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I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

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Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#61

Post by morpheuskafka »

beowulf86 wrote: post #17

This isn't an immigration issue per se but we (early stage startup) were thinking of hiring an employee who will remain in their home country (Colombia) and work remotely until COVID concerns are far in the rearview. Do you know of any companies that we can use as a proxy or intermediary so we don't have to go through all the legal hoops ourselves? After some super quick research we found lano.io but would love some…

If you are not going to be doing business in Colombia or otherwise have a presence there, you probably don't really need to worry about their laws. You just need to address non-resident taxation here in the US. I would suggest talking to a tax attorney or professional to double check, but normally, compensation for personal services physically performed in the foreign country is not considered US-source income. Same as if you hired him to go take some product photos in Columbia or do door to door sales or anything else. If that is the case in your scenario, this would be really easy and you would have virtually no paperwork or witholding requirements.

So, it may be a lot cheaper to have an initial checkup with a tax specialist and then skip the ongoing expense of having a "proxy" company.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#62

Post by proberts »

edko wrote: post #42

Thank you very much for doing this. I have permanent residency, and children younger than 21 who live abroad. If I were to apply for permanent residency for them, would they be able to visit the US as tourists while the process is ongoing, or come to study to an American university with a student visa?

The answer depends in part on whether they already have B-2 tourist visas. If they do, they should be able to visit you without issue. If they don't, they would need to apply for visas and that adds a layer of uncertainty - their visa applications could be denied. Between B-2 and F-1 visas, there's a greater likelihood that their F-1 visa applications would be denied. But, with some planning, you might be able to minimize these issues. If you'd like to discuss this, email me separately.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#63

Post by hoppeday »

Hello, do dates for F4 visas alternate frequently ? This is for Mexico. We have received two notifications advising us that we are ready to proceed but I see that the date now is 22 June 98– and our date in our application is October 99. Are we missing these dates?

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#65

Post by failedrequest »

Hi Peter, we have a small startup where our company is located in Bay area, but due to some family I want to reside in Nevada (give up California residency).

Is there any residency requirement for H1B ? if I am still being supervised and maintaining employee-employer relationship by reporting to the CEO. The worksite will be remaining same within a couple of 4 hours of commuting distance.

I have searched for the residency requirement but have not found anything concrete saying that you need to reside at the same geographical area as your worksite.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#66

Post by proberts »

xoail wrote: post #48

Per October bulletin, it is kinda odd that the filing dates moved up significantly but final action dates are still lagging for India. In your opinion/analysis why is that the case and do you have any estimates on expected trajectory of final action dates? Thank you!

The final action dates are limited by statute (the limit on the number of green cards that can be issued) whereas the filing dates are really determined by volume and capacity. Unfortunately, while I think the final action dates will progress in the coming months, I don't this progression will be significant.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#67

Post by proberts »

onetimeusename wrote: post #46

If someone earned a master's degree in the US in a specific topic, topic A, but has a foreign bachelor's degree in a different topic, topic B, and has a job in topic A, will the State Department disqualify them from getting an H1B visa because of the bachelor's degree topic?

No. That would not be a valid basis to deny.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#68

Post by qnsi »

hn-silver wrote: post #55

I needed an immigration attorney to help bring my wife into the country. Our contract stated I would pay a flat fee and she would cover the filing fees. When we filed the first set of forms, she expected me to pay. When I pointed out the contract said she would pay, she crossed it out in pen, rewrote it in pen stating I would pay. I had already signed the document, and felt obligated to continue using her service sin…

"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 try to do the same in my answers!"

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#69

Post by nrmitchi »

JonLim wrote: post #53
smnrchrds wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thank you for the write up. So if I understood it correctly, any B.Sc. degree plus 3 years of Computer Systems Analyst experience would qualify one for Computer Systems Analyst TN?

If I understand the requirements correctly, it's _any_ diploma or degree, plus 3 years of Computer Systems Analyst experience.

I am definitely not a lawyer, but am someone who has done multiple TNs.

It is really important to remember that the actual written requirements are one thing, but the interpretation of those requirements by whoever you talk to at your POE are arguably more important.

If you end up with a border officer who believes that your degree is not applicable, or your experience doesn't count, it is unlikely that you are going to be able to change their mind in that moment. NAFTA officers can be better (as the post writer above mentioned), but it still always feels like a bit of a toss-up of whether you get a "good" border agent.

Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

#70

Post by kpen11 »

JonLim wrote: post #40

Have you seen any issues lately with H1-B/TN visas being granted to technical employees who don't have a degree in CS or software engineering? Additionally, what questions/documents would you recommend people prepare in advance to make their immigration lawyers' lives easier? (I sent over a lot of documents to the lawyers preparing my application, but they took only a few in my initial TN visa application, and I ende…

I worked for 3 years on a TN visa with no degree of any kind. My job was a Software Engineer, and my TN was classified as a Scientific Technician. This was 2016-2019
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