[HN Gopher] I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does wor...
___________________________________________________________________
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and
startups. AMA
As usual, there are countless immigration topics and I'll be guided
by whatever you're concerned with. Please remember that I can't
provide legal advice on specific cases for obvious 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 do
the same in my answers! Previous threads we've done:
https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=proberts.
Author : proberts
Score : 215 points
Date : 2025-12-05 16:04 UTC (1 days ago)
| constructive wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for doing the AMA! I have a Delaware registered
| LLC (10 years old), I managed to get even an EIN remotely.
| However, I can't open a bank account remotely and so I have just
| been paying the registered agent fees and Delaware gov taxes for
| the LLC all these years. I however, genuinely want to come to the
| states to open the bank account and actually expand my business
| into the US. The LLC hasn't really had any annual meetings/etc.
| but taxes are always paid on time. How do I use my LLC to apply
| for a B1/B2 to visit the US?
|
| OR should I just close it and try the normal route? Thanks in
| advance!
| gsck wrote:
| My understanding of the B-1 visa is all you really need is a
| letter of employment. Might get tricky with you providing the
| letter of employment to yourself however.
| dennis16384 wrote:
| But you _can_ open a bank account remotely for a DE LLC. Both
| Wise and Mercury supported this for years.
| constructive wrote:
| thanks!
| proberts wrote:
| It's going to be difficult to answer this in this forum because
| really what you are asking is how can you get a B-1/B-2 visa
| because the existence of a non-operating LLC really has no
| bearing on that question.
| vecter wrote:
| Thanks for the AMA Peter!
|
| What impacts are you seeing as a result of the $100K H-1B fee
| which took effect on 9/21/25?
| proberts wrote:
| In the end, it's largely put a stop to H-1B sponsorship of
| workers outside the U.S. That doesn't mean that all these
| workers can't get visas to work in the U.S. but other - tougher
| visas - have to be explored.
| devty wrote:
| Thanks for having another round?
|
| In your view, who are the winners and losers of the recent H1B
| changes? And any changes on your perspective for YC harboring
| international talent in SF Bay Area?
| proberts wrote:
| In the end, the new requirements - really, just the $100K
| payment for now - are manageable/avoidable and absent this
| requirement, the rules and their application haven't really
| changed. The bigger change, which hasn't happened yet, is the
| across-the-board increase in prevailing wages. And this will
| have a profound effect on H-1B employment since the increases
| will be significant.
| gsck wrote:
| I have recently taken a job with an American based company and
| will need to complete a few weeks training in Miami. Based on the
| information they have given me I need a B1 visa and maybe an ESTA
| since I'm in the UK, and a C-1/D for moving through the US.
|
| However they keep flip flopping between me needing a B1 and me
| just using my ESTA for the training, and their communication
| hasn't been the most straight forward. Which visa do I need to
| get to enter the US for the training?
| proberts wrote:
| Whether you present a B-1 visa or ESTA for admission, you will
| be seeking admission as a business visitor. Under these
| circumstances, my advice is almost always not to risk a denial
| of a B-1 visa application (which happens all the time) and to
| travel on ESTA. The only relative downside is that ESTA limits
| admission to 90 days. But of course run this all by the
| company's immigration counsel.
| throwaway219450 wrote:
| Not a lawyer. The VWP (ESTA) for business specifically says:
|
| > attend short-term training (you may not be paid by any source
| in the United States with the exception of expenses incidental
| to your stay)
|
| "source in the US" might be problematic if you're paid by the
| US company directly and not a UK arm. You'd have to take those
| days as unpaid, except for a per diem? If you're paid in pounds
| by a UK source, ought to be fine.
|
| I would confidently say you do not need a C visa. That's for
| immediate transit (like you have to change airports or
| something, and you would use an ESTA anyway). A D visa is for
| people like airline crew who have to stay and have to work
| whilst there (like getting an aircraft ready for international
| departure from a US airport). If you needed that, your company
| ought to know.
| saradhi wrote:
| Could you please help with any insights about the social media
| vetting rules? This has been a blackbox to the visa applications
| - started with student visas, now being forced on work visas too
| from Dec 15th.
| proberts wrote:
| That's right, both before US Consulates when applying for
| visas, before CBP when applying for admission, and before USCIS
| when applying for a benefit (H-1B, O-1, green card, etc.),
| social media is being reviewed, not across-the-board but more
| and more. And there's really no option to keep social media as
| private if asked to turn to public by a Consular Officer or CBP
| Officer. The review is broad and not limited to social media
| that is critical of US policy but extends to a review of an
| individual's entire background to make sure there were no
| violations of US immigration law, including unauthorized
| employment.
| nisegami wrote:
| CBP actually made me give them my facebook password when
| entering on a J1 visa in 2017, so I'm surprised to hear so
| much talk about this. Is it more that the practice of
| checking social media is more widespread now?
| barbazoo wrote:
| If one didn't have an account with meta they just wouldn't
| get the visa then or how does it work?
|
| Does the government have any direct link to meta re what
| accounts people actually have. I'm surprised people aren't
| up in arms about this, I guess it affects mostly visitors
| and immigrants but the fact that the government needs to
| see your activity on a private company's web app is wild to
| me.
| monerozcash wrote:
| "I don't use social media" is probably a good answer, it
| just has to be true.
|
| If they ask you "well, do you use any social media?"
| You'd presumably have to answer with HN, which maybe
| doesn't sound all that great :)
| bbarnett wrote:
| HN isn't social media, any more than a bus is a car.
| monerozcash wrote:
| I don't think you want to try that argument with
| immigration officials, although it might just keep your
| incorrect answer from being straight up fraud or willful
| misrepresentation.
|
| I mean, some US govt immigration forms asking for your
| social media usernames include pastebin sites like
| "justpaste.it". See for example: https://static.feber.se/
| article_images/42/10/92/421092_1280....
|
| Knowing that, it's crystal clear HN falls strictly within
| that definition of "social media", although it might not
| be as clear if you don't know what that particular site
| is.
| barbazoo wrote:
| I love how bad that list is.
| monerozcash wrote:
| For what it's worth, the somewhat hilarious reason
| justpaste.it is on the list is likely that it used to be
| a favourite of Islamic State terrorists a decade ago.
| https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2014/08/islamic-
| stat...
|
| Googling 'site:gov "justpaste.it"' also brings endless
| results of government documents mentioning the site in
| the context of terrorism.
|
| I somewhat doubt US immigration authorities thwarted any
| would-be terrorists by asking for their justpaste.it
| username, but what do I know, perhaps this was an
| important breakthrough in the global war on terror.
| frankchn wrote:
| It can be an easy charge of "lying to the government on
| an official form" when they discover you have a user
| account somewhere that you didn't disclose, even if they
| can't get anything else to stick.
| refurb wrote:
| You'd be surprised at the number of people who willingly
| give up their social media accounts, only for immigration
| officials to find comments in support of terror attacks
| in the Middle East.
|
| It's pretty easy to think it's harmless if you live in a
| country where that viewpoint is not uncommon.
| monerozcash wrote:
| That's not surprising at all, but I think the people who
| could get caught by the justpaste.it thing are not the
| same people casually praising Hamas on Instagram.
|
| If you're putting terrorism related content on
| justpaste.it, you're probably pretty deep into the whole
| thing.
| trollbridge wrote:
| You could say you use Y Combinator's news comment board.
| nisegami wrote:
| Yes, it did occur to me that there would be no way to
| verify it. But it felt like it was in my best interest to
| at least provide something.
| WalterSear wrote:
| You would have to make sure your search footprint
| supported that. IE - fully private, non-publicly-visible
| profiles everywhere.
| rwmj wrote:
| I think the only bit that surprises me is they don't have a
| back door into Facebook.
| lcc wrote:
| Why waste the backdoor on routine screening?
| mpweiher wrote:
| Who says they don't?
|
| And who says that asking for your password is to gain
| entry?
| trollbridge wrote:
| I would consider it extremely likely they have some kind
| of visibility into your data at Meta via Palantir.
| quotemstr wrote:
| What are the most common reasons for failing the social media
| check?
| immibis wrote:
| Based on news, it seems like if you like Donald Trump you may
| get in. If you don't like him you don't. You may also be jailed
| for two months for not liking Trump - that's happened a few
| times and that's why tourism fell off a cliff.
| andsoitis wrote:
| > You may also be jailed for two months for not liking Trump
| - that's happened a few times
|
| Do you have a concrete example story that illustrates this?
| bakies wrote:
| Rumeysa Ozturk
| immibis wrote:
| Lucas Sielaff, Jessica Brosche
| eduction wrote:
| Neither of them even allege it was due to views on Trump.
|
| Time waster.
|
| https://www.dw.com/en/german-nationals-us-immigration-
| detain...
| poki89 wrote:
| My H-1B with my current employer expires on Jan 10, 2026 and
| can't be extended because I don't have an I-140. Another startup
| plans to file my O-1A at the end of December. Can I remain in the
| U.S. while the O-1A petition is pending?
| proberts wrote:
| The regulations and long-standing USCIS policy and practice
| support remaining in valid status in the U.S. after January
| 10th as long as the O-1 petition is filed before January 10th.
| But we are hearing stories of USCIS starting to take a
| different view and treating someone in that situation as out of
| status even though the O-1 change of status petition is pending
| and was timely filed.
| miotintherain wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for the AMA!
|
| I work for an American company and I am based in Europe. I visit
| the US for work every now and then. I heard a lot of horror
| stories regarding border entries. If I am ever in a situation
| where the border police asks for access to my personal phone and
| pin code, what are my options? Can I refuse and what happens
| then?
| stevenwoo wrote:
| Border Patrol can wait longer than you want to wait at the
| airport, you should not bring your personal phone if you don't
| want them going through all the contents, they can hold your
| device for an inconvenient amount of time if you are an
| American citizen. If you say no and are not an American citizen
| you can be denied entry at the airport and sent home.
| cmrdporcupine wrote:
| Being quickly denied and sent home is the best possibility in
| that scenario.
|
| If you're on American soil they can just detain you. Or
| worse.
|
| If you ever want nightmares, read the story of Maher Arar.
| fsckboy wrote:
| > _you should not bring your personal phone if you don 't
| want them going through all the contents_
|
| isn't the right move here: wipe your phone, travel to
| destination, then restore from cloud backup? in the middle,
| you can let them inspect your wiped phone.
| nerdsniper wrote:
| For non-citizens, there's not really any law against them
| installing malware on your phone which could persist
| through a factory reset. Though I've not heard of such
| malware for flagship phones.
| lrvick wrote:
| I have heard of malware like this, and engineers that
| found it at Google were instructed by higher ups to
| ignore it and never talk about it without explanation.
|
| Good luck getting anyone close to this to go on the
| record about it though given such things normally come
| with corporate or government gag orders.
|
| There are hundreds of privileged vendor binary blobs on
| most flagship devices not even Google gets source code to
| though so supply chain attacks should be assumed.
| monerozcash wrote:
| I think this is broadly not true.
|
| Sure, the NSA can probably pull this off. Thing is, the
| NSA probably does not need to do this at immigration.
|
| I seriously doubt that this is a realistic problem if
| your threat model is anything less than "The NSA is very
| interested in me". In that case I don't see how you could
| trust any phone, regardless of it having been in the
| hands of border officials or not.
| mschild wrote:
| Probably more convinient to get a cheap, 2nd hand phone
| with the travel essentials and use that instead.
| lrvick wrote:
| Or just do not use a phone at all. I travel
| internationally without one a few times a year. Europe,
| mexico, canada, japan, no problems. Dirty looks, but no
| problems.
| lrvick wrote:
| If you are of interest to the US government or any ally,
| assume your phone comes back from inspection with a
| compromised bootloader that will continuously re-infect
| your phone after you wipe/reinstall.
|
| Wipe it, let them inspect it, sell it, and buy a new one.
| eduction wrote:
| Is your name peter?
| monerozcash wrote:
| I think this EFF document probably provides a more
| comprehensive answer than what can be provided in a HN comment
| https://www.eff.org/files/2017/03/10/digital-privacy-border-...
|
| Peter might have good insights on whether the relevant case law
| has changed since 2017 though.
| lcc wrote:
| The only relevant part from that document is this line from
| page 33: "Foreign visitors have the fewest rights... if a
| foreign visitor refuses a border agent's demand to unlock
| their digital device, provide the device password, or provide
| social media information, and the agent responds by denying
| entry, the foreign visitor may have little legal recourse."
| proberts wrote:
| You are within your rights to say no but if you say no, almost
| certainly CBP will assume that you are hiding something and
| deny you admission.
| criddell wrote:
| Can they deny you admission when you are a US citizen?
| OptionOfT wrote:
| They can not. Neither US Citizens or Green Card Holders can
| be denied entry.
|
| Sources: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-
| when-encounter...
|
| https://www.aclunc.org/our-work/know-your-rights/know-
| your-r...
| testing22321 wrote:
| A country can not deny entry to its own citizens.
|
| They can immediately arrest you, however.
| echoangle wrote:
| But not for not giving them access to your phone.
| iancmceachern wrote:
| In America, Europe, etc.
| ineedasername wrote:
| What the will arrest you for vs can arrest you for are
| very different things. Really. This isn't cynicism, is
| empirical knowledge. If they want to arrest you, you're
| getting arrested. They can arrest you because _they can_
| arrest you. This is the strict literal sense of _can_.
| mrguyorama wrote:
| They are not legally entitled to deny you entry.
|
| That doesn't mean they can't deny you entry. It means you
| might win a court case some day.
|
| ICE cannot legally arrest people who are citizens for no
| reason, and yet they have done exactly that 30% of the
| time by their own admission.
|
| "Knowing your rights" is meaningless if the public
| chooses to vote for people who don't care about those
| rights, and celebrate when you do not get your rights.
|
| It doesn't matter what the paper says, it matters what
| CBP feels like doing, and what their management lets them
| get away with. The constitution is just a magic circle we
| all agree to play in, and isn't real if enough people
| disregard it.
|
| If the border agent doesn't want you to come into the
| country, you are fucked. Nobody's job is to get between
| that agent and you and ensure the border agent follows
| the law on the paper, and the border agent will not go to
| jail or even lose their job for completely ignoring the
| law.
| SR2Z wrote:
| > If the border agent doesn't want you to come into the
| country, you are fucked.
|
| You are seriously inconvenienced, but assuming your
| paperwork is in order, you will be allowed into the US.
| This isn't just against US law, it's a violation of
| international law to render a person stateless.
|
| This ignores the real point, which is that while you
| cannot be refused entry to the United States, you can be
| arrested at the border. ICE these days has mastered the
| art of making people's detainment so uncomfortable that
| even those with a right to be in this country end up
| deciding to leave.
| globalnode wrote:
| yes sure you can come into america, straight into a
| holding cell until you hand over your pins/passwords or
| go back home.
| lrvick wrote:
| Unlikely, but if that did happen an army of lawyers would
| be willing to help pro bono for such a constitutionally
| critical case.
|
| Never comply with such nonsense.
| SR2Z wrote:
| An army of lawyers will not make the jail cell more
| comfortable when ICE has decided to make you suffer. The
| Supreme Court has seen to that.
| hn_throwaway_99 wrote:
| > ICE cannot legally arrest people who are citizens for
| no reason, and yet they have done exactly that 30% of the
| time by their own admission.
|
| Where are you getting that statistic (honest question)?
| mrguyorama wrote:
| I overstated, but it's murky.
|
| https://www.dhs.gov/news/2025/12/05/despite-medias-
| claims-ic...
|
| Why would ICE leave the number as low as "70%" if they
| could be higher? Every illegal alien is a criminal as far
| as the law is concerned. Every illegal alien arrested is
| "charged with a crime". Otherwise ICE is openly stating
| to its supporters that they arrest illegal aliens and
| then release them, something their supporters are vocally
| against, and the administration believes and claims to be
| a serious problem.
|
| Meanwhile, the Cato Institute a _libertarian_ think tank,
| claims they have been leaked far worse data
| https://www.cato.org/blog/5-ice-detainees-have-violent-
| convi...
|
| A direct reading of ICE's claims (that seem to be
| contrary to information obtained through FOIA?) is that
| 70% of the people they arrest are criminals, which by
| their own definitions, would imply 30% of the people they
| arrest are not illegally here, but that's reading between
| the lines and it's hard to lend any credence to anything
| said by an administration that treats public statements
| as a fun gaslighting game.
|
| But essentially, if ICE COULD claim everyone they arrest
| is an illegal alien (and literally a criminal they are
| legally allowed to arrest and deport), why wouldn't they?
|
| Flag my claim if appropriate.
| filleduchaos wrote:
| I mean, you didn't just overstate, you flat out just made
| it up. The opposite of "illegal alien" is not "citizen".
| mcny wrote:
| Instead of citizens, we would say People who are legally
| authorized to remain in the United States? Is there a
| word for that?
| filleduchaos wrote:
| Technically not a word, but the US government uses
| "lawfully present individuals" in its policy docs. In
| addition to US citizens, this covers lawful permanent
| residents, people with valid non-immigrant visas/visa
| waivers, some country-specific exceptions (e.g. Canadian
| citizens visiting for short-term business and pleasure),
| and various humanitarian categories (refugees, people
| seeking asylum who have filed the proper paperwork, etc).
|
| In short, an unfortunately very wide field of people for
| ICE to chew through without touching any citizens (even
| if one takes the most uncharitable interpretation, i.e.
| only 70% of arrests have been of unlawfully present
| individuals)
| nerdponx wrote:
| I think this is a misinterpretation of the document. The
| claim is:
|
| > 70% of ICE arrests are of criminal illegal aliens
| charged with or convicted of crimes in the U.S.
|
| I believe the claim here is that 70% of the people ICE
| arrests have been charged with or convicted of crimes
| _other than_ being present in the USA illegally. I don 't
| think this is at all meant to imply that 30% of arrests
| are of people who are present in the USA legally. I think
| it's just sloppy writing.
| hn_throwaway_99 wrote:
| I'm glad I asked the question, and I thank you for
| responding, but come on, don't you think it's not just a
| stretch but just flat out false to go from Homeland
| Security's quote of "Despite FALSE claims by sanctuary
| politicians and the media, 70% of ICE arrests are of
| illegal aliens who have been charged or convicted of a
| crime in the U.S." to "ICE cannot legally arrest people
| who are citizens for no reason, and yet they have done
| exactly that 30% of the time by their own admission."
| Like it's hard for me to even imply good faith if that's
| the stretch you made.
|
| As the other commenter wrote, ICE is saying that 70% of
| arrests have a criminal conviction, implying something
| other than just being in the country illegally. First,
| many illegal aliens (e.g. those who overstay their visas)
| have _not_ committed any criminal offense - overstaying a
| visa is a civil charge.
|
| Yes, I do admit there is wiggle room for ICE to make it
| sound like all the people they are arresting are rapists
| and murderers (crossing the border illegally _is_ itself
| a criminal offense), and as you point out, the Cato
| institute and many others have pointed out that high
| percentages of those deported _don 't_ have other
| criminal convictions. And given how much wide reporting
| there's been about how the administration is dissatisfied
| with the pace of deportations, it's clear there is
| pressure and incentive for ICE to deport as many people
| as possible.
|
| So you can make all those valid arguments. Falsely
| stating (i.e. "making up" or "lying") that 30% of ICE
| arrests are citizens with no convictions doesn't help
| your point.
| UncleOxidant wrote:
| So basically bring a burner phone.
| ripplebob wrote:
| Why not just carry a burner phone or buy a blank one and
| restore it after customs from backup?
| trollbridge wrote:
| One of the latest tricks is that if you have social media
| accounts yet no social media apps or accounts are loaded on
| your phone, or your phone appears to be a burner phone,
| they'll ask you why you didn't bring your main, primary
| phone.
|
| So your "burner phone" needs to be your primary phone, which
| is something that is hard to go back in time to fix.
| hn_acc1 wrote:
| I have a few social accounts, but no apps installed on my
| primary, 2.5+ year old S21. I prefer to visit via browser
| (firefox, mostly).
| raddan wrote:
| This sounds like a rumor to me. Plenty of people (including
| me) have no social media presence (unless you count HN as
| social media). How do you know that the person on
| whatevergram with the same name is me?
| trollbridge wrote:
| Because the ad networks associated with social media are
| really good at ascertaining identity.
|
| People with no social media presence at all have been
| denied entry.
| raddan wrote:
| Citation?
| smcin wrote:
| It's in general possible to only access social media via
| browser, not apps.
| trollbridge wrote:
| Which makes no difference since they'll just ask you for
| your social media handles.
| christkv wrote:
| I always traveled with a feature phone and a travel laptop with
| just work stuff on it when going to the us. Nothing personal
| like email or other stuff on me.
| monerozcash wrote:
| The typical solutions deployed by some European bigcos are:
|
| 1) only bring burner devices
|
| 2) have your devices travel separately using some courier
| service
|
| Yeah, they can still request your social media profiles and
| whatnot. You are not particularly likely to be denied entry
| because you don't have your normal devices with you, this is
| not very uncommon these days.
|
| Of course it's better to be able to say that your employer
| requires you to do this, so it's probably good to ask your boss
| to write up such a policy. Otherwise "why?" could be a pretty
| uncomfortable question.
| sjtgraham wrote:
| How does the Supreme Court's elimination of Chevron deference
| affect USCIS's ability to narrowly interpret the EB-1A regulatory
| framework, particularly at Step 1 of the Kazarian analysis? I am
| specifically interested in two areas: (1) whether, under a strict
| textual reading of the judging the work of others criterion in 8
| C.F.R. SS 204.5(h)(3), participation in code review where the
| beneficiary evaluates and approves the technical work of others
| in the same field should qualify without USCIS applying extra
| regulatory limitations, and (2) whether USCIS can continue using
| its historically restrictive approach to comparable evidence
| under 8 C.F.R. SS 204.5(h)(4) now that courts are no longer
| required to defer to agency interpretations. I understand that
| even if these issues favor the petitioner at Step 1 they may not
| change the outcome of the final merits determination under Step
| 2, and I am trying to determine how a post Chevron, strictly
| textual approach might influence Step 1 outcomes for petitioners
| whose achievements do not align neatly with the ten listed
| criteria.
| bubblethink wrote:
| What has Chevron got to do with EB-1A adjudication? The
| Kazarian step 1 step 2 stuff is hokey. It is ultimately a
| subjective evaluation that will remain under the executive.
| skobes wrote:
| Wouldn't this fall under Auer deference (agency's
| interpretation of its own regulation)?
|
| There is some uncertainty about whether Auer deference
| survives after Loper Bright.
| bubblethink wrote:
| But this isn't an ambiguous area of law. The statute is
| pretty clear in the text here - that the EB1-A criteria are
| necessary but not sufficient. That's what the step1
| (necessary) and step2 (sufficient) boil down to. You can
| litigate on what qualifies as necessary if the agency is
| doing something weird, but ultimately it is a subjective
| evaluation. The court isn't going to adjudicate on the
| merits, USCIS is.
| kimyanna wrote:
| Hi Peter, have you been seeing either a slowdown or increased
| denial rates to N-400 applications (5 year rule)? Just curious if
| it's more or less business as usual or if there is any impact on
| N-400 applications (we've heard of the neighborhood checks etc.)
| Thank you!
| proberts wrote:
| It's not business as usual anymore. Clients have shared that
| interviewing officers have shared that flexibility and leniency
| in adjudicating N-400 (and green card) applications is over. So
| officers are taking a much tougher stance on criminal records
| and extended absences from the US. That being said,
| applications without any issues are being approved although the
| approvals are taking longer.
| subtlestorm wrote:
| How does Extra Ordinary O1 visa scam work ? I have seen Facebook
| ads from attorneys running ads for H1Bs to O1 touting 95%
| "success rate"
| jonpurdy wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks as always. It seems that i-131 Reentry Permit
| processing times are greater than 12 months these days.
|
| If an i-131 is pending, would you advise that person to return
| briefly to USA before their 1 year date of exit (ensuring that
| they are never out of USA for greater than 1 year prior to
| approved i-131)?
|
| Or does a reentry permit allow them to remain out of country for
| longer than that even if pending (presuming it gets approved)?
| proberts wrote:
| If the RP application ultimately gets approved, then it would
| "protect" that absence of one year that occurred before the
| issuance of the RP (although the RP validity period will start
| when it's approved not when it was filed). The reason to still
| reenter before you are outside for one year has to do with
| qualifying for naturalization rather than maintaining green
| card status.
| aliljet wrote:
| Is there clarity right now around foreign students attempting to
| obtain h1bs in the future?
| proberts wrote:
| Yes. F-1 students can get H-1B visas. The issue is the $100K
| payment which applies if the H-1B petition is filed not with a
| request to change status but with a request to notify a
| consulate. But if it's filed with and approved as a change of
| status, then a subsequent H-1B visa application will not
| trigger the $100K payment.
| rathboma wrote:
| Thanks for answering questions!
|
| Do you think H1B visa holders looking to move to a Green Card (in
| coordination with their employer) should be concerned about
| rejected applications or other issues?
| proberts wrote:
| There is no issue specific to those in H-1B status impacting
| the ability to get a green card but I would say that it's
| getting tougher to get green cards in general, particularly
| through the National Interest Waiver and Extraordinary Ability
| routes.
| jquery wrote:
| Should individuals on a green card be concerned about anything,
| such as criticizing this administration?
| proberts wrote:
| Definitely moreso than before but it's not so much about being
| concerned as being aware. For example, travel to certain
| countries could trigger aggressive/tough questioning on reentry
| and certain public comments about the government also could
| trigger aggressive/tough questioning.
| bravura wrote:
| I know this is a _general_ question, but:
|
| Assuming a US startup is considering engineering hires outside
| the United States, how does one currently assess the likelihood
| of getting them a visa to work in the USA? And what timeline and
| cost would be involved?
| proberts wrote:
| Unfortunately, a case by case analysis would be required.
| However, if they are from a country with its own visa (that is,
| Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Chile), it's relatively
| easy to get engineers visas.
| clumsydude wrote:
| In October, the state department introduced a new policy:
|
| > Applicants for U.S. nonimmigrant visas (NIV) should schedule
| their visa interview appointments at the U.S. Embassy or
| Consulate in their country of nationality or residence
|
| > Applicants must be able to demonstrate residence in the country
| where they are applying, if the place of application is based on
| their residency.
|
| What sort of proof is required to demonstrate residence? What
| about cases where an applicant legally has residency in a
| particular country (e.g. PR card or work visa) but in practice
| lives in the US as an H-1B/TN/L-1/O-1/etc. worker or
| H-4/TD/L-2/O-3/etc. dependant? Especially for the dual intent
| visas?
| proberts wrote:
| There's a lot of uncertainty here and the outcome will depend
| in part on the interpretation by the particular Consulate but
| my general understanding is that applying in a country where
| you hold permanent status but where you are not currently
| living would be risky.
| kethinov wrote:
| Suppose you could wave a magic wand and change US immigration law
| in any way you like. What changes would you make?
| proberts wrote:
| Good question. There's so much I would change. I'll give this
| some thought and respond later today.
| fooker wrote:
| Looking forward to this answer!
|
| Many of the absurdities of the US immigration system exist
| for good reasons and it would be great to understand the
| nuances.
| brendoelfrendo wrote:
| Thanks for offering to answer this question. Immigration law
| is so often an inflammatory topic, but I think your
| perspective as someone who has to work with the law, the US
| agencies that enforce it, and the people trying to navigate
| it could be really valuable.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| Not Peter but would like to spur discussion on positive changes
| that could be made.
|
| - Paper-free overhaul of the entire immigration system.
|
| - Green Card recapture [0].
|
| - Country of Birth caps abolished for Green Cards. Impossible
| to justify this as it doesn't serve the intended purpose since
| AC21 was passed.
|
| - EAD/AP premium processing - so many livelihoods ruined and
| immigration journeys derailed because people can't get work
| authorization or cannot travel.
|
| - TD holders granted working rights incident of status same as
| L2S.
|
| Now for the not-so-popular suggestions...
|
| - Diversity Lottery - there's bipartisan support to cancel the
| program and it's really hard to justify bringing almost 55k
| with a min of high school education into the country.
|
| - Removal of F2B, F3, F4 family based categories to move inline
| with other developed nations immigration systems such as Canada
| [1].
|
| [0] - https://www.fwd.us/news/green-card-recapture
|
| [1] - https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-
| citizenship/se...
| Izikiel43 wrote:
| > - Country of Birth caps abolished for Green Cards.
| Impossible to justify this as it doesn't serve the intended
| purpose since AC21 was passed.
|
| You are saying that since, for example, Indians can remain
| indeterminately as long as they are employed, they are de
| facto kind of like in a green card situation already,
| therefore country caps don't make sense?
|
| That would mean then that every other country wait will go up
| for over a decade, with all the backlog that India has (1.2M
| vs 140k EB green cards per year).
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| It should be done in tandem with GC recapture or possibly a
| single one off Bill to clear backlogged applicants.
| bubblethink wrote:
| No, it shouldn't. Stuff like recapture has no likelihood
| of passing. The reason country caps exist is precisely
| because everyone wants to carve out some provisions for
| their favorite group in hopes of getting the mythical
| comprehensive immigration reform. A one sentence bill on
| this matter has better odds of passing if it were to ever
| come to a vote. There is really no tenable position in
| favor of country based discrimination. The challenge is
| getting it to a vote.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| I disagree for the reasons the first reply mentioned.
| Backlogging every country by 10+ years is effectively
| shutting down the US immigration system. The backlog will
| never be cleared.
| bubblethink wrote:
| That's right. Individuals from every country should be
| subject to the same set of rules. If the backlog is to be a
| century, it is to be borne by everyone.
| zamalek wrote:
| Thanks for the AMA Peter!
|
| Do you think there are risks involved with leaving (and hence
| returning to) the country on a Green Card?
| proberts wrote:
| I don't but a quick discussion with an immigration attorney to
| make sure that there are no hidden issues probably isn't a bad
| idea.
| zamalek wrote:
| Thanks for the response, greatly appreciated!
| garbawarb wrote:
| A question about TN status for a Canadian living in the US. There
| are some income-generating things I'd like to do outside of my
| work visa (play a music gig, upload music to Spotify, act in a
| movie). My understanding is that I can't do these things in the
| US. Am I able to do these things if I do them outside of the
| country, or is there any way to make them work? For example, if I
| went to Canada, recorded an album, uploaded it, then came back to
| the US.
| barbazoo wrote:
| I got no answer but it sounds really fun what you're planning
| to do :)
| garbawarb wrote:
| It's no fun if you legally can't do it...
| fencepost wrote:
| Just remember, if you want to put your content on youtube
| be sure you're demonetized by cursing up a storm.
|
| (not real advice. I think.)
| proberts wrote:
| Yes, if the activity occurs while you are outside U.S., then
| you can get paid for it without having to have U.S. work
| authorization to do it. So, yes, recording an album while
| outside is fine but it becomes a little more complicated if you
| are now getting paid for downloads while you are in the U.S.
| garbawarb wrote:
| While I'm inside the US, can I perform work for non-US
| entities? For example, remotely teaching a music lesson do
| someone in a different country or writing a book and
| publishing it abroad but not in the US.
| proberts wrote:
| The short answer is no.
| fencepost wrote:
| I think a related but separate question would be "Can I do
| these things if the proceeds are going directly to charity
| instead of to me?"
|
| I suspect it would be important that any funds never reached
| you, so you couldn't simply receive money then donate that
| amount. Playing a charity gig where the receipts go directly to
| the charity would likely be fine, streaming/Spotify revenue I
| don't know, acting in a movie might be out of the question if
| it's being professionally shot because the producer might have
| insurance or other requirements that only paid performers and
| crew can be on set, etc.
| KK7NIL wrote:
| IIRC from the time I was waiting for employment
| authorization, I wasn't allowed to do any charity work that
| could otherwise be a paid position, so be very careful with
| this charity idea.
| throwaway219450 wrote:
| Some visas that are employment-limited specifically mention
| volunteering and charitable work as problematic. You do not
| need to personally gain financially. A crude way to tell is
| "is this an activity which someone could be paid for, even if
| I'm doing it for free?"
|
| However the practical answer is ask. Some visas like the J1
| allow this - even consulting, provided it meets a bunch of
| criteria and relevant people sign off. It's not a trivial
| process, but it's not outright forbidden.
| figmert wrote:
| How serious is/was this whole $100k for H1-B applications? How
| has this impacted the hiring process?
| proberts wrote:
| The subsequent clarifications has significantly lessened the
| impact since it only applies to those who are the beneficiary
| of H-1B petitions filed with a request for consular
| notification rather than with a request to change or extend
| status. So it has impacted the ability to get H-1Bs for those
| outside the U.S. but that was always a small number.
| garbawarb wrote:
| I'm living in the US on TN status and I'm interested in starting
| a startup, a subscription-based mobile app. But I have a pending
| PERM application and leaving my company would mean abandoning the
| whole thing, which I'm not eager to do. Is there any legal way I
| could start a startup without having to do that?
| proberts wrote:
| Concurrent employment is an option, meaning you could keep your
| primary full-time TN while getting a concurrent part-time TN.
| The problem is more that self-employment isn't allowed on the
| TN.
| sombragris wrote:
| Someone studied in the US under a F1 visa and a scholarship. No
| other substantial income other than that. This person while in
| the U.S. had to file tax forms, although there was no tax to be
| paid because this person had no income outside the scholarships.
| The student finished the studies in, say, October last year and
| then left the country for his home country. The student graduated
| and does not intend to return to the U.S.
|
| The educational institution sent the student's home address some
| tax form that he had to file by April 15, but the former student
| forgot to do that.
|
| The question is: would the student have problems getting a U.S.
| visa as a tourist and entering the U.S. several years after that?
| If yes, how could that be fixed? Thanks in advance.
| proberts wrote:
| Yes, unresolved tax issues can cause U.S. immigration problems.
| fencepost wrote:
| Pretty sure the best time to file tax-related stuff is before
| it's due and the second-best time is immediately after you
| become aware of it. Filing late is almost guaranteed to be
| better than not filing at all, and if there was no tax due then
| I suspect there also won't be late filing penalties.
| hobs wrote:
| What's the best way for a lawyer more familiar with other parts
| of the law to break into immigration?
| proberts wrote:
| Join AILA, attend AILA local chapter meetings, and attend the
| annual AILA conference. And get a mentor if possible.
| swatson741 wrote:
| How has AI impacted your profession?
| proberts wrote:
| In a limited way. Where it has impacted our clients is it has
| made it much easier for them to get reference letters when
| reference letters are required. But our basic every day work is
| largely unaffected by AI. So far.
| OsrsNeedsf2P wrote:
| Is it normal for incubators to ask founding engineers to come
| over on tourist visas?
| proberts wrote:
| I'm not sure about that being a requirement but participation
| in an accelerator/incubator while in the U.S. as a business
| visitor is fine and common.
| jml78 wrote:
| Just a high level question. My youngest son was adopted. He isn't
| white. He is naturalized. Should we go ahead and renew his
| passport so he can carry around a passport card at this point(we
| never got one in the past because they seemed like a waste). It
| seems crazy but with people being grabbed off the street for
| being brown, it seems prudent have a quick way to prove
| citizenship.
| proberts wrote:
| It's awful to have to consider these things. But since you ask,
| he also could carry his naturalization certificate. The other
| option is to get a Certificate of Naturalization but that's
| akin to getting a passport.
| rayiner wrote:
| I'm not white (and never have been). Haven't yet been "grabbed
| off the street for being brown."
| tdeck wrote:
| I've never been murdered either. Good to know that doesn't
| happen at all.
| hiprob wrote:
| Anything notable about Ukrainians? Especially since Trump's
| inauguration?
| dcreater wrote:
| Have you handled cases/seen outcomes of self employed founders'
| H1B applications under the new rule?
| proberts wrote:
| Yes. The forms only require disclosure of ownership if it is
| above 50% so this has made it much easier for international
| founders (with cofounders) to obtain H-1B status. The challenge
| comes when ownership exceeds 50%.
| dcreater wrote:
| Yes im referring to cases when the founder has >50% or in
| fact 100%.
|
| Curious how the statistics/success rates are looking?
| garbawarb wrote:
| What about exactly 50%?
| shrubble wrote:
| If the company has 3 founders with equal ownership, it would
| not have to be disclosed? Is there a requirement that one
| founder be in the USA and be either a citizen or green card
| holder?
| sercand wrote:
| I have green card and last time I left is 2 years ago, How can I
| return back to the US?
| proberts wrote:
| If you have been outside the U.S. for 2 years without having
| obtained a reentry permit, then you could be considered to have
| abandoned your green card. But all isn't necessarily lost. The
| ability to keep your green card will depend largely on the
| reason that you were outside the U.S. for 2 years and likely
| will require you to apply for a returning resident visa.
| jbellis wrote:
| Has the current administration made it harder to qualify for an
| o1 visa?
| proberts wrote:
| A bit but not significantly so.
| pain_perdu wrote:
| I moved to the USA in 2016 thanks to Peters help and every
| successful interaction I have had with USCIS since then has been
| because of his sage advice. You will not find a more
| knowledgeable or kind adviser than Peter.
| proberts wrote:
| That's good to hear. Thanks!
| js4ever wrote:
| Are you noticing any contraction (or increase) of immigration?
| proberts wrote:
| Early on in this administration, yes, but now, it seems as busy
| as ever although this latest suspension of immigration
| processes for those from 19 countries has definitely sent a
| chill.
| Izikiel43 wrote:
| Were those 19 countries a significant source of work in the
| system?
| pm90 wrote:
| hey peter, Im on an h1b visa (year 10, have approved i140 and
| pending gc application). Ive never done an h1b stamping as I was
| paranoid about being denied. Will doing the stamping now trigger
| the 100k h1b fee?
| proberts wrote:
| No since the underlying H-1B petition was filed and approved
| before this $100K payment provision went into effect.
| pm90 wrote:
| thank you!
| zerkten wrote:
| What if you have deleted social media accounts? It's possible to
| state that you had them with whatever identifiers, but do you
| have to prove their existence in some way so they can check an
| archive (assuming it was Twitter)?
| proberts wrote:
| If I understand you correctly, there's no obligation to
| maintain access to deleted social media accounts or to archive
| them.
| LightBug1 wrote:
| Are those "Donald Trump is a rancid, orange Turnip" posts
| coming back to haunt you? Me too.
|
| I'd brave it out and stick to your guns.
|
| After all, facts are facts.
| jonathanstrange wrote:
| What do you consider the probability that there will ever be free
| elections in the US again? Please answer with a value between 0
| and 1.
| proberts wrote:
| I'll get back to you after the midterms.
| lafalce wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for your time :)
|
| I am planning to move to San Francisco to join the startup
| ecosystem. Regarding the H-1B visa, what does the current process
| and timeline look like for a new applicant? Given the lottery
| constraints, are there specific 'red flags' or common mistakes I
| should avoid when looking for a sponsor?
| proberts wrote:
| The issue right now is that if you are sponsored for an H-1B
| while outside the U.S., the sponsoring employer will be subject
| to the additional $100K payment and this of course will
| dissuade most potential employers.
| canucktrash669 wrote:
| Hi Peter, let's play hypotheticals. USMCA (CUSMA) is dead, Trump
| actually acted on his threat and the US left the treaty.
|
| I assume it means TN visas are dead in six months if the written
| notice clause is respected.
|
| Is the zombie CUSFTA now out of dormancy? Can we now use the TC
| visa? If CUSFTA dies as well, what are the other options and how
| long does it take to process?
| proberts wrote:
| I don't CUSFTA would immediately go into effect again. I
| believe Congress and the President would need to act to revive
| it.
| garbawarb wrote:
| If this happened would existing TNs still be valid till their
| end date?
| proberts wrote:
| Typically, a benefit once granted (unless improperly granted)
| can't be taken away.
| roncesvalles wrote:
| Just my opinion, but I think USMCA dying is massively unlikely.
| Already there is some resentment in the Republican base for
| souring ties with Canada (e.g. bourbon producers, tourism) and
| I do see Canada-US ties moving in an upward trajectory in the
| recent months. The USMCA is also used by US citizens to work in
| Canada. And considering how watered down the H1B changes have
| been, I don't think this administration has an appetite for
| materially pissing off coastal hi-tech. At most we'll see
| tightened category adjudications.
| kingstoned wrote:
| How easily can one get E1 treaty trader visa and what volume and
| quantity of trade are recommended? If I have a company registered
| in my home country (eligible country) and have payouts from a US
| provider like an advertising network, affiliate provider or some
| marketplace etc. and my clients are all US companies, can I apply
| for that visa? Would a low six figure yearly revenue with monthly
| payout be sufficient for that?
| proberts wrote:
| There's no minimum amount of trade specified in the regulations
| and the answer depends in part on other factors (such as how
| active the foreign and U.S. companies are and whether they
| employees and funding) but the minimum annual trade is
| generally understood to be at least $100K/$150K.
| kingstoned wrote:
| Can you have just one US client like a marketplace or network
| that gives you monthly payouts totalling $150k a year? The
| client is a famous US based company.
| aryanchaurasia wrote:
| What if I am selected in YC but i don't have us visa?
| proberts wrote:
| That's a question for YC because if I understand you correctly,
| you are asking if you can participate in YC without being in
| the U.S.
| proberts wrote:
| Thank you for all your questions and comments. I'll be taking
| take a short break.
| lackstein wrote:
| Hi Peter, thanks for the AMA!
|
| I'm currently living in the US on TN status and am married to an
| American. Have you heard of anyone on TN status having difficulty
| applying for a green card? And do you have any sense of what the
| wait times currently are, particularly how long until you can get
| a travel authorization?
| proberts wrote:
| We've obtained lots of marriage-based green cards for those in
| TN status. The issue is intent at the time of the most recent
| entry prior to filing a green card application since the intent
| at that time cannot be to apply for a green card. Generally
| speaking, if there's a gap of at least 90 days between entry
| and filing, USCIS's concern about intent goes away or is at
| least greatly lessened.
| kdazzle wrote:
| There was just an article in the NYT where ICE is arresting
| people at the end of their green card interviews for
| essentially no reason.
|
| https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/26/us/trump-green-card-inter...
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| Those targeted in this article are spouses of US citizens
| that had entered the US on ESTA and allowed that status to
| lapse whilst awaiting their AOS.
|
| That was tolerated previously.
|
| It does appear that these arrests have stopped since the NYT
| article was written.
| rayiner wrote:
| That's misinformation. They're being arrested because they
| were in the country illegally, usually overstaying a visa:
| https://www.newsnationnow.com/us-news/immigration/green-
| card...
|
| They have a green card interview because they married an
| American. But you can't get an adjustment of status if you
| are in violation of your current visa terms.
| kdazzle wrote:
| I havent been through the US process in a while, but
| usually that is allowed if your application is processing.
| You just can't leave the country.
| rayiner wrote:
| No, if your visa expires you need to maintain your legal
| status while a PERM application is pending:
| https://www.alllaw.com/articles/nolo/us-
| immigration/maintain... ("This is especially important if
| and when you are waiting to apply for lawful permanent
| residence, commonly called a 'green card.' If you are in
| the United States without any immigration status, you are
| considered to be here illegally, and U.S. Citizenship and
| Immigration Services (USCIS) may deny your green card
| application for that reason alone.").
|
| What's happening here is that these people were here on
| tourist visas or completely illegally. Then at some point
| they married a U.S. citizen and filed a PERM application.
| But that filing doesn't protect them from deportation for
| their original illegal status.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| > What's happening here is that these people were here on
| tourist visas or completely illegally. Then at some point
| they married a U.S. citizen and filed a PERM application.
|
| There's no PERM process in family based adjustment of
| status. You're confusing FB AOS with EB AOS.
| yesb wrote:
| PERM is for employment based green cards, not relevant
| here. Pending AOS for a spouse grants them legal status,
| including a work permit if they apply. The underlying
| visa doesn't matter unless the PR application is denied.
| You'd then be out of status if you didn't maintain a
| "backup" visa.
| delfinom wrote:
| >But you can't get an adjustment of status if you are in
| violation of your current visa terms.
|
| This is both right and wrong. Congress passed a law ages
| ago that grants forgiveness to overstaying spouses once the
| greencard is issued. The AOS process is allowed.
|
| The hole however is the AOS does not extend your authorized
| stay if you were out of status when it was filed. So this
| leaves one vulnerable to the ICE arrests.
|
| However, your AOS can still be processed even when arrested
| because of the forgiveness granted by law, so it just
| becomes an issue of having a good lawyer to get a judge to
| intervene.
| rayiner wrote:
| The relevant provisions are subsections (a), (c), and (e)
| of 8 USC 1255:
| https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-
| prelim...
|
| Subsection (a) allows the "Attorney General, in his
| discretion" to grant an adjustment of status.
|
| Subsection (c) categorically denies adjustment of status
| under certain conditions, including where someone has
| violated the terms of their visa. This takes away the
| Attorney General's discretion to grant an adjustment. The
| adjustment must be denied.
|
| Subsection (e) then makes subsection (c) inapplicable
| where the immigrant enters into a bona fide marriage
| during a legal proceeding regarding their immigrant
| status. It's not correct to call this a "forgiveness,"
| because it doesn't guarantee you any sort of legal
| status. Instead, it takes away what would otherwise be a
| categorical bar against an adjustment of status. That
| puts you back under subsection (a), where the decision is
| made by the "Attorney General, in his discretion." The
| law says the Attorney _can_ grant you the adjustment of
| status, not that he _must._ Under the law, the Attorney
| General can still categorically deny any adjustments
| under those circumstances.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| Exactly. Unauthorized work is also forgiven.
| loxodrome wrote:
| Can a US citizen with a foreign spouse bring the spouse to the US
| on a tourist VISA and adjust status? What if they already filed
| the i-130 with consular processing?
| proberts wrote:
| That could be viewed as fraud at the time of entry under both
| scenarios. I recommend that you speak with an immigration to
| come up with a workable plan. Note that if your spouse applies
| for his or her green card visa (known as an immigrant visa) at
| a U.S. Consulate, he or she can visit you on a tourist visa for
| extended periods of time while waiting for the interview at the
| U.S. Consulate.
| loxodrome wrote:
| Thanks for the info. Tricky situation because we have a kid
| who has dual citizenship, and we are not in the US, but want
| to move back.
| refurb wrote:
| Your best bet is to plan a year or so ahead and get
| sponsorship in the queue so the spouse can enter with a
| green card. Timelines are about 8-14 months.
|
| But as PRoberts said, a non-citizen spouse can't enter on a
| tourist visa _with the intention to change status_. A
| spouse can visit, but then change their mind while in the
| US.
|
| But CBP is well aware of people trying to shortcut the
| process this way, so it can be very challenging convincing
| CBP your non-citizen spouse intends to leave. But it can be
| done showing a job, property or other elements that would
| require someone to go back.
| jjmarr wrote:
| How has the Section 174 elimination of 5-year amortization for
| domestic SWE salaries impacted decisionmaking on whether to hire
| overseas?
|
| Since overseas workers are still subject to 15-year amortizations
| I'm wondering if people are getting pulled in from Canada.
| proberts wrote:
| Those are excellent questions but really more directed to those
| hiring at tech companies. From my limited perspective, I
| haven't an impact on hiring.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| I've asked this question in a few places but never gotten an
| answer.
|
| A TN visa/status holder that applies for a EB Green Card by
| filing form I-485 is considered to have shown immigrant intent
| and will no longer be granted TN status in the future.
|
| Is this bar permanent or would an applicant who failed to obtain
| a Green Card or surrendered it in the future be able to seek TN
| visa/status provided they could prove strong links to
| Mexico/Canada?
| proberts wrote:
| There's no permanent bar but the standard would be high to show
| with a subsequent TN application that the applicant possessed
| good faith intent to return to Canada/Mexico. We've argued that
| successfully.
| USMCAThrowAway wrote:
| Thank you.
| rao-v wrote:
| I've got friends who tell me they'd never consider applying for
| YC because they are on a classic H1B with a tech company. What
| typically happens with folks on a H1B who make it into YC?
| proberts wrote:
| That's hard to respond to other than to say that there are
| multiple visas that allow participation in accelerators and
| training programs.
| rao-v wrote:
| That makes sense ... is there a typical path? Basically - are
| they right in thinking it's a high risk thing for them or
| should I encourage them to take a shot?
|
| My understanding is that their time spent on the company
| before YC accepts them is the biggest risk factor?
| garbawarb wrote:
| As a non-lawyer, it seems that you'd have to leave your
| company to join YC, meaning you'd forfeit your H1B visa.
| proberts wrote:
| No I don't think it's high risk at all because even if the
| path were something other than H-1B, they always could go
| back to H-1B.
| EarthAmbassador wrote:
| This question arises from the current regime's efforts to reverse
| naturalization.
|
| For anyone who has one US citizen parent and one non-citizen
| parent, where the citizen parent has passed before the child
| applicant for naturalization reaches 18 years of age, resulting
| in the applicant applying for and receiving naturalization as an
| adult, can that same currently naturalized citizen also obtain
| natural born citizenship status through the deceased citizen
| parent and would it be advisable?
| proberts wrote:
| If I understand you correctly, you are asking whether the
| naturalized citizen was a citizen at birth based on his or her
| father's citizenship. To answer that question, we would need to
| know when the naturalized citizen was born and the countries
| where the naturalized citizen's U.S. citizen parent lived from
| birth until the birth of the naturalized citizen.
| EarthAmbassador wrote:
| Thanks, you got it right. 1970 is the birth year and father
| lived in the United States for decades prior but had a child
| while out of the country, the naturalized citizen. The
| question is really about whether natural born citizenship is
| available to children of an American citizen when the child
| is born abroad, but the parent was deceased before majority
| age. Naturalization would probably be sufficient, but given
| that even naturalization is theoretically at risk, maybe
| obtaining outright natural born status is better insurance.
| There is an N-form for this sort of thing.
| unixhero wrote:
| We are in the Nordics. Do we stand a chance at PR or citizenship
| in the US?
| proberts wrote:
| I'm not sure I understand what you are asking.
| anonimmigrant1 wrote:
| Hi Peter, I have a valid h1b visa stamp till 2027 but when my new
| employer filed for my H1B from outside the US I got an RFE for
| the 100k. The company lawyers are arguing against fee payment
| since I has a valid H1B visa stamp. What are my chances of
| denial?
| proberts wrote:
| The subsequent guidance on this question was in conflict and
| unclear. On the one hand, the guidance indicated that if the
| beneficiary had a valid visa stamp, then the petitioner
| wouldn't be subject to the payment but on the other hand, it
| indicated that if the petitioner selected consular
| notification, then the petitioner would be subject to the
| payment. So I think it could go either way.
| jacobmartinez3d wrote:
| I am a native citizen currently watching my first child grow up
| without me while my wife waits in line for her nearly 2-year-long
| immigration process. Every attempt to expedite her processing has
| been denied, even during Typhoons where she loses power and
| access to hospitals. I feel forgotten, and cast aside by the
| system - like my family situation is inconsequential and
| undeserving.
|
| Is there really nothing native citizens like me can do to get our
| family here outside waiting in a generic line with everyone else
| in the world?
| proberts wrote:
| That doesn't make any sense. I'd need to know all the facts to
| advise. Please send me an email to schedule a call
| (proberts@robertsimmigration.com). Which Consulate is she
| applying through?
| fantod wrote:
| Isn't 1-2 year wait time standard for spousal immigration?
| nasaeclipse wrote:
| No. My spouse and I came here together and we applied for
| her green card in Japan. It took about 2 months.
| zingar wrote:
| Shocked and curious to know why anyone would downvote a story
| like this.
| padjo wrote:
| Because people's lives have become collateral damage for
| performative cruelty by the current administration and its
| supporters.
| 9rx wrote:
| I'm more shocked about and curious as to why anyone would
| take time out of their day to press a button that does
| nothing other than to serve as a poor man's "read receipt" to
| indicate to the trolls that you read their message, thus
| incentivizing even more trolling.
|
| But I assume nobody actually purposefully presses the button;
| only sometimes doing so by accident.
| throwawaylaptop wrote:
| Why don't you just go join your family and make a living where
| they live? I'm sure many people could increase their salary and
| career prospects if they chose to abandon their kids and mother
| of their kids, but to them being together is more important.
| onetimeusename wrote:
| Is there a way for someone on h1B to start a company in a
| roundabout way by doing something like placing company shares
| into a trust and having a unpaid board seat? Is that pushing
| luck? Not for me but a friend who I had plans to go into business
| with but we're facing a chicken or egg problem until she gets a
| green card or changes her visa status.
| proberts wrote:
| There are ways for someone in H-1B status to start a company
| and not in a roundabout way. The approach will depend in part
| on whether she will leave her current employer and get an H-1B
| through her startup, stay with her current employment and get a
| concurrent part-time H-1B through her startup, or just stay
| with her current employer and somehow work on her startup.
| malandrew wrote:
| > or just stay with her current employer and somehow work on
| her startup.
|
| The first two options make sense but this latter option
| sounds like a risk. As I understand it, she can't earn any
| active income from this startup unless see has an I-129 for
| it. A share grant counts as income.
|
| I mean, yeah you can work on a side project in your spare
| time that could become a business, but the moment employment
| and active income enters the picture that becomes something
| else.
| mizzao wrote:
| If she is issued equity (reverse vesting restricted stock)
| and not paid a salary, does she still need work authorization
| for the startup?
| malandrew wrote:
| Why don't they just start a company in the country where they
| are from or why don't you start a company with someone who is a
| citizen or has a green card?
|
| The entire premise of your question is misaligned with the
| intention of the H1-B visa. Yes, everyone abuses its intent,
| but that isn't justification for more people to find more ways
| to abuse it. The abuse of that visa (and other visas) is why
| folks just want it abolished outright. I guess the purpose of a
| system is what it does, but it was sold to the American
| electorate as a way for companies to get access to talent that
| they simply cannot find domestically.
|
| Trying to use the H1-B to hire a very specific person instead
| of any person with the skillset needed for the role would be in
| contradiction with the labor market test (LMT) needed for PERM
| status.
|
| An H1-B can only work for the employer on the I-129 petition.
| There are some forms of passive income allowed but to placing
| shares in a trust and having an unpaid board seat just seems
| like an attempt to cheat the process because ultimately the
| goal is for her to work for this startup. Doing what your
| proposing puts a target on her head where anyone that is
| anti-H-1B can report her to USCIS and get her deported.
|
| Moving home, working remotely and then applying for an L-1
| seems like the correct approach here for what you're trying to
| do.
| proberts wrote:
| Thank you again for all the interesting questions and comments. I
| will be logging off now but checking in again tomorrow for any
| unanswered questions. Have a great weekend.
| rhosseinzadeh wrote:
| Hi and thanks for doing this.
|
| I went through CBP twice in the span of 20 hours. I was granted
| entry once and denied the second time. The second time, I had to
| sign some electronic pad and later a form (I-275) was given to
| me. Did I have the option not to sign? And is this contradictory
| decision in span of 20 hours legally OK?
|
| Below are some more details:
|
| At Toronto Pearson (Terminal 3) on December 1-2, 2025, I went
| through CBP twice and the first time I was granted entry and
| second time denied. I am a dual Canadian-Iranian citizen. On day
| one I was given a detailed biographical form, questioned
| repeatedly about my purpose of travel (Conference), employment,
| etc and especially about any Iranian military service. I provided
| old passports and a university transcript showing that I have not
| been in Iran since 2019 and prior to that I was studying in the
| university. They also explicitly questioned me about a prior
| incident in which Canadian police claimed an explosive trace
| ("Tetryl") on me, which I disputed as an error. CBP took my
| belongings (backpack, watch, wallet, phone), conducted a body
| inspection in another room (through search, hands inside my pants
| followed by groin search) took my fingerprints multiple times and
| took my phone after requiring the pass code and it was out of my
| possession for about an hour. After several hours they told me I
| was "negative" but by then my flight had departed. I was given
| only a piece of paper with CBP stamp. Since there was no flight
| for my airline for the rest of the day, I was brought back to the
| Canadian side. The day after, I went through CBP again and when I
| showed them their paper with stamp I was told "we are not going
| to take your word for it" and the full process happened again
| (although no body check or phone check this time). A different
| officer then stated that my documents were not sufficient to
| prove I had not done military service in Iran and that I now
| needed an official exemption letter or something similar from
| Iranian authorities. He added that I should have been "advised
| differently" the night before. Finally, my picture was taken and
| I was asked to sign on a pad twice. Only afterward did they print
| and hand me a form (I-275) showing a withdrawal of my
| application. I was escorted back to the Canadian side. Did I have
| the option not to sign? If in future I decide to visit US is this
| going to be held against me? I can provide more details or the
| form if necessary.
| mariopt wrote:
| Hi Peter, thank you for doing this AMA.
|
| How can an European Senior SWE land a job, let's say, SF and have
| some kind of guarantee regarding the visa before flying into the
| US.
|
| The 100K cost for the H-1B is so absurd that it crushes any hope
| of me ever participating in Silicon Valley or any other tech hub
| in the US. Is the tech alive or are companies just relocating to
| EU/others?
| hoerzu wrote:
| dear Peter Roberts, your responses have been super helpful. I'm a
| unlucky position of losing esta for smoking weed once in New
| York. looking into waiver of inadmissible as you recommended
| should I get I writing from a therapist before or after o1
| application?
|
| should it be d3 or i601?
| askPeter wrote:
| Can a person on a nonimmigrant visa file for patent unrelated to
| the employer?
| joshdavham wrote:
| You've stated in a previous comment that non-US citizens can be
| denied entry to the United States if border officers request
| access to your phone and you decline to do so.
|
| ... but what about when non-US citizens _leave_ the US?
|
| For example, as a Canadian, if I'm down in the US and, on my way
| back up to Canada, a US border officer requests access to my
| phone and I decline... what happens then?
| conqrr wrote:
| Can I get an H1b for just 10hr/week like a part time job and be
| valid status in the US?
| germandiago wrote:
| Hello Mr. Peter,
|
| A few I registered a company in Delaware as a foreign company for
| SaaS business.
|
| I have been unable to complete an organization certificate for my
| website.
|
| Unfortunately I could not get one since my legal phone is not the
| way to reach me and they tell me that they cannot change that
| phone to reach me according to my legal representatives in
| Delaware.
|
| I need some kind of certificate of good standing or being able to
| have a verifiable phone and/or email to reach me in a "reliable"
| way from a third party source.
|
| How could I proceed for this, since I am not knowledgeable of the
| law in Delaware. Probably I need an attorney and I would be happy
| if I can be recommended one that could emit such verification.
| final_aeon wrote:
| Hello sir, my question is: What do you think of the trump admin?
| heltale wrote:
| Hey Peter, I'm an F1 visa student and I'm trying to found a
| company with two Americans while being an Indian citizen. I plan
| on taking significant equity and will be part of the cofounders.
| Are there any significant hurdles that I should be on the lookout
| for here? I'd like to sign the founders agreement and found the
| company while I'm still pursuing my education but I'm not sure
| whether my visa status would throw any wrenches here.
| h99 wrote:
| Hi Peter, founder of a YC startup here. My startup got acquired
| and I now have a new O1 visa but in my indian passport I still
| have the old O1 visa stamped. I've now traveled internationally.
| Can I enter the US with my old visa? Asking because the waiting
| times to get the new visa stamped are ridiculously long. Thank
| you for your time!
| dhruv3006 wrote:
| What should i keep in mind if i move to sf from India?
| cromka wrote:
| I have worked in the US on an L1B converted to H1B visa for about
| 5 years, left for Europe in 2021. Including the time I was absent
| from US soil while employed on an H1B and the time I had
| remaining on it before I left, I would be able to recapture about
| 18 months for an extension. Can I now return to work for a US
| company again if they hired me and would they be subjected to the
| $100k fee?
| nwhnwh wrote:
| How do you feel about the world?
| RecursionSucks wrote:
| Is it still a good idea to apply for global entry while on H1B?
| Are there any repercussions if a global entry application is
| denied for whatever reason?
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