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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 klipt »

KerrAvon wrote: post #59
__turbobrew__ wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Im a Canadian and go to the US for work fairly regularly. Something I didn’t realize is that the laws are different in preclearance areas. https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/P-19.32/FullText.ht... For example, you are allowed to withdraw your application to enter the US and leave the preclearance area. Additionally you are bound by different laws for search and siezure. At this point I am only going to the US t…

That’s only the Canada -> US leg, though. They can still grab your phone on the US -> Canada return trip, ne pas?

Historically the US has not had much "exit control".

For example leaving the Schengen area it's obligatory to go through "exit immigration" and get your passport stamped. Leaving the US, you show your passport to the airline, but usually there is no formal immigration check at all.

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

#62

Post by proberts »

neom wrote: post #10

There has been a bunch of chatter in Canadian founders whatsapp groups about people getting detained for long periods of time coming into the states either at SFO or pre-clear in Canada. Are you advising Canadians travel with any additional documentation these days?

There's no question that it's tougher now to get into the U.S., whether from Canada or another country via pre-clearance or via a land crossing, and there can be significant differences among airports and land crossings. Canadians are unique because they are visa exempt and CBP feels particularly emboldened to reassess their admissibility every time they enter. The keys are to avoid bad pre-clearance offices and land crossings and even more importantly to carry the right paperwork, which varies depending on the specific status being sought. There is also a huge difference between seeking entry as a visitor versus seeking entry as a worker with a visa, with the former much more challenging now.

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

#63

Post by louison11 »

makestuff wrote: post #17

As someone who is a US Citizen, what is something about the immigration process that I probably do not know about, but causes a lot of issues/could be improved.

The standard for employment-based permanent residency (green card) is extraordinarily high. As in, would likely place you in the top 1-5% of the most successful people in the country. That, or you have to invest $800k and create 10 jobs.

No other country in the world requires foreigners to be significantly more qualified than its own population. You can move to France with a regular paying job no problem or just a few thousand euros in savings. Impossible in the US. You have to be extraordinary (they literally call their criteria, "extraordinary abilities") or you have to make top 5% money (so if you work in tech, that would be at least $500k-1M/year in many cases).

The only other way is to get married. This means there is a massive discrepancy between the qualifications of self made immigrants, versus those simply lucky enough to fall in love. It's pretty unfair, but that's how it works. But that's also the reason so many immigrants are so successful in the US, the bar is so high, that it creates a massive motivation to succeed to become eligible for the criteria.

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

#64

Post by atemerev »

ahussain wrote: post #55
atemerev wrote: post #29

Were there any changes in requirements for O visa recently? Did they remove the job offer requirement?

I'm pretty sure the job offer requirement is still in effect, and will remain in effect, since the O is an employment-based visa. What made you think it had changed?

https://rjimmigrationlaw.com/resources/o-1-visa-update-new-e...

"USCIS now permits separate legal entities, such as corporations or limited liability companies (LLCs) owned by the beneficiary, to file O-1 petitions on their behalf. This change provides a significant advantage for entrepreneurs and self-employed professionals."

I am interested if it actually works in practice.

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

#65

Post by proberts »

noodlesUK wrote: post #33

Thanks for doing the AMA! I'm a US citizen born abroad - I got my citizenship via (I believe) INA 320 when I was a child. I have a US-born father who was not eligible to pass on his citizenship at the time of my birth. I lived in the US for most of my childhood up until ~2015 (initially as an LPR), and at some point, I obtained a US passport. I don't have a certificate of citizenship, only a US passport. Given the wa…

You still can apply for a Certificate of Citizenship but there's a cost associated with it and I really don't think it's necessary or even advisable because you are now giving the government a chance to reassess its previous approval. A U.S. passport is always considered sufficient evidence of U.S. citizenship.

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

#67

Post by nrmitchi »

Hey Peter! I'm going to pose a question that I think is tangential, but still related.

With genAI and LLMs making way into every profession, how much of an impact have you seen on the immigration law side? Have these style of tools made your job easier, or are they adding more confusion and uncertainty?

Given the rapidly changing landscape (on the immigration side; what is valid today may not be valid tomorrow, and everything seems kind of up to the best guess of the practitioner) do you see these tools (potentially) causing more harm than good (to specific individual cases)?

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

#68

Post by proberts »

miotintherain wrote: post #21

Hi Peter, thanks for doing this AMA. I am traveling to the US soon for work from Europe. I have been reading a lot of articles about detentions at US airports and phone checks. My mindset has always been to never give my personal phone for an inspection, but times has changed now and it has been happening a lot more frequently. I am wondering what is the best course of action, prior to travel and if asked to give you…

The short answer is that CBP has the right to ask to see your electronic devices and you have the right to refuse but if you refuse (and you are not a U.S. green card holder or citizen), CBP likely will deny you admission and send you home.

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

#69

Post by Intermernet »

proberts wrote: post #4
0xy wrote: post #2

I'm moving to the US on a K1 visa, is it possible to expedite an EAD on the basis of a job offer in an AI field?

Expedites are available for all USCIS filings and while it's worth it to request it here, your reason isn't like to meet the expedite requirements, which are listed on the USCIS website.

Is the correct term "Expedites", or "Expeditions"? Legal terminology seems to break language rules... The term for some (plural) things being expedited would be expeditions, but it seems from your response that, in legal terms, this would be expedites. This doesn't sound right. No source I could find agrees with the term "Expedites" as "plural of expedite". It generally returns something on the lines of "A third-person singular simple present indicative form of the verb "expedite.""

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

#70

Post by proberts »

BeetleB wrote: post #48
miotintherain wrote: post #21

Hi Peter, thanks for doing this AMA. I am traveling to the US soon for work from Europe. I have been reading a lot of articles about detentions at US airports and phone checks. My mindset has always been to never give my personal phone for an inspection, but times has changed now and it has been happening a lot more frequently. I am wondering what is the best course of action, prior to travel and if asked to give you…

Not a lawer, but the ACLU has a page on this: Short FAQ: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/what-do-when-encounter... Dedicated article: https://www.aclu.org/news/privacy-technology/can-border-agen...

Thank you. This is excellent guidance.
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