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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

#241

Post by proberts »

someotherperson wrote: post #161

A friend entered the US on an ESTA last year. They ended up getting married to their US spouse while in the US, but had no intention of staying in the US and left on day 88 or so. Does this hinder their chances of re-entering the US on an ESTA for short periods (i.e, in this case, visiting their in-laws)? As I understand it, you're not supposed to get married while on an ESTA, but the way the law reads is that you're…

Not necessarily. There's no restriction on getting married in the U.S. The restriction is entering the U.S. as a visitor with the intent of getting married AND applying for a green card. But if this intent arises after entry, there are no issues, period. Regarding these facts, your friend still should be able to travel to the U.S. Your friend should just be prepared to explain what they did while here and why they stayed as long as they and what they are coming to do now. At the end, it boils down to credibility and the truth. There's absolutely no legal reason here why your friend shouldn't be allowed in again.

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

#242

Post by pushkar2911 »

What is a good way for someone with Canadian Citizenship but Indian born to move back to US? I did my MS in US and then moved to Canada on PR after failing to get H1B after 3 attempts. I don't work for FANG and work for mid sized Canadian company, so moving through my company is difficult.

I would love to move back to US because of more employment opportunities than Canada.

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

#243

Post by proberts »

kecupochren wrote: post #31

How common are H1Bs for people without a degree but with 12+ years of experience? Is that a legit thing?

Very legit. The experience just needs to be professional and well-documented and the evaluation done by a reputable evaluation service.

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

#244

Post by letitgo12345 »

alsodumb wrote: post #234

Hi! Thanks for doing this! I am a PhD student planning to apply for EB-1 soon (that's the only path that could work for me due to my nationality). I am trying to understand what it takes for a successful EB-1 application and have a few questions: 1. From what I've seen, the application packet I will send would be hundreds of pages (with all the expected evidence). I am assuming the officer reviewing my application wo…

You should look into securing your priority date via EB2-NIW and applying through EB1-B -- that's far easier to get approval for than EB1-A.

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

#245

Post by ShivTheShiv »

somerando7 wrote: post #159

What would be the advice for Canadians who want to start a company, but are unable to do so because they are on a TN/H1B? As I see it my only options are: a) Move back to Canada, start company there. Does this impede getting VC funding? Can I somehow move back to the US if my company becomes successful? b) Wait until I get a greencard. Further question: c) Is it better to go TN->PERM or TN->H1B->PERM, what are the dr…

Get some tax advice!!! If you own more than 10% of a foreign company your US taxes become very, very complicated. I relinquished my green card after my first tax filing. If you want to be in the US, found your company in the US.

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

#246

Post by letitgo12345 »

pushkar2911 wrote: post #242

What is a good way for someone with Canadian Citizenship but Indian born to move back to US? I did my MS in US and then moved to Canada on PR after failing to get H1B after 3 attempts. I don't work for FANG and work for mid sized Canadian company, so moving through my company is difficult. I would love to move back to US because of more employment opportunities than Canada.

TN visa

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

#248

Post by letitgo12345 »

sanctified384 wrote: post #44

Regarding the GC backlog for India, what is your best guess for the number of years it will take for priority dates in 2016 to become current?

For EB1 - probably Oct.

For EB2/3 -- likely 15 years or more...

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

#249

Post by proberts »

citiz3nkan3 wrote: post #196

My situation: - I am on an H-1B visa and working at BIG_TECH_CO - I am in the final stages of my EB-2 green card application process, which is sponsored by BIG_TECH_CO. My I-140 was approved a few months ago, and I-485 is pending. BIG_TECH_CO's immigration lawyers have told me that they believe my priority date will become current in October, when the green card numbers refresh for the government's fiscal year. - In…

There's no issue from a naturalization standpoint with changing employers if AC21 applies. That's the whole point of AC21, facilitating job change. AC21 is easy, as long as the I-140 has been approved, the I-485 has been pending 6 months, and the new job is in the same or similar occupation as the sponsored job, the I-485J should get approved without any issue. Regarding maintaining H-1B status, it's a nice back-up but not all employers will support it - as long as the new employee has an EAD of course - although it's rare that a pending I-485 application isn't approved.

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

#250

Post by PettingRabbits »

proberts wrote: post #76
PettingRabbits wrote: post #73

How would somebody that qualifies as a TN NAFTA Professional (e.g. Canadian applying for engineering job with relevant engineering degree) answer the question of "Are you authorized to work in the US?", particularly with regards to sponsorship? As I understand it, the question is to determine if the employer needs to apply for a visa, (H-1B, etc) but according to USCIS all the employer has to do for TN is provide a l…

The TN is company-specific so if you are applying for a new job, even if you have a TN with one company, you would need a new TN and even though the TN process is generally simple and easy, it qualifies as sponsorship.

>it qualifies as sponsorship.

Rats. It's gonna be tough to make it past the first screening round with a No answer. Oh well, fingers crossed some good referral action can help. Thanks for the insight.

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