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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

#471

Post by saguntum »

iama_temp_97 wrote: post #149

I have a US passport and am a naturalized US citizen however due to some sort of clerical error my passport says I was born here (even though you have to staple your immigration cert to the passport application). I never even noticed it until I'd been in and out of the country a few times, my passport is about to expire and I'm worried about having trouble trying to get it fixed, what course of action should I take,…

FWIW I had the wrong US state on my passport for a long time. Not sure how that happened but it didn't cause any issues traveling at all.

I called the national passport line for advice about this when renewing, and they said to mail in the correction form the other commenter linked along with the renewal form. I also included a letter explaining that I wanted the passport renewed, but that it had my wrong birth state, and I wanted that corrected along with the renewal.

I think I included my birth certificate showing where I had actually been born, also, but I don't really remember. I'd call the State Department national hotline to see what they suggest: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/contact-us/passpo...

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

#473

Post by appleaday1 »

xp84 wrote: post #168
joshdavham wrote: post #125

I'm a Canadian software developer who'd like to join an American startup so naturally I've been applying to a bunch of jobs. More specifically, I'm looking to go with TN visa. In most job applications, I need to answer the two following questions 1) Are you legally authorized to work in the US? and 2) Will you now or in the future require sponsorship? I'm looking for advice on how I should be answering these question…

Hi, I just spent 2 months interviewing and hiring candidates for 4 open (remote) eng positions at a US startup. Answering "Yes" to 1 when you don't have a green card or US citizenship would be a way to guarantee that I would rescind your offer and make a mental note to never trust you. I don't think you should do that. We actually hired some Canadian talent -- we just used an EOR in Canada. The EOR cost us about $600…

you should look at /r/tnvisa sub, dont get fooled and pay for money when you dont have too >.>

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

#474

Post by appleaday1 »

clickety_clack wrote: post #381
YZF wrote: post #205

Earlier quoted context omitted.

TN is not a visa and all you need to get this status is a job offer. There's really no work of any specialized nature but some companies do get legal advice to help streamline the process and get better outcomes like reducing the probability that the person would be denied. (EDIT: it is sometimes referred to a visa and sometimes as a status but at any rate as someone who had TN status with two different US startups t…

I am a Canadian working in the US on TN status too (and yes, despite my opinion on it they call it a “status” not a “visa”). I can’t emphasize enough how light of a burden it is on employers to hire a Canadian on TN status. There’s no limit on the number of people who can come in, and it’s issued literally as you travel across the border. The paperwork is very basic. It’s essentially just a letter signed by the emplo…

Post on the /r/tnvisa sub on Reddit please, make the process transparent and most importantly VISIBLE so we Canadians dont have to pay a lawyer, this is a community process thanks.

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

#475

Post by appleaday1 »

throwaway219450 wrote: post #343
abraxas wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> 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.

The difference in the US is that it's (comparably) extremely difficult to change status from a temporary visa to a permanent one. Even if you are highly qualified. For example the most common academic visa, the J1, is explicitly a temporary exchange program and you can't have immigrant intent (on application). Most universities won't give out academic H1Bs even though they're cap-free. In most European countries, onc…

Tell me more about Vienna or Austria please, I used to live there for like 3-5 years as a kid,

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

#476

Post by sriamanan »

proberts wrote: post #430
sriamanan wrote: post #371

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am on L-1A with an approved I-140 in EB1c. My priority date is not current yet. What are the options if they were laid off.

Unfortunately, the approved I-140 EB1C is no help here; for you to be able to stay past your 60 days grace period, you will need to get sponsored for another work visa (likely the O-1 but you need to have a discussion with an attorney) or file an application to change your status to B-2 visitor status during the grace period.

Thanks for the response Peter.

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

#477

Post by mandeepj »

rane wrote: post #391
mandeepj wrote: post #113

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> My mindset has always been to never give my personal phone for an inspection Get a burner phone! Upload your entire data to the cloud as well. Either you can store your phone in the check-in luggage or restore your data once you've arrived at your US location.

So what happens if you just put your phone in the check-in luggage and say you don't have a phone?

> So what happens if you just put your phone in the check-in luggage and say you don't have a phone?

Carry a cheap burner phone with you, then.

Related: KPMG, Deloitte Ask Staff to Use Burner Phones for overseas travel -> https://archive.is/lml0L

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

#478

Post by robomartin »

maronato wrote: post #279
robomartin wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have been reading a lot of articles about detentions at US airports and phone checks. I travel internationally all the time. I work with companies in China, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Europe and Latin America. Meaning, I know lots of people who travel internationally with great frequency. I have never heard from anyone having any such problems. Ever. Not during this administration nor others. Stop listening to…

You are misinformed. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44006618

That comment is 100% dislocated from reality. To be sure, entry dynamics vary by country, person and other circumstances. Law enforcement is different in philosophy and approach all over the world. For example, in the US you are not met with soldiers carrying machine guns, which is something you are likely to encounter in Italy. To some people, being met by soldiers with machine guns is terrifying, to others, it is normal. To some people being asked questions in a terse manner is rude and scary, others understand security theater and the role these people play. It's shades of gray, not black and white.

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

#479

Post by robomartin »

brailsafe wrote: post #317
robomartin wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have been reading a lot of articles about detentions at US airports and phone checks. I travel internationally all the time. I work with companies in China, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Europe and Latin America. Meaning, I know lots of people who travel internationally with great frequency. I have never heard from anyone having any such problems. Ever. Not during this administration nor others. Stop listening to…

I've heard similar accounts, and anecdotally holds up, although my experience travelling for work specifically is limited. Incidentally, as a Canadian, I've been searched many more times, if not 100% of the time, coming back from the states than going in. Security theater in both directions though for sure, just looking for a slip up. Going in to the states, I once had a slightly vague answer about where I was stayin…

> They've got boxes to check.

Yup. That's it. And the people running entry and customs at airports around the world are not necessarily the most capable and accomplished among us. I have lots of stories.

For example, entering into Mexico (Cancun), there are probably twenty passport check booths. The line for passport checks easily had 500 people in it. Every single agent left their station, with only one left to process 500 people. That remained so for about an hour. As could be expected, tempers were flaring and interactions with this one person, in some cases, where, well, less than ideal. No supervisor in sight. About an hour later five agents showed-up. It was horrible, the agents had an attitude and travelers were tired and angry. I've been going to Mexico for a decade, this was the only time I've seen something like this. Someone for whom that trip was their only exposure would likely come out of it with a very different perspective.

Here's another one. I won't name the country because this was a thing at a moment in history for them and no-longer the case for probably the last twenty years. When travelling to this particular country is was an unspoken rule that you had to put money into your passport (typically $100 per traveler) in order to gain entry without being hassled. If you did not, the consequences were in a range between having to pay serious "taxes" on your stuff to having some of your things confiscated (typically your electronics).

As I said in another comment, this isn't a black and white issue, it's shades of grade.

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

#480

Post by robomartin »

creaturemachine wrote: post #272
robomartin wrote: post #221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I have been reading a lot of articles about detentions at US airports and phone checks. I travel internationally all the time. I work with companies in China, Singapore, Japan, Australia, Europe and Latin America. Meaning, I know lots of people who travel internationally with great frequency. I have never heard from anyone having any such problems. Ever. Not during this administration nor others. Stop listening to…

"What are you complaining about? Just be white like me."

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