Are there any pitfalls for non-US citizens that never have nor will visit the US when incorporating a company via a service like doola.com (YC)?
I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
321–330 of 425 posts
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#322Earlier quoted context omitted.
Because there are still a lot more opportunities to be found than anywhere else in the world, maybe with the exception of China. And who (from a western perspective) wants to live in China?
I loved living in China actually
Past tense seems to be important here. From what I hear from people who lived there in the past things have gone only to the worse since 2018 or so.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#323Hi Peter, My wife is going to pursue her PhD in US in the coming months, and I'm working as part-time remote employee of a US startup, while owning a startup in India. What options do I have, which would allow me to visit her for 1-2 months, without affecting my work? I've heard B1/B2 holders being questioned during entry after they stayed for a month during previous trips. As I'm not working full time for the US com…
A B-1/B-2 visa would not allow you to work for the U.S. company while here or your Indian startup while here. It might seem like overkill but possibly get an O-1 through the U.S. company. There's no minimum amount of time that you must spend in the U.S.
How can US dictate an alien to not work for a foreign country while in US for visit?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#324Have you felt there are a lot less requests for founders to fully immigrate into the US? Maybe given the increased simplicity in working remotely, the services and new mindset have genuinely reduce the importance of location (although it’s still important, just reduced). I personally don’t feel the need/desire to immigrate into the US anymore. I used to be all over it. But since I sold my startup and relocated to Eur…
Out of curiosity, which part of the EU do you find so good?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#325Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's US law. Are there similar European laws?
As a European I expect at least some common sense behind a law. Every time I visited the US I noted a complete absence of common sense.
You only get common sense when everyone agrees with what the goal of the law should be.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#326I've been running a company in India for the last 8 years. At some point in the future, I'll incorporate a C-Corp in the US and I'll need to visit the US for a few days. Is it possible for me (as director of the C-Corp) to invite myself (director of the company in India)? It sounds weird even asking.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#327Appreciate these threads.
I believe that it is possible to work for a tech employer on a H1B Visa, where the visa comes from a charitable / academic organisation offering to be your 'primary' employer, not requiring you to work full-time with them, and being willing to work with you to get the H1B through their process that is not subject to the lottery process / visa cap. You can then work most (but not all) of the time with a 'regular' employer that you find the normal way, on that H1B visa.
>>> I am SURE I saw some service that helps to orchestrate this, presumably unusual but not illegal, arrangement, with uncapped / no lottery organisations - do you know about this? Can it work? In practice I am sure it could work well to work part-time for a "institutions of higher education or related/affiliated nonprofit entities and nonprofit or governmental research organizations." and then most of the time for a regular (e.g. startup) employer.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#328Ask your libertarian friends: why is it capital has no borders but people do?
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#329Earlier 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.
Yeah, however, the problem with breaking laws around immigration in a place you like is that you won't have to do much to become ineligible for the convenient visa options. As in, get caught by immigration working on a tourist visa, get no tourist visa approved for the next 10~20 years. If you get a visa at all, that is, though I understand merely violating conditions, not breaking normal laws or overstaying has no g…
You can be banned from the US for any reason, or no reason, just because they don’t like the look of your face, or the officer is having a bad day, etc.
Regardless of what the law says you don’t have any right to enter the US, regardless of what visa you hold (except perhaps a green card), so be friendly, look wealthy and important, and say the right things.
Re: I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA
#330Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's US law. Are there similar European laws?
As a European I expect at least some common sense behind a law. Every time I visited the US I noted a complete absence of common sense.
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.