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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

#411

Post by rgavuliak »

throw123123123 wrote: post #310
proberts wrote: post #142

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That still would cross the line even if that wasn't your plan when you entered.

Sorry, but this can't be right. Companies fly in people on B2 visas all the time to do onboarding, work on specific projects for a short period, and participate in offsites. I've done this 10+ times in my career, for big and small companies, and it was never an issue even when explicitly saying these things with border patrol/immigration. What gets you in trouble at the border is the risk of permanently staying, and…

I think this is start ups where European "employees" are contracting for the US entity as there's no local EU entity. You then do your visit through ESTA.

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

#412

Post by switch007 »

Swizec wrote: post #187
skybrian wrote: post #184

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's US law. Are there similar European laws?

The European attitude is: Am I breaking the law? How do I make sure I’m not? The American attitude is: I’m not breaking the law until someone tells me to stop.

Haha Spain and Italy are like: rules are stupid and there to be broken

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

#414

Post by nixgeek »

bdjsiqoocwk wrote: post #304
nixgeek wrote: post #279

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’d need to apply for a role at the company and then it would be situational and perhaps not immediate. There’s no easy option that I’m aware about and just getting a US offer and having a US employer to help with immigration does not guarantee much — You might be eligible for an O-1 if you possess graduate qualifications, publications or meet other options. “Person of Extraordinary Ability” essentially. You might…

I already have an L-1 at the company I work at, but that doesn't allow me to work elsewhere. Does make anything easier?

I was thrown by you saying you were UK-based, if you have an L-1 then you’re able to reside and work in the US for that specific employer.

To change jobs on an L-1 you really need to have filed I-140 and be on the way toward your Green Card.

https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-7-part-e-chapter-...

What this means concretely is if you have an L-1, an approved I-140 filed >6 months ago, and you’re now pending Adjustment of Status, I think it’s fairly safe to change jobs under AC21 (that’s what I did; this is not legal advice and I’m not an attorney, I took legal advice about my situation).

If you change jobs to work for Employer B after I-140 has been filed and >6 months has passed but *before* it is approved, I think that’s technically allowed in an authorization to work sense, however your L-1 is no longer valid, so if your I-140 filed by Employer A gets an RFE or Denial, you may be in difficult territory.

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

#416

Post by throw123123123 »

lolinder wrote: post #338
data_maan wrote: post #315

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can someone confirm/deny this?

What this person says is already contradicted by the immigration attorney who started this AMA. I'm amused and perplexed at all of the "I'm not a lawyer, but..." comments when this is literally an AMA with a lawyer.

I'm sure Peter Roberts is a fine professional, however, I have passed border patrol/immigration personally this way dozens of times and know of many other people who do it. You can find people doing this in an instant if you want.

I once got in trouble with BP because they didn't believe me that I was coming in to work on a project and thought I would be looking for a job to stay illegally. BP finally decided to let me in and told me that what I was doing was fine, but they just didn't find it credible that I would leave my GF alone for a month in Argentina.

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

#417

Post by solidsnack9000 »

usr1106 wrote: post #350
solidsnack9000 wrote: post #330

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Laws in probably every other country are the same in this regard. If you enter the country and do any work under the wrong visa, it is an improper entry.

That's correct. But only when entering the US I have been asked for example: Do intented to engage in illegal activity? That's question seems to violate common sense: No one intending to do so would admit it.

A direct question like that is seen to be useful as part of a broader set of questions, due to the emotional effect on the interviewee, depending on the "interviewing technique" that the agency is using.

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

#418

Post by bazillion »

proberts wrote: post #391
bazillion wrote: post #225

Is an O-1 or EB-1 visa viable as a grandmaster in chess? There are, for instance, only about 100 grandmasters in the United States right now. We're looking at bringing over a Chess grandmaster to our company, but don't know the most efficient route (haven't talked to an immigration lawyer). If time to visa is a factor, is there an easier route?

What would this person be doing for your company?

The company is a chess related company that sends instructors to school for afterschool events, so he would be teaching kids, instructing other instructors, helping run events (chess camps, tournaments, etc.), and giving private lessons.

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

#419

Post by ashconnor »

refurb wrote: post #277
ashconnor wrote: post #128

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My PERM was certified yesterday after 12 months and 2 weeks. That used to take 6 months. I'm now backlogged until October which never used to happen at all to ROW (rest of world excluding India and China) applicants.

It changes over time. My spouses PERM took 4 years.

That seems excessive. Just PERM or PWD, recruiting and PERM?

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

#420

Post by nullderef »

switch007 wrote: post #412
Swizec wrote: post #187

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The European attitude is: Am I breaking the law? How do I make sure I’m not? The American attitude is: I’m not breaking the law until someone tells me to stop.

Haha Spain and Italy are like: rules are stupid and there to be broken

"Más vale pedir perdón que permiso"
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