Hi Peter,
I'm wondering which visa pathways are interesting to consider for permanent relocation of EU citizens, and possibly Iranians and South Koreans when relocating entire startups to silicon valley. Thank you for this AMA!
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
181–190 of 291 posts
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#182Hi Peter, What type of effect has the proliferation of immigrant worker programs created by the federal government in recent decades, such as H1B, had on the natural born American worker? Generally positive or negative? Thank you
You're getting downvoted because this isn't something that Peter is claiming to be an expert in. He's an attorney, not an economist.
I would expect an immigration attorney to be generally well-versed in immigration in all facets. I’m a Rust developer but I generally keep up with all topical software engineering issues.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#183One way to do it: incorporate the company (Stripe Atlas), raise funding, apply for the O-1. Can smoothly move from H-1B to O-1 without leaving the country.I've helped a number of people do this over the last year.
If you have cofounders it is slightly easier, but solo founder is certainly possible.
EB-1 is a logical extension of the O-1 - same "exceptional ability" criteria. The EB-1 isn't any easier at a big company vs a little company; it's all about your professional accomplishments. Arguably, raising money and building a startup shows you've accomplished more than being engineer #600 at BigCo.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#184Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why are you flying to California? For onboarding? I would recommend getting a TN prior to your flight in case there are problems. You don't need a TN if you're physically in Canada. You only need the TN if you're entering the United States to work. If you don't need to enter the United States, you can avoid this for now.
They don't have Canadian payroll set up and don't want to hire contractors.
Disclaimer: Not an attorney
Really, there is nothing about a TN that prevents you from working in Canada, because you don't need any authorization for you to work in Canada (as a citizen).
But what you are suggesting sounds wrong. Do you plan on paying US taxes but not live there? Do you plan on not paying Canadian taxes?
If you are getting a TN to prevent your employer from having to follow appropriate processes for employing people in Canada it feels like you are putting yourself personally at risk for this employer.
Again, I am not an attorney, but you should probably talk to one about options here because something just _feels_ incorrect about this set up.
Edit: I accidently remoted a sentence:
There are many organizations (PEOs) that try to solve this problem, such as https://remote.com/
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#185Hi Peter, I'm wondering which visa pathways are interesting to consider for permanent relocation of EU citizens, and possibly Iranians and South Koreans when relocating entire startups to silicon valley. Thank you for this AMA!
It's going to vary depending on the country of citizenship but right now the best path to transferring large numbers of employees to the US is the E-1 or E-2 visa. For large companies, the L-1 visa also can be a good option.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#186Hi Peter,
Thank you so much for doing another AMA! I'm a 25 year old student on F1 Visa (OPTX) that expires in 7 months. I work as a software engineer at a tech company. The company will sponsor me in applying for the H1B visa. I'm also working on a startup with a US citizen. We plan to have the startup sponsor me as well for the H1B visa. Hopefully applying for a concurrent H1B visa (source: https://www.am22tech.com/concurrent-h1b-multiple-jobs/) will help improve my chances of getting picked during the lottery. I'm also considering a US O-1 visa and EB-1 visa, but might not have the right credentials. I have a Master of Sciences in Computer Engineering with Master Thesis in Machine Learning. I've built sophisticated logistics tools that generated $500k+ of annual recurring revenue in my role as a software engineer. The startup I'm working is launching soon and will be a B2B SaaS that should generate good cash flow. For who have been through similar situations or with immigration knowledge, your feedback and advice would be greatly appreciated: 1. What are my best options for staying in the US?
2. What other options do I have for staying in the US?
3. For an H1B visa, is there any downside to applying through multiple employers for different positions at different companies?
4. Do I have a shot for the O-1 or EB-1 visa?
5. Is it worth exploring options in Canada? If so, what is recommended for my situation?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#187I am an Australian nation and wondering if you know of any companies that sponsor under the E3 visa in Silicon Valley?
A lot do and as you probably know - at least pre-pandemic - the E-3 visa is relatively easy and fast to get. Unfortunately, I can't provide the specific names of clients.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#188Earlier quoted context omitted.
Why are you flying to California? For onboarding? I would recommend getting a TN prior to your flight in case there are problems. You don't need a TN if you're physically in Canada. You only need the TN if you're entering the United States to work. If you don't need to enter the United States, you can avoid this for now.
They don't have Canadian payroll set up and don't want to hire contractors.
The government of Canada will make itself known within 12 months when you have no T4s, no CPP, no EI contributions, and no income tax withdrawals
There are plenty of PEOs that will solve this problem. There's an entire well known legal pathway for this exact scenario.
Trinet is popular for instance.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#189What is the difference between doing work for someone versus simply just working for someone?
Level of independence, probably.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#190Hey Peter, Me and my partner recently (1 month ago) got our green cards via my employer. My partner had previously started green card process through their work as well which is currently in PERM phase. Is there any value in continuing my partner's green card process through their work? Is it at all common that EB green cards are rescinded? I have no reason to suspect this, I am just being extra careful.
No, there's really no reason to continue with that process; I've never seen a green card revoked because improperly issued.