitutional rule for birthright citizenship was
| drafted and ratified. )
|
| > If they can get the SCOTUS to reconsider United States v.
| Wong Kim Ark from 1898 it could go either way.
|
| Sure, if they can get the court to ignore the clear meaning
| of "subject to the jurisdiction thereof" in the context in
| which it was written, it can go either way. But _Wong Kim
| Ark_ isn 't like _Roe_ and the line of cases descended from
| it, its not controversial even within the kind of
| conservative legal tradition that dominates the court.
|
| The Trump Administration could probably get such a case
| before the Court if it really wanted to, but even this
| court I can't see splitting more favorably to overturning
| the status quo on this point than 8-1 against.
| anigbrowl wrote:
| I am not an immigration lawyer, but I am very interested in
| immigration law and the effort to overturn this precedent
| in particular, an interest whch goes back more than 15
| years; so I have done a _lot_ of reading on this argument.
|
| The whole phrase about 'subject to the jurisdiction
| thereof' refers to the fact that foreign diplomats (and
| often, their families) are not subject to the jurisdiction
| of their countries of residence, a concept known as
| diplomatic immunity. This sometimes leads to people with
| diplomatic privileges avoiding legal consequences that
| would otherwise result in fines or custodial sentences, as
| in this recent case:
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Harry_Dunn
|
| Regular, not-diplomatic people of foreign origin who are in
| the US _are_ subject to the jurisdiction of US courts like
| anyone else. I have never found any legal justification for
| the opposite view other than the intense desire of the
| proponent for things to be different. Usually people who
| want to sweep aside this precedent rely on an 18th century
| book called _The Law of Nations_ by Swiss legal theorist
| Emer Vattel, which opts for a concept of _de jure_
| (naturalized) citizenship rather than _jus soli_ (of the
| soil) citizenship as exists here and in some other
| countries. They argue that it was a very popular book in
| its day and that Washington, Jefferson, and other founders
| of the US had certainly read it. when asked why they didn
| 't just write this into the Constitution you usually get a
| hand-wavey answer about how it was so obvious they didn't
| see any need (at best) or the person just stops responding
| or gets mad (at worst).
| tacostakohashi wrote:
| Yep, it's pretty nonsensical. Presumably those that hold
| the view that children of undocumented immigrants born in
| the United States are not citizens also hold they view
| that they are immune to prosecution for crimes by the
| United States for the same reason, but they don't seem to
| talk about that much.
| erehweb wrote:
| I agree with other commenters that the meaning is clear. But
| I think they underestimate how far the Supreme Court is
| willing to go to torture the meaning of the Constitution.
| Hopefully I am wrong.
| throwaway111119 wrote:
| I've read a few different standards for revoking birthright:
|
| 1. Probably the weakest notion is to revoke birthright going
| forward on children born in US to parents without legal status.
|
| 2. A stronger notion seems to be the revocation of birthright
| going forward on children born in the US to parents with green
| cards but not yet US citizenship. This seems to be a popular
| form of jus sanguinis in some EU countries.
|
| 3. I'm not sure how serious is the talk about revocation of
| birthright retroactively for all those born on US soil but to
| parents who at the time only had green cards.
|
| Does anyone have an idea of the momentum behind the stronger
| forms of revocation?
| FractalCheetah wrote:
| What are potential challenges to getting an employment-sponsored
| EB2 visa, as an EU citizen with a Master's degree and more than 5
| years of relevant work experience?
| proberts wrote:
| Sorry. This is a bit too vague. Can you focus your
| question/clarify your concerns?
| yuvalr1 wrote:
| Can you describe the changes that we are anticipated to see as a
| result of the change in the administration?
| proberts wrote:
| He's promised to make a lot of changes immediately, the
| majority concerning illegal immigration and border security.
| I'd recommend going to npr.org. There are good summaries there.
| Etheryte wrote:
| A few questions regarding the EB-5 visa. Is this still a
| realistic path to a green card, and if so, how complicated is the
| process if you want to take the targeted economic area route
| through a regional center? Do the investments through a regional
| center usually persist, or in other words, how high is the risk
| of the underlying business going bankrupt based on real
| experiences? There's plenty of articles about all of this online
| of course, but would be interested in hearing any first hand
| experience you might have.
| proberts wrote:
| The EB-5 is still an option although the process largely
| depends on the regional center/entity that you are going
| through and requires that you do real due diligence like you
| would any major investment. The EB-5 is also an area that at
| various times has been shut down or delayed because of
| government concerns about fraud and criminal activity.
| ruckfool wrote:
| Hi, I looked at the regional centre-dependent EB5 process but
| pivoted to the EB5 direct investment route. I have now
| bootstrapped a single food truck, and we are looking forward
| to launch it next month. Can such kind of business setup
| qualify me for O1 instead ? At my day job, I am a software
| manager in FAANG.
| Etheryte wrote:
| O1 requires you have considerable outstanding achievements
| [0], such as widely recognized international rewards, being
| featured in major publications, scholarly articles, or etc.
| I don't see how a food truck would help you qualify for any
| of those. Demanding a high salary, which I assume you do at
| FAANG, would only tick one box, but to qualify you need to
| tick at least three.
|
| [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O_visa#Requirements
| proberts wrote:
| As applied, although still high, the O-1 requirements are
| easier than they appear so it's always worth evaluating
| particularly for the founder of a business. And an O-1
| can be for almost any occupation, from a hair colorist to
| a cancer researcher.
| Etheryte wrote:
| Thanks for explaining, I was not aware of that, that's
| interesting.
| proberts wrote:
| It's surprising to many people what backgrounds/jobs can
| qualify for O-1 classification so it's not inconceivable
| that your creation of the food truck business could be a
| platform to get you an O-1. This would require an O-1
| analysis of your qualifications and this business.
| jppope wrote:
| I've been really curious about the economics of US immigration
| for foreign workers in information work (software, data, etc).
|
| What are the primary drivers of someone wanting to immigrate to
| the US vs working remotely, and on the corporate side what is the
| incentive to sponsor immigration with great outsourcing
| available? Obv. Hardware or physical professions are NOT the
| same. Personally, I'm happy to move for work, but many people
| seem reluctant to leaving their family, friends, and life for a
| job. How much of a factor does signaling play into it in your
| opinion? How much of a factor do business conditions in the
| United States impact things?
| pigtailgirl wrote:
| did a startup -- had wrong visa class -- angry employee called
| CBP -- got picked up passing through JFK -- 10 year ban -- is
| permission to reapply actually a thing or a dead-end process? --
| thanks --
| proberts wrote:
| It is an option but it's complicated and not easy so consult an
| immigration attorney.
| tushgaurav wrote:
| I am a Indian software developer and i currently work as in a YC
| Startup, how hard to find a job in a US? Should I try or its
| better to find Indian companies?
| proberts wrote:
| The options are limited (H-1B, L-1, and O-1, typically) but
| oftentimes there's a solution; this will depend on your
| qualifications and the company's profile.
| elintknower wrote:
| Just apply for any job at Tesla lol
| babyent wrote:
| My friend is on h1b. Can he join me as a co founder?
|
| He has done zero work/contribution so far because he is tied to
| his sponsor.
|
| I would like to have him as a co founder and would like any
| advice you can offer. Thanks!
| proberts wrote:
| It's possible but there are a lot of factors to consider/issues
| at play which are impossible to go through in this forum so you
| and he should consult an immigration attorney.
| pcl wrote:
| In 2011, we hired someone on an H1B at the startup where I
| worked. It was a straightforward process. The paperwork added a
| couple weeks to the process, and IIRC it cost $10k or so in
| legal fees, but for a great hire, it was definitely not a
| meaningful barrier.
|
| We were already incorporated as a C corp. I would imagine that
| some sort of incorporation will be pretty much a requirement.
|
| (IANAL)
| proberts wrote:
| Thanks. It's more complicated when the H-1B beneficiary is a
| founder/owner.
| Tteriffic wrote:
| Most posted job positions in the US, that I see, explicitly state
| they will not sponser candidates. But how receptive are they to
| TN visa candidates and do you see that attitude changing in the
| near future?
| proberts wrote:
| That's mostly a knee-jerk ignorant position since it's
| oftentimes very easy, fast, and inexpensive to hire a Canadian
| in TN status. So it's a process of somehow getting through to
| someone at the company to educate them not to pass on a good
| candidate simply because they're Canadian. Which of course is a
| lot easier said than done.
| xordon wrote:
| Does this also apply to Mexican's wanting to get a TN as
| well, I've heard the process is slightly different?
| proberts wrote:
| It's a different process for Mexicans because they're not
| visa exempt like Canadians and so have to get a TN visa at
| a U.S. Consulate.
| midnightmonster wrote:
| The law firm I work for (as lead software engineer) did the TN
| thing for a Canadian software engineer hire for my team last
| year. [I was not involved in the paperwork but] my
| understanding is we got an immigration lawyer to help us write
| everything the right way, since we had not done it before (and
| lawyers specialize), and it was not especially expensive and it
| all worked out quite quickly.
| fiduciarytemp wrote:
| I received notice of a successful i140 application (for eb1a) in
| September 2022 and have been waiting for the past 2.5 years for
| the dates to become current. The dates haven't moved past Feb 22
| for the past 6 months or so. Any speculation on how these dates
| may move under the new administration?
| proberts wrote:
| That's a complete unknown, unfortunately, but to be clear,
| short of changing the green card law, there's little that an
| administration can do to impact the movement of the cutoff
| dates.
| javier123454321 wrote:
| I have an idea for a startup in which the current company that I
| am a full-time employee for could be a potential customer. It
| would be a tool to facilitate some of the workflow that we've had
| an issue with, but nothing related to the industry in which we
| operate. We didn't really sign a non-compete or an NDA, but I am
| very curious if there is some kind of basic guideline for
| potential conflict of interest in a situation like this. Besides
| the immediately obvious things like never work on it with company
| equipment or during work hours.
| proberts wrote:
| It's good that you have flagged this potential issue but I
| can't advise since that's outside my area; you should consult
| an employment lawyer.
| _jules wrote:
| hi Peter, thanks for doing this. My parents were rejected twice
| for B1/B2 visa (under section 214b I think) - both times before I
| was a LPR (I had valid visa). Recently the country of citizenship
| was announced to be joining VWP - as one of the question is "have
| you even been refused US visa", is it a lost battle for them?
| proberts wrote:
| No, it's not a lost battle. Unfortunately, their ESTA
| applications likely will be rejected outright because of their
| past B-1/B-2 visa application denials. But it's still possible
| that they could get B-1/B-2 visas. They should apply again but
| given their previous denials, they should consult an
| immigration attorney.
| _jules wrote:
| Just to make sure I understand the recommendation: US based
| immigration attorney for a tourist visa? (I don't want to
| sponsor them and they have no intention of moving here - they
| just want to visit and see us & the kids).
| golergka wrote:
| I'm working on my O1 visa and I'm nervous about my portfolio. I'm
| a developer with plenty of experience, but never spoke at
| conferences, blogged, or was public. I hires lawyers for the
| paperwork, but the publicist they recommended me started doing
| "articles" that just scream fake. I decided to get my own, real
| stuff instead.
|
| What things are the best from POV of effort/benefit? Open source
| projects, talks, podcasts, blogging, posts on community sites
| like devs? Trying to build my own dev-centric twitter, YouTube,
| something else? I know how to build stuff, but I know very little
| about all of this stuff.
| proberts wrote:
| Podcasts, blogs, posts matter little and talks are only
| marginally helpful. The lowest hanging criteria are essential
| roles for distinguished organization, high compensation, press,
| and judging (either serving as a reviewer for an academic
| journal or conference or serving as a judge at a competition or
| event, such as a hackathon or startup/business competition). By
| the way, your gut is right; USCIS is sensitive to
| fake/manufactured press and this can undermine an otherwise
| strong petition.
| golergka wrote:
| Thank you! What kind of press would I go for? And how would
| an engineer typically get to the judging roles like these?
| legitster wrote:
| Some family friends are part of a diaspora seeking asylum from
| Russia. Their hearing dates all fall inside 2026.
|
| Part of their asylum plea is admission to activities that Russia
| criminalized during the invasion of Ukraine - draft dodging,
| dissemination information about the invasion, and sending aid
| money to their relatives in Ukrainian.
|
| If they were deported back to Russia, their asylum plea would
| ostensibly be used as an admission of guilt.
|
| With the change in administrations, there is a lot of
| consternation in the community that their hearing will go badly
| or be cancelled altogether. Is there any indication what will
| happen with these cases yet?
| proberts wrote:
| I've heard about those concerns but there's really no clear
| indication yet how asylum applicants from Russia will be
| treated by the new administration.
| aaraujo002 wrote:
| I am filing an EB1-A petition with a law firm. The law firm says
| that based on their recent experience, EB1-A cases that have
| requested Premium Processing (PP) have a lower approval rate and
| a higher RFE rate.
|
| While the statistic may be true, is there a causation between PP
| and RFE/denial or is it just that cases created in a rush with PP
| might simply get more RFE or denial?
|
| Thanks
| proberts wrote:
| With all due respect, the firm's data is 100% anecdotal and I
| would say meaningless. There's no reliable data on this
| question since there's no control studies (and can't be) on the
| relative merits of filing EB1As with or without premium
| processing. We file 99% of our EB1As with premium processing
| because most of our clients don't want to wait 6 months to hear
| back from USCIS.
| cabronerp wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for doing this!
|
| We have a co-founder who is from the UK. We are a Delaware
| company. Is there an easy way for 1/ paying him and 2/ taking
| SEIS investment from UK investors? Sorry if I'm misunderstanding
| what an immigration attorney knows about
| proberts wrote:
| No worries. These aren't really immigration companies but I
| know from experience that founders/employees living abroad can
| get paid directly by U.S. companies (this is a payroll issue,
| not an immigration one) or through third-party entities,
| oftentimes referred to as Employers of Records (or EORs), like
| Deel or Remote.
| tvcx wrote:
| I'm a citizen of an EU country that meets the Visa Waiver
| criteria. I'm working for a startup based in the USA. I'm one of
| the earliest employees, hence a great asset to the company. I'm
| considering emigrating sometime in the future but I'm unsure what
| needs to happen to enable it. Is a company-sponsored visa the
| only option? How inclined are startup founders to sponsor work
| visas? I'm convinced this is not attainable now, we've got a
| product to build, I'm only speculating for "when we make it".
| Separately, how are startup employees treated when it comes to
| trying to convert the work visa to a green card? The definitions
| for EB-1, EB-2 are very interpretable. Thank you!
| proberts wrote:
| In my experience, because of the competition for talent,
| startups often are more open to employing foreign nationals
| than many large, established companies. The terms EB-1, EB-2,
| etc. refer to green card categories and the green card process
| takes a while so that's probably not the initial path toward
| working in the U.S. The likely visa options will be the L-1 (as
| a transferee) or an O-1 and oftentimes founding engineers or
| early stage employees qualify for the O-1 or can take steps to
| qualify. Both the L-1 and O-1 require company sponsorship.
| synack wrote:
| Any advice for online forum operators regarding the UK Online
| Safety Act taking effect in March?
| proberts wrote:
| Sorry. My expertise is limited to U.S. immigration law.
| a2code wrote:
| Will YC and startups be more or less agreeable on remote work?
| Will the new administration cause changes to remote work?
| proberts wrote:
| I can't comment on YC and startups and while the administration
| likely will make changes to the H-1B law and process, I don't
| see major changes in how remote work is viewed and treated.
| antithesis-nl wrote:
| Yeah, so, any chance you could do a monthly-or-so post that
| explains, in legal terms (of course!) why referring to an entire,
| diverse bunch of _people_ as "H1Bs" (which, as you know, is just
| a _visa class_ and pretty much, as you also know, the only path
| to legally entering the US as an immigrant without family ties
| or, well, the future-Head-Guy-or-one-of-his-cronies fancying you)
| is, like, a crime against humanity?
|
| Because that has always been a trope amongst HN commenters (a
| large subset of which is supposed to be future HN founders), and
| it bothers me. A lot.
| proberts wrote:
| I don't agree with that view/trope since my clients (granted, a
| limited dataset) are hiring H-1B workers because they believe
| that they are the best candidates.
| scarface_74 wrote:
| I am not as anti H1B as the original poster and have no
| animosity toward my H1B visa coworkers. But let's be real.
| There are thousands of unemployed citizens that could do the
| work just as well especially when you consider how many work
| for WITCH companies.
| keybored wrote:
| What "best" means could be unpacked.
|
| - Just best for the job
|
| - Best retention since the visa is tied to the employer
|
| - Best price, i.e. lower wage
|
| All of that amounts to "best" without outright lying.
|
| The bell curve (people tend to narrowly focus on IQ when it
| comes to "best for the job") should look the same everywhere.
| So it seems a bit roundabout to look all over the world when
| you have a "culture fit" in your own backyard.
|
| So it does seem to just come back to mutually beneficial
| exploitation of the employee. But the clients never have to
| talk about it in such plain terms.
| trevorhinesley wrote:
| It sounds like that term ("H1Bs") is simply shorthand for
| foreign citizens that are potential candidates for U.S. work
| via an H1B visa. Why is that bothersome?
| csa wrote:
| > why referring to an entire, diverse bunch of people as "H1Bs"
|
| Even though you seem to be getting downvoted aggressively, I'm
| going to provide a short, good-faith reply.
|
| First, I'm not Peter, and I'm not an immigration lawyer, but I
| can provide insight as someone who knows and has worked with
| many H1Bs.
|
| Second, this thread covers the major points, imho:
|
| https://www.reddit.com/r/AskALiberal/comments/1huxnn1/why_is...
|
| For tech folks in particular, I think that there are two
| particular pain points that cause H1Bs to be referred to
| pejoratively sometimes (which I think is what your underlying
| issue is with):
|
| 1. Companies like Infosys that are gaming the system
| aggressively, often times using dark patterns. Net loss for the
| economy, and unnecessary stress on the immigration system,
| imho.
|
| 2. Qualified Americans losing their jobs (e.g., relatively
| recent layoffs) and struggling to find work. Meanwhile, H1Bs
| remain employed and new ones are added regularly. This doesn't
| pass the sniff test of "lack of talent" in the domestic market.
| Additionally, folks on the inside know that the reality is that
| either the company is gaming the hiring/h1b system and/or the
| company has a broken hiring process.
|
| Note that I don't necessarily advocate for a rapid and
| aggressive culling of h1b workers like some do, but the h1b
| system could definitely use some improved oversight and/or
| refined regulation. It's being abused at scale by multiple
| actors.
| mark3141 wrote:
| What's your perspective on when the EB-3 and EB-2 rest-of-world
| priority dates will move into 2024, considering they haven't
| changed much since April 2023?
| proberts wrote:
| Unfortunately, I just don't know and usually when I guess
| (because it's just a guess like everyone else), I'm wrong.
| FightingFrog wrote:
| Hello, thank you for hosting this! I'm applying for green card
| based on marriage. I've prepared i130, i485, i130a, i864, i131,
| i601, i765, i693. Is there any form/documents I'm missing? Is
| there any very crucial marriage, financial, or legal status proof
| that tends to be overlooked by applicants? Thank you!
| proberts wrote:
| Unfortunately, I can't provide that advice since I'm not
| representing you and your wife and don't "own" the case and
| know all the facts. All I can say generally is that it's
| important to provide financial documents (such as tax returns
| and W-2s/1099s), evidence of the bona fides of the marriage,
| and evidence of past and present immigration status.
| GummyCharger wrote:
| Thank you a lot. Were Trump to sign new executive orders
| regarding immigration today, would that affect the current
| instructions on USCIS website immediately?
| proberts wrote:
| That depends on the wording of the EO but they could take
| effect immediately.
| elephant81 wrote:
| Thanks Peter. With an American wife, and an Australian Passport,
| what would you recommend as the best path to move to the US?
| proberts wrote:
| An E-3 requires a job offer but with a job offer, the E-3 is
| much faster, easier, and cheaper than a marriage-based green
| card application. After you are here, if you decide that you'd
| like to make your permanent home here, you can apply for a
| green card even if you are in E-3 status. That just shouldn't
| be your intent now when applying for an E-3 visa.
| _xerces_ wrote:
| Do you feel the H1B system denies jobs to Americans or suppresses
| wages for those with jobs?
| chronic7300690 wrote:
| > Do you feel the H1B system denies jobs to Americans or
| suppresses wages for those with jobs?
|
| Yes.
|
| If you have a problem with that, move to Europe.
|
| The US is known for making money. Not for taking care of its
| citizens.
| cscurmudgeon wrote:
| So zero data give by you to support your view that H1B lowers
| wages (as usual, because data shatters the fake narrative H1B
| lowers wages).
|
| So according to you 1. H1B lowers wages,
| 2. America is known for making money 3. Yet more
| professionals from Europe want to move to the US than the
| other way around (as seen in this thread)
|
| Don't you see how 2 and 3 contradict 1?
|
| Also, despite H1B why are developer salaries higher in the US
| than in Europe?
|
| https://4dayweek.io/salary/software-engineering-europe-vs-
| un...
|
| Are European companies exploiting their workers?
| chronic7300690 wrote:
| > Don't you see how 2 and 3 contradict 1?
|
| Nope.
|
| Because even with the lower H1B wage, it is still 3x higher
| than Europe.
|
| Europeans know this. Americans know this. And you know
| this.
|
| > Are European companies exploiting their workers?
|
| Nope.
|
| It just turns out, ambitious Europeans don't give a shit
| about work life balance. Hence the desire to move to US.
| cscurmudgeon wrote:
| How does Ukraine's work-life balance look like now and
| before the war?
|
| The story of the ant and grasshopper has been taught for
| ages.
| americasonly wrote:
| You are the one who should be leaving the country with this
| attitude or destroying the country
| cafed00d wrote:
| I'm on an H1B visa since 2017. I extended in 2021 and again in
| 2023 (thanks to approved I-140). But my visa stamp in my passport
| is from 2017 which expired in 2020. I haven't made efforts to get
| another stamp mainly because of the pandemic in 2020 and long
| appointment backlogs thereafter.
|
| Is there a necessity to always keep a valid visa stamp in my
| passport? Apart from the ease of travel are there any other
| reasons to always keep a current visa stamp in my passport? I do
| have all valid I-797 documents of status and have kept my status
| current all the time.
| proberts wrote:
| There's no requirement to maintain a valid H-1B visa but under
| certain circumstances having a valid H-1B visa stamp can make
| it easier to change H-1B employers.
| theyinwhy wrote:
| Hi Peter, a European (Hungary) colleague of us visited Iran once
| and does not receive any Visa (tourist,...) because of that. He
| does not even receive answers to his renewed applications. Is
| there anything he can do?
| proberts wrote:
| It's very difficult to get past this issue. We have Iranian
| citizen clients and non-Iranian citizen clients who have
| visited Iran whose visitor and work visa applications have been
| pending for more than a year. One option is for your colleague
| to ask his federal representative to reach out to the
| Consulate. This is done all the time but to be clear, it
| usually doesn't help but there's really nothing else to do. In
| the non-tourist visa application context, some people file
| mandamus actions, which oftentimes help but I think such an
| action would just accelerate the denial of the visitor visa
| application.
| theyinwhy wrote:
| Thank you very much for your time Peter!
| initialg wrote:
| I am on H1b visa now. I filed my PERM one month ago. According to
| some people, it takes 1 year and a half to get my PERM approved
| and it takes another month to get my I-140 approved. But I want
| to jump ships soon. If I leave my current company, I will have to
| start everything over again (Prevailing Wage Determination, Labor
| Market Test, PERM). I feel I'm stuck in this company. What are
| the things I could do?
| proberts wrote:
| Not much, unfortunately, other than by applying for a green
| card on your own, one that's not tied to a specific employer,
| such as a national interest waiver (or NIW) green card
| application or an extraordinary ability (or EB1A) green card
| application. Because there's no way around losing the PERM if
| you leave now.
| smiley0687 wrote:
| Thank you for doing this. I don't know if this is part of your
| expertise. I am planning of incorporating the holding of my start
| up in Delaware, the startup is located in Dubai (I am a resident
| there, German origin, my co-founder US passport holder). As we
| are planning on targeting US investors we decided to have the
| holding in Delaware. Now the question is, what are the potential
| tax implications for a company from the outside incorporating a
| holding in Delaware. (1) Is the operational business taxable in
| the US? Is there a threshold? Or would it only play a role once
| we would potentially sell the company? The feedback we are
| receiving is not very straightforward. (2) I am aware that my
| confounder obviously needs to report to the IRS, but would him
| holding an Us passport also have an impact on the company or this
| is completely separate?
| proberts wrote:
| Unfortunately, these very important tax
| questions/considerations are outside my area of expertise.
| justinpombrio wrote:
| Any idea how the executive orders will effect trans people
| renewing their passports?
|
| A trans friend already changed the gender marker on his passport,
| and it's expiring in two years. He's deciding whether to renew it
| ASAP or wait. Any guess how likely it is to come back with the
| wrong gender marker, or get stuck in a bureaucratic mess?
|
| Thank you so much for doing these! No worries if this question is
| outside your wheelhouse.
| proberts wrote:
| It's not really within my area since this question concerns the
| rights of citizens but this is something I've been concerned
| about because we have a lot of LGBTQ clients who are eligible
| for or in the process of applying for citizenship. I suspect
| that there will be clarity about this soon and I suspect that
| it won't be favorable to trans people.
| amoshebb wrote:
| Two Canadian cofounders want to start a company in the USA, is
| O-1 the only option? Is TN a possibility?
| winter_blue wrote:
| Recent amendments to work visa rules published in the federal
| register (and that took effect on January 17, 2025) enables
| being a founder of a company while on an H-1B, and perhaps
| might similarly allow that for a TN, but Peter Roberts or
| another expert would likely know best about it.
| proberts wrote:
| Thanks. The law never has explicitly prohibited founders from
| qualifying for H-1B or TN status but there have been
| challenges and the changes mentioned above will make it
| easier for founders to qualify for H-1B status and I think
| make it easier for founders to qualify for TN status. In
| fact, we recently had a founder obtain a TN through CBP and
| her status as a founder was front and center in her
| application.
| hannibal529 wrote:
| Do you foresee Canadians applying for TN/H1-Bs facing more
| obstacles in the new administration?
| proberts wrote:
| Definitely not H-1Bs (at least no different from non-
| Canadians). The TN could be impacted, however. My biggest fear
| is that the administration will limit TN renewals to filings
| with USCIS (and not allow renewals with CBP) like it did years
| ago to Canadian L-1 renewals. That change was a negative game-
| changer for Canadians in L-1 status. I am also concerned that
| the administration will simply make it tougher for Canadians to
| qualify for TN status.
| lterrac wrote:
| Hello, I am a computer science research engineer with 2 years of
| experience in a non-U.S. big tech company research center in
| Europe. Before that, I worked as a research fellow at the
| university after I got my master degree. During that time I
| published 4 papers, and I was a reviewer for a CS journal (even
| though I actually reviewed only 1 paper). I actually have 60-70
| citations of my works (if it might be relevant in any way). What
| are my chances to get an O-1 visa? Thanks in advance for your
| time
| proberts wrote:
| Very high.
| adrianpluis wrote:
| Any tips or suggestions for a DACA recipient with a year left in
| Uni for Computer Science, here in the states? I am nervous about
| my career post-school and am wondering if you could shed some
| insight as to what my options might be. Thank you for your time.
| proberts wrote:
| We represent a lot of DACA recipients and the options of moving
| to another status are very fact-specific, depending on their
| status at the time of entry, their qualifications, their
| country of citizenship, etc. A year isn't a lot of time as we
| all know so I would recommend scheduling a consultation with an
| immigration attorney soon.
| adrianpluis wrote:
| Understood thank you for your help.
| nand_gate wrote:
| Thanks for doing this, Peter. What is a good route for an English
| national looking to move their profitable software business to
| the US? E-2? Would this be a path to long-term tax residency in
| America?
| proberts wrote:
| The E-2 visa is usually a very good and pretty easy option as
| long as the investment is enough (typically at least $100k USD)
| and there's a good business plan. I can't comment on tax
| residency.
| enragedcacti wrote:
| What are your thoughts on the future of the Laken Riley Act's
| provisions on empowering State AGs to sue the federal government
| over immigration enforcement, both in terms of constitutionality
| and in terms of outcomes if signed into law and upheld?
| proberts wrote:
| I'm not a fan but I haven't really analyzed the
| constitutionality of these provisions although the arguments
| I've heard regarding their unconstitutionality make sense to
| me.
| matthewmorgan wrote:
| Do you believe there are such a thing as nations, or merely
| different economic zones?
| proberts wrote:
| The law distinguishes between the two so from a practical
| standpoint for me, the answer is yes.
| away_im_thrown wrote:
| Hi Peter,
|
| First of all, I wanted to thank you for taking the time and
| offering your help for the community! I had a couple of
| questions. For context, I'm Iranian and I've been a green card
| holder for the past 10 years, 5 of which I've been residing
| continuously inside the US.
|
| 1. I'm planning to apply for my citizenship this summer. Do you
| think there would be any complications with my naturalization
| given the current political climate and that Trump's now in
| office? Since my green card is also expiring around that time,
| would you recommend that I request its renewal separately or
| would I be fine waiting to apply for citizenship right away?
|
| 2. After obtaining my citizenship, I'm also planning to petition
| a visa for my fiance (which is also an Iranian living inside
| Iran). Do you think that request would still be processed same as
| before during this new administration? Would requesting for a
| spouse visa be any better if we were to get married sooner?
|
| 3. Would it be any better if my fiance were to apply for a
| college/university in the US instead? I'm asking this because
| I've heard rumors that Trump would be much easier on student
| visas than immigration visas.
| proberts wrote:
| 1. I would recommend applying to renew your green card as well
| because it's not clear how long the naturalization process will
| take under the new administration. Regarding potential
| complications, last time he was in office, I didn't see any
| extra issues/delays with my Iranian clients becoming citizens.
| 2. This process could be impacted because she's outside the
| U.S. and it's easier for the administration to impact those
| outside the U.S. seeking immigrant (green card) visas through a
| U.S. Consulate than to impact those in the U.S. seeking to
| obtain green cards through USCIS. I don't think it matters
| whether you get married sooner. 3. Possibly but as you know,
| even Iranians applying for F-1 students visas can be subject to
| significant delays.
| akktor wrote:
| Hi Peter! Thank you for doing this.
|
| I'm a software engineer with 3 years of experience and a MSc
| degree in computer science. I'm currently working in a big tech
| company in the UK and I would like to move to the US in the near
| future. At the moment I'm more leaning toward an L1 because I
| don't have to go through the lottery but I'm exploring other
| scenarios. Would you recommend trying to move to the US with an
| L1 or an H1B? Does an L1 provide a path to a GC? What are the
| cons of an L1 visa compared to an H1B?
|
| Again, many thanks!
| brit_in_america wrote:
| I assume L1B because you mentioned "engineer" instead of
| "manager."
|
| I'm currently on an L1B visa, which is a three-year dual-intent
| visa extendable for another two years. This should provide
| ample time to initiate and complete a Green Card application
| under Employment-Based 2nd preference.
|
| However, I would consider choosing the H1-B visa for the
| following reasons:
|
| It's getting harder to get L1-B because USCIS are asking more
| questions about if a candidate has specialized knowledge to
| meet the requirements.
|
| The processing times for Green Cards and PERM are increasing
| and five years might not be enough in the near future. In that
| case you would need a very cooperative employer to allow you to
| continue the application via Consular Processing from the UK.
|
| My own Green Card application began in 2022, and I'm not likely
| to receive it until 2026 due to the substantial backlog for
| applicants from the Rest of the World (ROW) category, which
| includes British-born individuals.
|
| On an L1 visa, you'll be tied to your current job until either
| your Employment Authorization Document (EAD) arrives and you
| have portability under AC21, you're approved for an H1-B visa
| with a different employer (which will reset your Green Card
| application timeline); or you're approved for a Green Card.
|
| If you switch to an H1-B visa, you have the flexibility to
| change jobs before your Green Card is approved. You can also
| retain your Priority Date (PD), which represents your position
| in the Green Card queue, although you'll need to restart all
| the steps of the process again. Additionally, your H1-B visa is
| extendable indefinitely after receiving an approved I-140
| petition.
|
| This immigration system here is a mess and it's getting worse.
| Not to discourage you but this is the worst time for Brits to
| move here.
| proberts wrote:
| I was assuming that you qualified equally for both visas but
| from an outcome standpoint, if the employing U.S. company
| doesn't qualify as a "blanket L" company, then it can be very
| tough to get an L-1B visa (which is for professionals/non-
| managers) because the process goes through USCIS. So, from an
| outcome standpoint, unless the employing U.S. entity
| qualifies as a blanket L company, it's much easier to get an
| H-1B visa.
| brit_in_america wrote:
| I was rejected initially without a blanket petition and
| then approved after the blanket petition was in place.
|
| My experience matches exactly what you have said.
|
| One benefit I forgot to mention of L1 is that spouses can
| work incidental of status. L2S is essentially an open work
| permit but is tied to the validity of the L1 visa.
| uhuruity wrote:
| The problem with the H1B is, of course, winning the lottery.
| The odds are poor and generally getting worse each year. The
| L1B may be the only realistic option
| proberts wrote:
| The main advantage of the L-1 relative to the H-1B is that
| there's no lottery so the U.S. company can sponsor you for an
| L-1 at any time. The main advantages of the H-1B relative to
| the L-1 is that it's transferable from one company to another
| and can be renewed indefinitely if you are in the green card
| process. Regarding which one is better from a green card
| perspective, the response is that your underlying status has no
| bearing on your green card options so both are fine.
| thiagocmoraes wrote:
| My personal experience, and I think the optimal case, is to
| come on L1 but apply to H1B via consular interview. This way,
| if you're ever fired from your job, you use the H1B to get
| authorization to work in a new company (need to leave the US
| and get a visa in a consulate), while keeping L1 benefits as
| possible (spouse can work and no lottery).
| uhuruity wrote:
| Could you elaborate on this a bit more? If your company
| sponsors you to come on an L1 visa, how can you
| simultaneously apply for an H1B? And in any case, how can you
| get the H1B at all without winning the lottery (assuming your
| employer is subject to the cap)?
| sockeye123 wrote:
| I am on a TN visa and recently got a promotion which elevated my
| title but largely kept my responsibilities the same. My old title
| had the name of my TN profession in it, the new one is adjacent
| but does not. Could this cause issue? I travel with the form I
| received from USCIS through mail-in TN renewal.
|
| Related, I'm waiting in the green card backlog with a completed
| PERM. Will this title change affect that?
| proberts wrote:
| Whether a new or amended TN is required depends on the job
| duties, not the title, so it appears that your TN should remain
| valid. But you should speak with your company's attorney about
| what you should carry with you when you travel and how you
| should respond to questions about your job. The same is largely
| true for your PERM application unless possibly the promotion
| puts you in a significantly higher comp bracket or
| significantly changes your place in the company's hierarchy.
| swyx wrote:
| some incomplete notes on my recent o1 . i recommend minn at
| lighthousehq, tell her i said hi
| https://github.com/swyxio/swyxdotio/issues/477
| mark3141 wrote:
| I've heard good things about LighthouseHQ from friends. The
| founder agreed to look my case over but then ghosted me.
| Unclear why, but I followed up and didn't hear back so
| mkim383 wrote:
| Hi Mark -- Minn here. So sorry for my miss here. Drop me a
| line at minn@lighthouseh[dot]com to reconnect. We've worked
| with hundreds of applicants, many in the YC community and
| happy to see how we can help!
| mizzao wrote:
| If a US very early-stage startup hires a Canadian and grants them
| restricted common stock (similar to what founders get), what are
| the implications for them (1) from a Canadian tax perspective*
| and (2) if they move to the US later on*?
|
| *(1) e.g. is there anything like the 83(b) election or similar.
|
| *(2) how do 83(b)s work for folks that might move to the US
| later, especially given "might" ?
| proberts wrote:
| All good questions but outside my limited area of expertise (US
| immigration). You should consult an international tax expert.
| mizzao wrote:
| What do you think will change for folks who are paroled under
| Uniting for Ukraine (https://www.uscis.gov/ukraine)?
| proberts wrote:
| That's a really good question and of concern to a lot of
| people. No one knows at this point but the concern is that the
| new administration will kill the program or at a minimum
| modify/restrict it.
| mdhb wrote:
| What a shit time to think about moving to the US.
| TheBlight wrote:
| Why do you say that?
| mdhb wrote:
| No reason at all...
|
| https://bsky.app/profile/drrosena.bsky.social/post/3lg75xw2q.
| ..
| highcountess wrote:
| Are there any pitfalls to prepare for or avoid for people trying
| to get their parents permanent residency/green cards?
| proberts wrote:
| These tend to be pretty straightforward easy applications.
| There really are no gotchas in this context.
| proberts wrote:
| Great questions and comments. Thank you! I'm taking a break until
| around 3 pm EST and then will return for several more hours.
| ishyfishyy wrote:
| Do you think nonimmigrant worker petition adjudication is
| stricter at land borders, pre-flight inspection stations by CBP
| as compared to a filing with USCIS?
|
| How common is it for CBP to deny entry / readjudicate a petition
| if a worker has an approved USCIS petition and an approval
| notice?
| proberts wrote:
| Adjudications vary considerably from land crossing to land
| crossing and from airport in Canada to airport in Canada but as
| a very general rule, it's easier to get a TN through CBP at a
| land crossing or airport than through USCIS but this also
| depends in part on specific TN occupation being applied under
| and the applicant's background. It's rare but not unheard-of
| for CBP to deny entry to a Canadian with an approved TN
| petition. Again, the risk varies by land crossing and airport
| with Pearson probably the worst and to be avoided if there's
| any concern.
| kobevr wrote:
| Hi Peter, Thank you so much for doing this.
|
| I just moved to the USA as J2-Dependant. I have already submitted
| form I-765 to get a work permit (EAD) but this can take between 3
| and 4 months. A European company that just opened an office in
| the USA would love to hire me but might not want to wait that
| long. Is there anyway to speed up the process by them sponsoring
| me?
| proberts wrote:
| There would have to be a visa that you qualify for that the
| company could sponsor you for, such as an O-1 or a country-
| specific visa, but given how long such a process likely would
| take, even if you qualified for another visa, you probably
| wouldn't get it much faster than the J-2 work card.
| joshdavham wrote:
| Any pitfalls to watch out for for Canadians on the TN?
| Specifically during this next administration?
| proberts wrote:
| We just have to keep our eye on this because almost certainly
| there will be changes whether to the application process or to
| the application/interpretation of the regulations.
| alsodumb wrote:
| Hey Peter! Thanks for doing this!
|
| I'm trying to understand the dual intent nature of O1A. I'm a PhD
| student with EB2-NIW and EB1A approved. Unfortunately, I am not
| expecting a green card in the next 6-12 years due to my country
| of birth.
|
| I am eligible for O1A, but it seems like the dual-intent of O1A
| seems to be in grey area unlike H1B. Would I have any issues with
| O1A stamping in foreign embassies or during reentry given that I
| filed I-140 and showed immigration intent? Or is it safe to
| assume that O1A is also dual intent? Thanks!
| proberts wrote:
| It is grayish but during the past 20 years I've only had one
| instance where the Consulate pushed back on the issuance of an
| O-1 visa because the applicant had an approved I-140. That was
| over 10 years ago and even in that case, the O-1 was eventually
| issued. So, for all intents and purposes, the Consulates view
| the O-1 as a dual intent visa. Also, there's some preparation
| that you can do before applying for your O-1 visa and attending
| your O-1 visa appointment to minimize the risk if this issue is
| raised by the Consulate.
| alsodumb wrote:
| Thank you so much for the response! Could you share a bit
| more on what the preparation looks like? It's something I've
| seen vaguely mentioned in forums but no one shared the
| specifics of the prep. Thanks!
| proberts wrote:
| That would require a short discussion - give and take - and
| I'd be happy to prepare you when you get to that point.
| alsodumb wrote:
| Thank you! I'll talk to the startup that's hiring me soon
| to set up a consult with you through formal channels.
| Appreciate the responses here!
| bhasi wrote:
| If EB1A is approved, my understanding is that the applicant
| becomes "current" and eligible for the green card at once
| without any waiting in the queue regardless of country of
| birth. Is that not correct?
| alsodumb wrote:
| There's a cap on how many EB1 green cards they give out per
| year, and there's also a per country cap within that cap (no
| country cannot cross 7% of total cap)
|
| Unfortunately, there are a lot of EB1C greencard applicants
| from my country (India) as the bar for L1 and EB1C is pretty
| low. Since all EB1 visas (EB1A, EB1B, and EB1C) are counted
| together towards the cap, that means that even though I
| required a muncher higher bar to qualify for EB1A, I have to
| wait in queue with all the EB1C applicants who applied before
| me.
|
| Based on my estimate, it'll be more than 6 years (or even
| more) for EB1A priority date to come to late 2024.
| proberts wrote:
| For those from China and India, based on the current
| backlogs, the process would take about 4-5 years; for those
| from every other country, there is no backlog in this
| category so the process could take less than 1 year.
| papichulo4 wrote:
| Hey Peter! I wanted to thank you for doing this. I just got my
| green card last year, and it all kind of started with me asking
| you a question about H1B caps in a thread like this almost a
| decade ago. Super appreciate you doing this for people that are
| dreaming of a better future, dreaming of the American dream.
|
| Wish you the best!
| proberts wrote:
| Wow. That's so nice to hear. Thanks!
| aio2 wrote:
| How's it going?
| hoerzu wrote:
| What are better chances O1 or H1B? Still need apply for a visa
| waiver due to a record on my file.
|
| For O1 - I have a company
|
| - I'm getting published soon (Springer Nature. I only have a
| Bachelor in Science)
|
| - I have articles written about me
|
| - I published 2 articles in a large newspaper
|
| - I was a judge at a hackathon
| proberts wrote:
| Without knowing all the details, it looks like you should have
| a solid O-1.
| annavdoro wrote:
| Right now there are many cases with visa administrative
| processing taking several years after o1 approval. Any changes
| expected here?
| proberts wrote:
| I haven't seen that. The delays I've seen are for those from
| certain countries (such as Iran or Russia) or for those whose
| area of expertise/study is subject to export control
| laws/concerns.
| yeputons wrote:
| > whose area of expertise/study is subject to export control
| laws/concerns.
|
| Does that intersect significantly with a typical startup?
| Maybe machine learning researcher or engineer. Or an
| information security specialist, like a white hat hacker.
| road_to_freedom wrote:
| I got 221g administrative processing denial for L1-B recently. I
| work at FAANG. From your experience is there any chance that this
| will clear itself soonish or that's kinda the end of the story? I
| know a few stuck waiting for more than a year. Is such an outcome
| likely for me?
| proberts wrote:
| This depends on the reason for the 221g. Security-related
| reasons can take a while but often 221gs these clear quickly.
| What's the reason?
| road_to_freedom wrote:
| The reason wasn't specified. Are they supposed to specify the
| reason like security check?
|
| The officer told me to send CV, job offer and support letter
| on email. Even though these were available at the interview
| so this ask looks to me more like a facade.
| yeputons wrote:
| Sounds like the typical "administrative processing". They
| typically do not give any reason, just that they "need a
| bit more information" and "the processing typically
| concludes in 60 days or less". You may be lucky and that is
| the case, you may be unlucky and it is stuck for years.
| Even if you're from e.g. the developer of curl from Sweden
| in 2016, not a nuclear physicist Russia or Iran in 2025:
| https://daniel.haxx.se/blog/2020/11/09/a-us-visa-
| in-937-days...
|
| I've heard about a person waiting for 4 years for their
| B-1/2 U.S. visa recently.
|
| I haven't heard a single story where any kind of feedback
| or realistic timeline was provided to anyone, be it the
| applicant, the employer, a lawyer, a congressman. Not once.
| hnbrg718 wrote:
| Hi Peter, thank you so much for your work and for doing these
| AMAs! I am a PhD student on an F1 at a US university who would
| very much like to stay after graduation. Without going into too
| much details, I think I would have a strong O1 or EB-2-NIW
| application (top US school, multiple publications, awards,
| reviewing) upon graduation, but I am worried about leaving it
| until then to start the process as I know it can be very time
| consuming. What, if anything, can I do to "get the ball rolling"
| _before_ I graduate? I presume starting an EB-2-NIW application
| would not be feasible at this point, for example, but please
| correct me if I 'm wrong. Ideally I would enter the job market
| with a non-employer-specific green card, so that I don't have the
| additional stress of having to worry about being kicked out.
| Thank you all the work you do!
| proberts wrote:
| Having a PhD is less important than the other stuff -
| publications, awards, etc. - so there's no need for you to wait
| until you graduate to start the process. As a first step, I
| would recommend that you get your qualifications evaluated now
| because it's possible that you could pursue an EB1A now or an
| NIW at a minimum.
| hnbrg718 wrote:
| That's good to know - thank you so much, Peter!
| jlouage wrote:
| Hi Peter, I am moving to US with a L1A visa, and my family L2. I
| can apply for EB1-C directly after arriving to US?
| proberts wrote:
| Yes, assuming that you qualify, there's no waiting period but
| to be clear, the EB1C petition is filed by your employer, not
| you.
| hhthrowaway1230 wrote:
| > The H-1B program applies to employers seeking to hire
| nonimmigrant aliens as workers in specialty occupations or as
| fashion models of distinguished merit and ability.
|
| What do I need to become a fashion model?
| proberts wrote:
| If you're being serious, you should sign with an agency as a
| first step.
| nottorp wrote:
| Just curious... are H1-B holders still tied to their employer or
| have the conditions relaxed?
|
| Can anyone point me to some current (human readable not legalese)
| explanation of what you can do with the H1-B?
| proberts wrote:
| H-1B visa holders are tied to their sponsoring employer. Do you
| mean what they can do outside their H-1B employment? What other
| things are you interested in doing?
| nottorp wrote:
| > H-1B visa holders are tied to their sponsoring employer.
|
| Thanks, that answered my question. I have no intention of
| working in the US at the moment, just keeping myself informed
| in case i ever change my mind.
|
| Tbh I thought some random HNer would post an explanation
| before you got to this.
| tomp wrote:
| If you get an O1 visa, does it have an expiration date? Or can I
| use it later (in a few years, e.g. when the baby grows a bit
| older)?
| proberts wrote:
| An initial O-1 visa is valid for up to 3 years and can be
| renewed indefinitely in 1- or 3-year increments.
| tombert wrote:
| Hi Peter,
|
| My wife has a green card, and has since October of 2021. We have
| filed the paperwork for her to get citizenship in November of
| last year, but of course these things take time to process.
|
| Due to the anti-immigration rhetoric of the incoming Trump
| administration (particularly against Mexico), I am extremely
| worried that this might end up with delays or even a halting of
| the citizenship process.
|
| Are my fears founded?
| proberts wrote:
| I don't think so. She's already an LPR and during his last time
| in office, other than some processing delays, in my experience,
| applications that were supposed to get approved got approved.
| strambino242 wrote:
| What percentage of new STEM hires are immigrants and what
| percentage are US citizens or greencard holders?
| proberts wrote:
| I don't know but that's an interesting question and I would be
| very interested to know the answer.
| ddtaylor wrote:
| Thanks, Peter.
|
| Do you think a state like Oregon can continue to have a state
| constitution it does with support for immigration as a sanctuary,
| etc. or is Oregon supposed to be more duty bound by local state
| constitution? What happens when they are mutually exclusive or
| the federal government gives orders that are unlawful locally?
| Does this become a 10th amendment issue?
| proberts wrote:
| Good question and I don't know the answer but this is sure to
| be a battleground in the coming years, states refusing to
| enforce federal law or to act as agents of the federal
| government.
| gist wrote:
| Unclear to me why this info can't be (at this point it's the 20th
| AMA by Peter Roberts) in a faq format.
|
| Sure it's helpful. But it seems on the surface to be lead
| generation for an attorney and
|
| I'm sure there are tons of other professionals (legal or
| otherwise) that would like the same free advertising.
| eaglehead wrote:
| Hi Peter, I am wondering what's the best way to move from O1 to
| Green Card? I have my own startup which has sponsored by O-1 visa
| but need to get a green card to stay in the Bay Area long term. I
| am a Canadian Citizen if that helps.
| proberts wrote:
| For founders, the two options are EB2 national interest waiver
| and EB1A extraordinary ability and which path to choose will
| require an analysis of your background and the company. EB1A is
| much faster but the bar is much higher although many founders
| who've created "successful" companies qualify.
| uhuruity wrote:
| Thanks for doing this Peter. I have two questions, advice on
| either/both would be much appreciated!
|
| 1) Partner moved to the US in L1B status, after 2-3 years
| successfully adjusted to L1A status, based on having been
| promoted and perhaps been initially misclassified. Would they be
| eligible for the EB1C green card?
|
| 2) How can an individual on the STEM OPT extension best work on
| their own entrepreneurial ventures? Would it be sufficient to
| incorporate as a C-Corp and have 1-2 Americans on the Board, with
| the authority to fire me, serving as my supervisors? They have
| relevant work experience and could easily be my manager in a
| corporate environment. Or do they have to own >50% of the company
| too?
| proberts wrote:
| 1. The EB1C has the additional requirement that the applicant's
| employment abroad also must have been managerial or executive
| (which at the end of the day means people management). This is
| where those who move from L-1B to L-1A sometimes fall short. 2.
| This requires a discussion unfortunately because if you look at
| the websites of 10 different schools, you will get 10 different
| views on whether an F-1 can get STEM OPT through their own
| company. My reading of USCIS guidance is that STEM OPT can be
| obtained through an F-1's own company as long as there is a
| supervision/training component to their employment.
| esel2k wrote:
| Thanks, so many interesting answers. As an European working for a
| US tech company - regular visiting but world traveler as my
| passion. Is there officially a list of countries one should not
| visit (just tourism) that could harm career prospects while
| working for a US company for visas? Thank you.
| proberts wrote:
| This is a moving target but at a minimum any country on Trump's
| soon-to-be travel ban list might cause problems down the road.
| d3nj4l wrote:
| Hey Peter, been reading these threads for a while and really
| appreciate your support. I'm on STEM OPT and I want to keep my
| options open in case I don't get an H1b by the time it ends. What
| realistically are my options without affecting my future chances
| at a green card? I've heard that pathways like Day 1 CPT can lead
| to future I140 denials, which make me skeptical of going down
| that route.
| proberts wrote:
| The nonimmigrant visa applications of those who get day 1 CPT
| tend to be scrutinized more closely but as long as the program
| is real, the visas eventually get issued. And the same for
| green card applications. While this might result in greater
| scrutiny, green cards get issued if the program is real. So if
| you go this route, just make sure it's a legit program
| (classes, homework, tests, etc.). The other option is the O-1.
| Of course I don't know your background but the O-1 is one
| option those who don't get selected in the lottery look at.
| robertwt7 wrote:
| Hi Peter! Thanks for doing this! I've been watching this thread
| and reading for so many times but now I have a question.
|
| If I come from Australia with an E3 visa, what is the pathway for
| me to get a greencard? On the US Gov website, the E3 visa is a
| non-immigrant visa. does this mean that I can't convert to H1B or
| greencard if I came with E3 visa?
|
| Thankyou
| proberts wrote:
| Thank you again for the great questions and discussion. I'm
| taking a break now and will return in about an hour. If I miss
| any questions before the AMA ends today, I'll do my best to
| respond tomorrow
| tonymet wrote:
| We are working to apply for n-565 for my mother in law who has
| been a working American citizen for 50 years. She now needs
| naturalization records to apply for Real Id and continue domestic
| travel.
|
| The issue is that she had a divorce and name change, and we can't
| find her name change record with the county superior court. N565
| requires the name change evidence
|
| We have tried FOIA request to US CIS and no records were found
|
| Can we use her 50 year social security contribution record as
| evidence of the name change ? What other pieces of evidence could
| we present ?
|
| Is there a hearing or more dynamic forum we could present the
| case to ? The forms for naturalization and real id have narrow
| and rigid qualifications .
| pylua wrote:
| My company is flying over architects / project members for design
| meetings from other countries for small meetings over the course
| of of a week. Does this usually require a work visa ?
| t-awayfor2day wrote:
| Hi Peter, Thank you for the AMA! I am reposting here because my
| earlier comment was killed [0] and you probably haven't seen it.
|
| I am a STEM postdoctoral researcher currently in the first year
| of my STEM OPT, and I am planning to apply for a green card in
| the coming months alongside my STEM OPT extension. After
| consulting with an immigration lawyer, I have been advised to
| pursue the NIW EB-2 category.
|
| I would greatly appreciate your insights on the following
| questions:
|
| 1. Based on your experience, how would you rank the importance of
| the following evidence in supporting an NIW EB-2 application
| (from most to least important)?
|
| - Citations
|
| - Competitive awards and fellowships
|
| - Experience as a peer reviewer
|
| - Letters of recommendation
|
| - Expert opinions (independent letters of recommendation)
|
| - Research in an area of high importance to the United States
|
| 2. The legal fees quoted by my lawyer seem very high compared to
| figures I've found elsewhere online. Given my current severe
| financial constraints, I was wondering if you could share what
| you consider a reasonable range for all legal fees associated
| with an EB-2 application (NIW I-140 petition, Adjustment of
| Status, RFEs).
|
| 3. If you have worked with any immigration lawyers or firms that
| would be appropriate for cases like mine and that you would
| recommend, I would be very grateful for your suggestions.
|
| Thank you so much for your time and advice. I truly value your
| perspective and any guidance you can provide as I navigate this
| process.
|
| 0. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=42772058
| webdev_fromDS wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for doing this!
|
| My employer has been helpful to file for my green card. I
| recently got "CERTIFIED" on my PERM and the lawyers are working
| to get my I-140 ready to file. I have some publications as first
| author and as a co-author is a highly respected journal.
|
| I wanted to know if there is a path to move from EB2 to EB1? If
| there is, what would be the requirements to qualify? I ask this
| my I-140 priority date is late 2024, and the current date for my
| nationality is 2012. EB1 current date seems to be 2022. Is it
| possible to move to EB1 and carry over the priority date from the
| (hopefully approved) I-140?
|
| Many thanks! I have read several of your AMAs and found them
| helpful!
| doctorpangloss wrote:
| How do you square away your relationship with Y Combinator, which
| has been by all means positive, with the eager collaboration of
| its leadership with the most anti-immigrant administration in
| history?
| kevinfinnerty34 wrote:
| Hi Peter! Thanks for doing this.
|
| I'm a college dropout working as a SWE at one of the FAANG
| companies in Europe.
|
| I understand that there are two paths I can take -- getting
| transferred by my company on an L-1B or try to compensate a
| degree with 12+ years of experience for an H1-B. Do you have any
| tips for people without degrees from what you've seen in
| practice? How often do you see people without a degree getting
| any of the visas?
|
| Is there any chance I can get an o1 without a degree if I have a
| really good resume (10+ YOE at very-well-known companies)?
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