I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA • Hacker News Board

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#21

Post by proberts » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:17 PM UTC

sn0v wrote: post #14

Hi Peter, thanks for doing this. How would you recommend an H1B holder go about transitioning to founding/working for their own startup?

There are lots of visa options dependent on a variety of factors such as country of citizenship, amount and source of funding, ownership structure. But often there is a solution.

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#22

Post by pboutros » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:18 PM UTC

We hear a lot about the limited # of H1B visas available, about how it functions as a lottery, etc... What are common issues with the H1B application process that don't receive as much public attention?

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#23

Post by iktl » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:18 PM UTC

Hi Peter – as H1B / E3 visa holders are only allowed to work for the company sponsoring them, are these holders able to provide contract work (separate to their regular work) to clients either in or out of the US provided the work is conducted and billed via a registered business entity in their home (or another non-US) country?

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#24

Post by blizkreeg » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:18 PM UTC

billconan wrote: post #19

What are the options for an h1b who wants to start up? we can't lose our jobs to maintain the h1b status. will yc care that we are not working on the idea fulltime by the time of applying to yc? (will certainly quit the job if accepted to yc.) what are the common attitudes of companies, like google, microsoft, apple, facebook, toward employee moonlighting?

this. I'm in the process of co-founding a startup. My co-founder is on an H-1B and it's probably the thing that comes up the most in "how are we going to make this work?". What are the capital/other requirements necessary to transfer/file for their H-1B by the startup?

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#25

Post by atirip » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:18 PM UTC

ojbyrne wrote: post #4

I am curious about the approach YC takes for foreign founders who are accepted into YC. How do they come to the US for the initial incubation period? What happens after demo day?

+1 Additionally: i understand EU citizens can be in the US visa free for 3 months. What that exactly means? 3 months per year or 3 months per one visit? If the latter then how often? Lets assume one gets accepted and decides to utilize that visa free offer - what should be said at the border if one is asked.

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#26

Post by proberts » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:19 PM UTC

yranadive wrote: post #9

What are the top 3 things required to make a strong case to get EB1 for startup founders on H4 EAD?

That's a tough question because USCIS really looks at the totality of the evidence but (not surprisingly) awards, press, and original contributions/patents are important (although not necessarily required).

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#27

Post by HackerDoMal » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:19 PM UTC

Vou hackear o celular e o canal pq ele hackeou o meu então ele ta fudido vai se fuder ele Flw meu Hackers lindo

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#28

Post by cagenut » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:20 PM UTC

This isn't really an immigration question so much as an avoiding-having-to-immigrate question:

What are the challenges in having co-founders in other countries and being able to grant them meaningful chunks of equity. Say example someone with 10% in Hungary and another with 10% in the Netherlands.

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#29

Post by martin_ » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:20 PM UTC

disbelief wrote: post #11

How would you rate a senior engineer's odds at qualifying for an O-1 visa? Can they get by on career/work history alone or does it require a level of public notoriety?

I may be able to share some insight here. At 23 years old, I have gone through the O-1 process twice in the past 3.5 years, I have a couple of references in news publications like TechCrunch but that's about it in terms of public notoriety. Your prior achievements, recommendation letters and peer review are important. TLDR: Don't be intimidated by the absurd name of the visa. My e-mail is in my profile if you want some specifics

Re: I am Peter Roberts, an immigration lawyer who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#30

Post by proberts » Fri, Dec 11, 2015, 7:21 PM UTC

shekispeaks wrote: post #16

Can I drive for lyft part time on an H1B?

H-1B employment can be part-time but it needs to be professional in nature - that is, specialized and requiring a bachelor's degree in a specific field of study.