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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

#251

Post by grahamgooch »

proberts wrote: post #229
chitreshd wrote: post #191

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What if I have an H1B, but want to pursue starting my own Startup. What are the actions that I can undertake without jeopardizing my status or relationship with my current employer? One of the main hurdle is I cant go an seek customers, as my profile would show an employee with my current employer?

The real issue in establishing a company while employed by another is that your current employer could have claims over the IP that you develop through your startup so while there are lots that one can do vis-a-vis a startup while currently employed by another company (or in the U.S. as a visitor) as noted in my comment above, I think the bigger issue is putting the company's IP and other assets in jeopardy by incorp…

Good point. A lot of people don’t know this.

If the company makes it - the venture can be in legal jeopardy.

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

#252

Post by elevatedastalt »

sfblah wrote: post #51

I'm a citizen, but I work with folks who are from India and are in the Green Card system. They have application dates going back all the way to 2015. They constantly tell me stories of how the date for being able to get your GC changes and that some people think for Indians it's going to take 20 more years. Can you explain how that works and what's going on there?

Only about 7500 or so Green Cards are issued every year to Indians in each employment based category (capped due to the per-country cap that's applied to India, China, Mexico) in each of the few employment based categories. The number of people who have applied for these categories in the last 10-15 years is much more than 7500 a year, typically almost 10x, so the line moves at a glacial pace, usually moving a month every year.

The line for EB-2 and EB-3 (where most Indians are) is currently servicing those who applied in Summer 2012. So if your colleague got in the line in say Summer 2015, that's 36 months away. At the current pace it could easily be 20-40 years before their turn comes.

Also remember that there was a massive tech boom in the 2014 to 2019 period, so a LOT more people applied during that time so the movement of the line will slow down even beyond the current 1 month per year rate. If your colleagues applied in 2016 or beyond they are unlikely to get it in their lifetime unless the per-country caps are removed.

Finally, you'll sometimes hear the word "retrogression". That refers to the line actually moving "back". This happens because the date that the USCIS announces as the "pointer" to who is being issued cards is an estimate based on the recent green card issue rate.

Sometimes it can move back if they had to issue more green cards than they expected to (since people can apply for spouse and kids together when their turn comes).

Sometimes it moves forward faster if the number of people they expected to apply for the final processing stage turns out lower than their estimation.

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

#253

Post by grahamgooch »

Natsu wrote: post #232
grahamgooch wrote: post #212

Isn’t the green card risk based on a couple of items in the green card process The visa process and the person’s assertions to those visa questions For example - did you every x? And the required answer is No Let’s assume the person did commit X but answers No Years go by and the person gets a green card. The underlying assertion was a lie - therefore the whole stream of events later becomes questionable. The second…

You should read the actual questions on an I-485, they don't rely on declarations that any given organization is "terrorist" or anything like that. Now, I think you're right that the statements are only required to be true at the time they were made. That said, if I can get you to look at the I-485 which one fills out to get a green card, and focus on the questions in Item Numbers 43.b. - 43.e, which cover what is es…

Good points.

Thanks for sharing the link. Yikes! It looks like all of part 9 is in play. Ie one had better be absolutely truthful - or self decline, who would ever do that?

Also, the problem with the legal definition of “a disqualification requirement” is it can be vague and subject to change.

Would I be correct in saying that a strict adherence to USA law is mandatory?

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

#254

Post by YZF »

cmrdporcupine wrote: post #164
walrus01 wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Canadians may be often unprepared and shocked how aggressive and militarized the southern border is, compared to crossing at northern border land entry points.

I rarely find the pre-clearance process to be all that nice when compared to internal clearance. When I traveled a lot to NYC I far preferred to fly out of Toronto island and do immigration at Newark vs flying out of Pearson. The tone was entirely different. I personally am not sure that pre-clearance should even continue given current diplomatic tensions. Having an armed foreign police force from a country whose off…

It varies. In recent years (last decade or so) YVR has been pretty good. Historically there were ups and downs.

I doubt a few immigration officers with handguns (can't say for sure they even carry them or carry them out of the airport) are going to take over BC.

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

#255

Post by Alupis »

worik wrote: post #235
radicalbyte wrote: post #141

How do you protect people visiting or participating in YC from ICE? There have been two dozen stories of random tourists being disappeared for no good reason from all over the US. Given that the policy is in the very early stages of implementation we can expect those numbers to reach the hundreds, thousands and tens of thousands in the next few months.

> There have been two dozen stories of random tourists being disappeared for no good reason from all over the US. Really? That is frightening. I plan to be a tourist in the USA within a decade. Can you expand on that?

It's BS. Random tourists aren't being "disappeared for no good reason". A "tourist" that overstayed by 2 years without applying for a Visa and/or started working here are being deported back to their home nation - in accordance with the law.

There's a tremendous amount of scaremongering, fearmongering, and misinformation being thrown about currently. Majority of it is very much over stated hyperbole.

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

#257

Post by grahamgooch »

keerthiko wrote: post #230
grahamgooch wrote: post #214

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually they can. For eg. Some green card holders live overseas. They are required to visit here periodically to keep status alive. I know of cases where their green cards were revoked

That is a pre-indicated stipulation of the green card validity, not revocation based on the whim of an evaluating (non-immigration judicial) official -- ie CBP and DHS and ICE cannot (read: should not be able to) revoke green cards. The "basic US presence" requirement of green cards has always been present in the validity clause alongside the 5-10year expiry date, and not committing immigration fraud and other basic…

I see your point. Thank you.

I think most non legally inclined people (like me) would say CBP yanked my GC.

Your point being that - nope, they just enforced the law.

Right?

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

#258

Post by dmix »

appleaday1 wrote: post #256

Whats the best way for me to work as a Canadian citizen easily with not much legal hoops for the USA thanks. Math/Comp Sci degree with Physics backgroud.

There's plenty of remote US jobs that will hire Canadians, but most want you in country. Otherwise find a company willing to hire people on work visas and see if you qualify for a TN visa (an advanced degree related to the field is usually enough), then go to the border at an airport or similar with paperwork put together with the help of an immigration lawyer. They also might know where the best port of entries are to get TN visas approved. Sometimes (Canadian) land borders are better.

If you're looking for the harder but longer term route then try H1B.

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

#259

Post by iamcreasy »

Thanks for the AMA.

Recent changes to H1B allowing any organization that conduct research "as a fundamental activity" to be eligible for cap exemption status. What's your comment on this?

Based on your work experience with startup, do they ever fit this criteria?

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

#260

Post by gm678 »

Alupis wrote: post #255
worik wrote: post #235

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> There have been two dozen stories of random tourists being disappeared for no good reason from all over the US. Really? That is frightening. I plan to be a tourist in the USA within a decade. Can you expand on that?

It's BS. Random tourists aren't being "disappeared for no good reason". A "tourist" that overstayed by 2 years without applying for a Visa and/or started working here are being deported back to their home nation - in accordance with the law. There's a tremendous amount of scaremongering, fearmongering, and misinformation being thrown about currently. Majority of it is very much over stated hyperbole.

> Canadian woman put in chains, detained by ICE after entering San Diego border

> She said the officer refused to allow her to go back to Mexico and ordered her to be detained. She was kept in a cold room at the border by CBP before being arrested by ICE, who placed her at the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Mooney claimed in the middle of the night she, along with a group of 30 other women, was rounded up to get transferred to a facility in Arizona. CBP wouldn’t tell Team 10 the reason for Mooney’s detention, citing privacy restrictions.

https://www.10news.com/news/local-news/never-seen-anything-s...

> A German tourist detained by US immigration authorities is due to be deported back to Germany on Tuesday after spending more than six weeks in detention, including eight days in solitary confinement. Both Germans were held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, a prison in San Diego, California. Brösche and Lofving had attempted to enter the US from Tijuana in Mexico on 25 January.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/mar/11/german-tourist...

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