Hi. Practically, do I need to be an oficially employee for my employer to file H1B, or contractor is ok?
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
#102Earlier quoted context omitted.
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-pers…
Expedites as a noun like invites, arguably not grammatically correct but in common use so correct from a usage standpoint.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#103As 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 fe…
> You can move to France with a regular paying job no problem or just a few thousand euros in savings
Unless something has changed dramatically in the last decade this is patently false. Getting an EU work permit was historically very hard with employers having to demonstrate that a position can't be filled by an EU citizen before a non-EU citizen candidate can be considered.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#104Earlier quoted context omitted.
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.
That’s because the airline updates your I-94 for you. If they don’t you risk overstaying. There is a website you can use to validate that they did everything correctly.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#105How common is it for pre-Series A startups to sponsor H1Bs? What's the process like for EB2 on the PERM route, and how difficult is it to be successful in that process?
No issues whatsoever with respect to H-1B sponsorship but potential issues with respect to green card applications, particularly PERM-based applications because of the ability pay requirement and because of issues related to ownership/equity held by the employee.
What are those issues?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#106If you were an immigrant with legal status who lives in the US, would you feel OK traveling? What precautions would you take, what information would you memorize?
Yes. I still think that those with student or work visas or green cards should travel internationally. It's just a question of being smart and carrying the right documents. The right documents will vary depending on the status so I can't give a list but I'd recommend having a brief consultation with an attorney. Many like myself won't charge for a 15-minute consultation, which is all that this should take.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#107Are you seeing an increase in RFE/denial rates for EB2-NIW? What advice would you have if you get an RFE? This is for an AI researcher at one of the 3 foundation model companies.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#108Do L1B visa holders have reasonable chance of getting compelling circumstances EAD if their visa date isn't current for EB-3? I'm wondering if I should suggest that option for HR when they file the I-140 (or after if it's approved, whatever the process is).
USCIS rarely issues I-140 EADs based on compelling circumstances unless there are government/national interests at stake or significant humanitarian issues.
Okay, thanks. I was primarily wondering due to "Significant Disruption to the Employer" seems to be one of the possible categories and it's description sounded similar to reasons why one would get L1B visa.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#109hi Peter! how long does 221(g) administrative processing take to complete in your experience? anything one can do besides waiting (Russian citizen working in tech, almost 1yr without adjustments)?
This really depends on the reason for the 221(g) and the applicant's country of citizenship or birth. Unfortunately, for those from certain countries, such as Iran and Russia, it has not been uncommon for such applications to go into a black hole and take 1-2 years. For those not from such countries, the process is relatively quick, from a couple of week to a couple of months.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney, who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#110Hey Peter, On average, min and max - how many H1Bs do a Seed/Series A,B startups have? From your experience. Thank you for your time, Naren
I'm not sure I understand what you are asking. Do you mean the average per startup or the total number? All I can say is that startups usually can sponsor H-1Bs without issue.