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Immigration for Startups
- kevinburke 16y agoI wish that it was easier for talented people to come work in the US. Thanks for posting this and best of luck.
- stckrpnd10 16y agoTotally agree - it's our loss if we don't help/make it better.
- anigbrowl 16y agoAgreed again that this is more complex than it needs to be, and the ongoing politicization of this issue does the US no favors. Of course, what it comes down to is that immigrants can't vote, and very few politicians are willing to take the time to explain to other voters how immigration is in the collective interest of all. So 99% of the public debate consists of 'Immigrants steal jobs/benefits from Real Americans™' on one side and 'Think of the children/why is this so complicated' on the other, which doesn't advance anyone's understanding or interests. Do consult with a lawyer, whatever you do. The rules change constantly (eg the I-9 form, which must be filled out for every employee, is about to be replaced), and an oversight by either an immigrant or someone who employs one can result in all sorts of expensive and awkward problems down the line. Startups are likely too small to be randomly audited, but immigration compliance is a requirement for doing any contractual business with the US government.
- anamax 16y ago> very few politicians are willing to take the time to explain to other voters how immigration is in the collective interest of all. Some immigration is in the collective interest but all isn't and suggesting otherwise is counterproductive. What? You want to argue all? Okay - what's the collective benefit in importing folks convicted of genocide? There are lots of groups whose collective cost is higher than their collective benefit. (Yes, we grow some of the locally, but that's not a reason to increase the supply.) The "let's import all the smart people" advocates have been played for saps by the open borders folk.
- anigbrowl 16y agoI meant to type 'immigration reform' and skipped omitted the word by mistake, which completely changed the meaning of the sentence. Sorry about that. By 'reform' incidentally, I mean consistent facts-based legislation giving the existing system a complete overhaul. Regardless of what policy one supports, the patchwork of exceptions and contradictions in the current legislation leads to a great deal of inefficiency and confusion. Making it simpler and more consistent would make revised rules (whatever they turn out to be) easer and cheaper to administer.
- anamax 16y agoEvery proposal is called "reform", so that word is basically meaningless. Yes, the current system is a disaster. However, that doesn't imply that we can't end up with an even worse system. That said, I'll stand by my statement that the folks who claim to be interested in importing "the best and the brightest" have chosen poor allies, namely the open borders folk.
- anigbrowl 16y agoI defined my meaning in technical, policy neutral terms, which is apparently getting downvoted for...well, I don't know why, unless someone thinks that inefficiency, inconsistency and red tape are highly desirable. You can stand by your statement all you want, because I am not going to get drawn into a policy debate with you. Your first remarks in the thread were arguing with a position I never expressed to begin with.
- anamax 16y ago> I defined my meaning in technical, policy neutral terms, Let's review. >>>By 'reform' incidentally, I mean consistent facts-based legislation giving the existing system a complete overhaul. "Consistent facts-based" doesn't imply improvement, let alone good even if you throw in efficient and less red-tape.
- deleted 16y ago
- rguzman 16y agoE-2 visas are missing from the list which may be good co-founder visas. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-2_visa http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-2_visa http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b9ac89243c6a7543f6d1a/?vgnextoid=2ea36811264a3210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD&vgnextchannel=2ea36811264a3210VgnVCM100000b92ca60aRCRD http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/uscis/menuitem.eb1d4c2a3e5b... http://answers.onstartups.com/questions/379/in-lieu-of-an-h-1b-visa-what-other-visas-can-be-a-founders-visa http://answers.onstartups.com/questions/379/in-lieu-of-an-h-...
- konsl 16y agoAware of this, just less common. Usually startup founders don't have money of their own to make a "substantial investment." It's my understanding that the investment should exceed $200,000 USD, and some consulates require $500,000. The amount is also evaluated based on the type of business being invested in, etc.
- rguzman 16y agoYeah, I'm aware of the amounts. However, they do vary. I recall reading of 100k being considered a 'substantial investment' for software. The main problem is that the investment most likely should not be made in the startup since the investor also needs to own an equity stake according to the "inverted rule". For amounts in the 100k range, this is > 75%.
- mdda 16y agoInformation point : I got an E-2 for my software startup in 1999, investing $100k for 100%. I've been renewing ever since, and (post angel round), I'm now at 72%. Of course, renewal require that the business passes various other tests. The E-2 visa is really a two-stage thing : The company needs approval, and then the individuals get their E-2s on the back of the company. FWIW, I've done all the legal work for myself.
- elai 16y agoDo you have to invest individually, or as a whole?
- keyist 16y agoGreat post, summarizes the options well. For completeness, here are a class of Free Trade Agreement visas that are similar to the H1B: - The E-3 visa for Australians http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-3_visa http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-3_visa - The H1B1 visa for those from Chile or Singapore: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H1B_visa http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H1B_visa (search for 'Chile') If you are from one of those countries and looking for employment, be sure to bring up those options. These visas are much more attractive to employers because they involve less paperwork/requirements and have priority over the regular H1B cap.
- konsl 16y agoThanks — will add these soon
- zmitri 16y agoThe TN visa is not ideal for devs/hackers as you would have to apply under the guise of "Computer Systems Analyst." Unless your employer is willing to provide you with a job description that explicitly states computer systems analyst and does not mention being a developer/programmer then you should be good for a TN. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_analyst http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_analyst Graphic designers and mathematicians (including statisticians.. think AI) on the other hand should be fine.
- patrickk 16y agoIt seems crazy that there would be visa restrictions on developers, when Silicon Valley seems to be short of them (good developers) at the moment (see Google's 10% pay rise and them squaring off with Facebook for employees etc.)
- shadowfox 16y ago> Silicon Valley seems to be short of them (good developers) There seems to be debate on this point : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-1B_visa#No_labor_shortages http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-1B_visa#No_labor_shortages
- ojbyrne 16y agoI've been on a TN 3 times (don't ask) and it's always been as an Engineer, i.e. Software Engineer.
- 16y ago
- terra_t 16y agoWhy not conduct your business in Canada or, alternatively, try hiring a few of the millions of U.S. citizens that are out of work?
- elai 16y agoBecause you want to be in san francisco.
- peripitea 16y agoHow easy is it to get an O-1 visa? I always just assumed it was out of my range, but if it's just "speak at a few conferences", I could probably swing that. Anyone have experience with this?
- knight2h 16y agoits not that easy, you need a whole check-list of other things, read up on it or better yet talk to an Immi Layer.
- nikhilpandit 16y agoI am not sure if the article suggests J-1 for people who are studying abroad, or for international students studying in the US. For international students studying in the US, I would highly recommend being on a F-1 visa instead of a J-1 visa and then applying for a CPT (or OPT if you are done with college) for an internship. J-1 has a requirement of working for two years in your home country after graduation. If you plan to continue working for the startup after graduation, this 2 year requirement could become a big issue (you need to apply for a J-1 waiver and do quite some paperwork to get rid of it). In general, for international students studying in the US who want to start companies or work at an early stage startup in the US, I would recommend reading up the CPT and OPT rules. Those can be very useful in the early days until you have sufficient funding to move to a visa category like H-1B that has a minimum salary requirement.
- eduardo_f 16y agoAmen. That's exactly what I'm doing.
- elai 16y agoI wonder if the APEC business visa/card is fully implemented if it will come with the 2 month visas that all the other member countries have?
- suzyperplexus 16y agoThanks for this. This is an awesome resource!
- elai 16y agoCould you have a company in your country, work at it for a year+, register another company in the US and then go via L-1A (managerial intracompany transfer) visas? Wikipedia does say after all: "or which intend to open a new office in the United States while maintaining their home country interests"