I was adopted as a child by my uncle in my home country, where record-keeping is poor. As a result, all my official documents, including my birth certificate, list my uncle and aunt as my parents. I used this documentation when I obtained U.S. citizenship. I now want to petition for my biological parents to immigrate to the U.S. My uncle still lives in my home country and has never received any immigration benefits from me. Is it possible to petition for my biological parents under these circumstances, and how complex would the process be?
Also, could you recommend a reputable immigration attorney in Washington State or the West Coast?
This is a very interesting question but too complex to answer in writing. Please email me and I can share the names of good immigration attorneys near you.
What sort of people get O-1 visas? I assume it is people with multiple degrees and have decades of experience in a specific field?
I am good at what I do, have done public speaking at major conferences on what I do but no degree and so assume that i've no chance of ever getting into the USA. Currently a UK citizen living in Ireland.
The O-1 is a high standard but it's less about overall achievement or standing (like the EB1A green card category) and more about meeting specific criteria, which many talented professionals and founders do. I would recommend reviewing the O-1 criteria (they're listed on USCIS's website, www.uscis.gov) and then having an immigration attorney evaluate your background. People are often surprised that they meet the O-1 criteria or with a bit of work will qualify.
One of the qualifications is "Evidence that the beneficiary has either commanded a high salary or will command a high salary or other remuneration for services as evidenced by contracts or other reliable evidence"
How does a startup founder go about proving this? They don't have quite the "high salary" and get paid in equity. What have you seen here? How do founders quialify for this part?
The clue is "other remuneration". USCIS will accept stock based compensation for founders under comparable evidence if you have raised money, i.e. your equity has a fair market value set by a professional investor in an arms-length transaction. Your total compensation will still need to objectively high compared to peers in your geographical area (supported by data).
It's open to things like sport and entertainment, so definitely not everyone has many (or any) degrees. Assuming your field is somewhat science based I don't know how realistic it would be with no degree, but you can search some blogs about it, people have covered what they did to rack up publications and stuff to check all the boxes (if their work/field wouldn't have otherwise needed them).
If you are starting your own business, the treaty investor visa could also be a good route. It doesn't require as much investment as the investor green card; it is a nonimmigrant visa similar to the O-1.
My dance instructor, who has won an international championship, is here on an O-1B. However, his 3 year initial eligibility is coming due, and the processing times for the 1-year extension is looking like it's going to take longer than 1-year! According to Wikipedia, Justin Beiber is here on an O visa, I wonder how his gets processed.
You can ask for 3 years again on the renewal and sometimes USCIS make the mistake of giving it to you even though they are not allowed (unless it's a new engagement) according to the statutory text
It's beyond a joke. Recently spent some time at an accelerator and the partners of the VC firm were very open about purchasing "fake" research or presenting investments as if they were from more than one "investor".
I still fail to understand how Dwarkesh Patel managed to "self-sponsor" an O-1 with a... tech podcast...
In practice they want people of high ability who will contribute positively to the US, not necessarily geniuses. My friend who was supporting actress in some Netflix thing got in on that basis.
O-1 isn't a genius visa, it is for [1] Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement, the government website specifically calls out categories that are not research or engineering.
Why not both? I can see the argument for not having millions of unskilled immigrants crossing from Mexico but both Dwarkesh and the researcher/engineer would benefit the US. I don't think it's that hard to get O1 as a researcher/engineer - you basically have to get to the level where you present at conferences and are seen as an expert in whatever.
I don't think so, personally, because I see that podcast as entertainment rather than education, and I don't think entertainers should ever receive O-1 visas.
Legislators thought otherwise, when they explicitly created two subcategories of O-1 visas:
* O-1A: Individuals with an extraordinary ability in the sciences, education, business, or athletics (not including the arts, motion pictures or television industry).
* O-1B: Individuals with an extraordinary ability in the arts or extraordinary achievement in motion picture or television industry.
The reason is pretty simple. Entertainment industry depends more on specific individuals than most other industries. If you have cast a foreign actor for a role, you can't easily replace them with generic interchangeable talent. But that foreign actor is not magically allowed to work in the US. They need a visa that allows it. Hence O-1B.
Hi Peter! Thank you for doing this. Are you seeing any issues/concerns with Green Card holders traveling internationally and returning to the US in the past few months?
Only that even with green card holders, we have seen instances where CBP is asking to see electronic devices and reviewing their social media accounts. But we haven't had a green card holding client detained or denied admission.
lol. in LA everyone's instagram just shows ICE getting beaten and the epstein files posts that follow these. I wonder how fun it must be to travel nowadays.
Your green card process will have two steps, the I-140 filing and then the green card application, either in the U.S. with USCIS (known as an I-485 application) or outside the U.S. with a U.S. Consulate (known as an Immigrant Visa application). During the I-140 stage, there is some risk traveling on an F-1 or an E-3 visa (with the F-1 riskier), but this risk is relatively low and can be mitigated. One way to reduce this risk to zero is to switch to O-1 status, which as a PhD grad you probably would qualify for but your employer would need to support this. At the second stage, with an I-485 filing, whether you are in E-3, F-1, or O-1 status, you should expect to be unable to travel for at least 6 months unless you have a family emergency. With an IV application, you will be able to travel on an O-1 visa but there will be some risk traveling on an E-3 or F-1 visa (again, with the F-1 riskier).
I am wondering how narrow the focus has to be for an EB-1A. I have been involved in a wide variety of projects, some receiving a good amount of media publicity (100+ mentions across various media), others adding up to a good number of citations (100+ total citations), and I'm also involved in a startup venture that while not yet a breakaway success, is growing quickly (60k+ users, growing 50% yoy). I'm unsure if these can be molded into an appropriate form given they don't necessarily make a coherent story.
I'm also wondering what the bar is for "command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field". Is a solid salary within the usual bands at a big tech enough? Or does it have to somehow be significantly higher in relation to others in a similar job position at the company?
All interesting and good questions requiring a consultation. Schedule a call with me and I can give you an initial assessment and then refer you to a good immigration lawyer.
I'm still waiting for my family based GC to be approved. It was applied for in March 2023.
I've tried contacting my senators to see if it can be expedited but USCIS replied to say that it's still within "normal processing times" and that there is not yet an immigrant number available as my priority date is not earlier than the final action date.
I've been keeping a close eye on the USCIS Visa Bulletin final action dates and have noticed that they don't always move forward each month. I.e. there has been no change between July and August: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/v...
Is this normal? Or due to the current administration?
You don't need peter for this one: The action date is indicating the place in the queue of the application they are currently working on. Every month they don't deal with 1 month worth of applications: Sometimes it might take 6 months to go through a single month of applications, other times it can move much faster. Either way, it all depends on what was submitted a long time ago, their maximum speed, and the number of visas allotted: It's possible for USCIS to run out of visas for a country and just process nothing more for the rest of the year.
So its all normal, it's been happening for decades, and there's been no significant action in the legislature to speed things up. As things are right now, there are specific queues where the delay might as well mean 'forever', because it's going to take many decades for the current processing speed to reach July 2025.
Bringing siblings to U.S. as a citizen is currently about a 15-17 year backlog for most countries (fourth preference), so yeah, there’s often some or a lot of waiting in these processes.
Hi Peter, when i went to Hacker news this morning and saw this post i thought, that's a bit unusual, an attorney??, so i think its cool that an immigration attorney visits channels like this. Anyways, me and my soon to be wife (we get married next Friday) have consulted an immigration lawyer regarding my status, i overstayed my tourist visa, so now im out of status, the lawyer mentioned that i have a pretty good chance to adjust my status since i came here legally and i don't have any felonies or anything bad on my record, however my concern is this, should we and my future wife wait a bit longer to apply for this change of status until we have more hard evidence? we live together and have a joint bank account, in which i deposit a certain amount each month so she can pay bills etc, thing is she is not regularly using the card, she just uses a big portion on the rent or she just transfers it to her personal, we will also get our phone and car insurance bills together, we have joint Costco membership too, what other evidence do you recommend we should work on or is there a resource online i can use as a guide to build an excellent case? thank you!!
Assuming that your wife is a U.S. citizen, you should be fine; the law forgives overstays and unauthorized employment for those pursuing green cards based on marriage to a U.S. citizen. Of course, I haven't reviewed your background but on the face of it, I don't see any reason for you to wait to file but I would recommend that you defer to your lawyer since he or she will have all the facts.
Not a lawyer, but this is similar to my situation.
I personally would not delay. It will be awhile before you get to the interview stage so you also have that time to show your relationship is genuine and collect proof of a life together.
I don't know of a list; but my wife and I had things like:
- wedding photos!
- mobile phone family plan
- joint tax filings
- sample of letters/postcards sent to us (separate and together) at same address
(xmas cards etc. and even some junk mail)
- name on utilities
- photos at different events, weddings, birthdays, sports, etc.
We didn't need most of it in the end but you never know - and this was over 15 years ago.
Thanks for hosting this AMA. I’ve an immigration issue related to status transition. So I came to the U.S on an F-1 visa about 6 years ago. However, during the course of my undergraduate study, I found out that I qualified for TPS. So I applied and received it. Afterwards, I decided to take a leave of abscence from school to work on a startup because TPS allows me to. I was also made to change my status from F1 to TPS. And my I-20 status period expired a few months after I took the leave at the beginning of 2024.
Owing to the recent TPS terminations of various countries, I’m afraid that my TPS will be terminated once it’s up for review in a few months. My question regards transistioning back to F1 status. I’m wondering if I can change status back from TPS to F1 without having to leave the country. This is because a visa ban is currently in place for the country for which I hold TPS. As such I can’t risk traveling outside the country as I won’t be able to get back in because of the visa ban. Btw the ban anpplies to all visa categories including F1 and O1.
If you worked pursuant to a TPS EAD, then I believe you cannot change your status to F-1 in the U.S. Definitely schedule a consultation with an immigration attorney. If you need a referral, email me.
Since it was coincidentally posted as a news thread today, it might be nice to clarify here when the new $250 nonimmigrant visa fee takes effect and who it applies to?
My understanding is that it applies to all approved visa applications and is billed when the visa is issued. I believe that it takes effect immediately but there was some confusion about this. I will try to confirm and advise on this thread.
Hmm, so it looks like no on really knows when it takes effect, the law itself specified a cost for the current fiscal year, but in addition to the usual time to implement the fee in the IT systems, there appear to be two issues: what rulemaking notices/approvals are needed to decide and impose it (the law allows the executive to decide the fee, it just sets a minimum), and the fact that DHS not State is supposed to collect it, which would greatly complicate processing.
State already has a global cashiering system for visa fees that would have been easier to use, although DHS collecting fees is not without precedent. For one, the SEVIS fee (a surcharge on student visas) is paid directly to DHS by credit card. For two, the surcharge on green cards is paid to USCIS, but this one is not actually enforced before visa issuance or arrival (they will not mail you the card if you don't pay, but you still have the status).
There's a lot of confusion and uncertainty around a June policy update regarding TN visa (some related links in https://www.reddit.com/r/tnvisa/comments/1lerikw/nonengineer...). At least one big tech (my personal anecdote that I don't feel comfortable sharing) temporarily paused new TN applications for software engineers with a CS degree, citing this change.
This seems to have always been a fuzzy area on paper, and some people in this category apparently still got their TN in the past month after this change. Is this a material change in your mind? If so, how are employers responding to it?
Recently I heard of an instance where CBP denied a TN application by an applicant with a CS degree for a software engineering position. While this is of course concerning, this has always been a potential issue - I've seen this happen several times over the years - and there are ways to mitigate the risk (by, for example, highlighting the applicant's engineering courses or getting a letter from the school or an expert in the field). We have continued to pursue TNs for software engineers with CS degrees and have not had any issue yet.
why is ycombinator promoting immigration thru H1B when so many US born CS grads are finding it hard to get job.
In 2023, American colleges graduated 134,153 citizens or green card holders with bachelor's or master's degrees in computer science. That same year, our federal government handed out work permits to at least 110,098 foreign workers in computer occupations through just three major guest worker programs. That's equal to 82% of our graduating class who are guaranteed jobs even before any Americans walk across the stage for their diploma.
https://ifspp.substack.com/p/data-on-how-america-sold-out-it...
That's not an apples to apples comparison. You don't know if the foreign workers were senior-level employees, for example, or whether there were specialized requirements they might have been hired against that entry-level grads won't qualify for.
I agree there should be more entry-level roles. But this is not an indictment of the system. You should ask what percentage of those foreign workers were hired into entry-level roles.
I'll also point out that it's actually harder for entry-level foreign workers (read: international students) to get jobs in general. F1 visa students are limited to one year of OPT, unless they have a STEM degree, in which case they can work for two more years for an e-Verified employer only in a field related to their major. There are significantly fewer e-Verified employers in the country. So you have a concentrated labour pool vying for a much smaller fraction of jobs than the general population - remember, we can't even be employed at McDonald's on STEM OPT.
Another factor that complicates the analysis is that foreign students do not necessarily represent the same cross-section as US students. The high cost of US education tends to bifurcate the sample size into a bimodal distribution: you have rich foreign students who can afford tuition rates, or you have scholarship students who earned their scholarship quite fairly thanks to merit. Neither population can be fairly compared against the average US citizen in terms of hiring likelihood - either you're pitting the top 1% of someone in the home country to the median US student, or you're comparing someone who's got the resources to find opportunities in ways US students can't.
Finally, it's been my experience, seeing others though the F1 -> H1B pipeline, that most people pursue that pipeline through a master's degree rather than a bachelor's degree. This is because both immigration law and tuition rates incentivise shorter programs for advanced education. If you're comparing the hiring rates of master's students to bachelor's students, naturally you're going to get a revealed preference for master's students.
tl;dr the simple statistic cited needs critical questioning.
Many VC firms outside of YC flagrantly promote what is basically fraud. There are literally YC companies that provide pseudo visa fraud as a service.
Following the law and having respect for the immigration system is simply seen as an "inconvenient challenge" to these people.
I myself am a person of color, but in the cohort I was in (of 30) maybe three individuals were native born Americans of any race. The rest were exclusively Canadian immigrants largely from India and China (not actually born in Canada). It's also quite common in the US for people to work on visitor VISA's while applying for O1s.
On my LinkedIn saw some guy saying "Hit me up if you want EB-1 I know a guy" not sure what it entails but was weird to promote that. Guy is a hustler/grinder though in general.
Some of these "visa as a service" startups offer incentives and pseudo cash (or even cash) referral incentives. Which is actually illegal both in CA and Federally.
A distinction must be drawn between working during a startup program, which requires a work visa, and attending the program and not working. For the latter, there are several options, including, most commonly, the B-1 visa/status.
Out of curiosity, what percentage of YC founders just go to the office hours and dinner and not work for the duration of the program? Is this encouraged?
I can't comment on that but the issue here is what constitutes work and actively participating in YC doesn't even if this participation results in benefit to a company.
Work in the context of immigration means participating in the local economy. A person visiting SF to attend YC is not working for a U.S. company, they are not participating in the local economy, they’re on a business trip conducting business.
Sure, you can describe it that way if you want but that’s not the spirit of immigration law. A founder of a company (registered in the U.S. or overseas) visiting YC to raise money is not working in the local economy by the spirit of immigration law. A founder who registered a Delaware c-corp through stripe atlas is not working in the U.S. when they go to SF to raise money. That’s what business visas exist for.
I have a question for a friend who is looking to work at US-based companies either remotely and is open to relocating and moving there if required, but she is from the UK and a citizen there who just left her job as a software engineer at a startup in the UK recently.
She is looking to be able to legally work for some of these US based companies and is also interested in US startups but when applying she cannot answer the US authorization question in the application (If she said 'No' it will get her an immediate rejection). So my question(s) are:
What is the best visa for her to apply for as a UK citizen to work for a US company?
How long will it take for her to get the visa so she can apply for US jobs?
U.S. work authorization isn't required to work for a U.S. company if the worker will be working remotely outside the U.S. Regarding her work visa options, they are limited. The only option immediately available is the O-1 visa, which is for people of "extraordinary ability," a high standard but attainable by many talented professionals. The H-1B "professional worker" visa is much easier to qualify for but it's only available once a year and via a lottery so it's not a realistic option. If she really wants to work for a U.S. company remotely or in the U.S., then she should have a consultation with an immigration attorney and have her background evaluated.
For myself as a UK citizen, what are the most realistic options for obtaining a visa to work in the US? The H1B is the main one I'm familiar with, but with the lottery and the one year application cycle it doesn't seem an easy route. The other option I'm aware of is the L1, do you know how realistic it is to obtain one of those? I don't currently work for a multinational company but would look to move jobs if an L1 visa was a possibility.
The L-1 is very easy through a large multinational company after a year of employment with that company outside the U.S. and is attainable although more difficult through a small multinational company. The other options are the E-2 (treaty investor visa), which could allow you to work for a British-owned company in the U.S., or the O-1 (extraordinary ability visa), which requires a relatively high level of achievement but is often attainable by talented professionals.
Thanks Peter, all very useful to know. I wasn't aware of the E-2 visa. How does one justify extraordinary ability for the O-1, if pursuing that route? I can see it varying a signifcant amount between applicants, but what (if any) successful justifications have you seen?
Yes, it varies significantly from applicant to applicant. Justifying extraordinary ability is more about checking certain boxes/criteria than extraordinary ability per se and so, in the end, it's usually pretty clear whether or not someone qualifies.
Hi there, I'm working in the UK on a work visa. I previously applied for a US position at Fermilab and NASA ADS. Although, I didn't get the position I was told the H-1B visa process for these positions was much simpler (not through lottery) as they fall under a special category.
Can you advise other what other sectors offer these privileges? Also, if I get the H-1B through this process, am I allowed to switch to a different employer in the future?
Those organizations are "H-1B cap-exempt" organizations that are not subject to the annual H-1B lottery. Cap-exempt organizations include non-profit institutes of higher education, organizations affiliated with these institutes (like hospitals), non-profits primarily engaged in research, and government research organizations, like Fermilab and NASA. If you get a cap-exempt H-1B, you could transfer to another cap-exempt organization but you would not be able to transfer to a cap-subject private for-profit entity although you could get approved for part-time concurrent employment with such an entity.
You would continue to work for your H-1B cap-exempt employer but then get an H-1B through a private cap-subject employer that would allow you to work at the same time on a part-time basis.
The sex designation on my birth certificate has changed since the last time I got a work visa. Am I at risk for trying to enter the US on a new work visa as an engineer, or on personal travel?
Where there was no risk, there now is some. I'm not saying don't travel but absolutely consult with an attorney before doing so because this is an evolving issue.
If you want to get a visitor visa to attend an incubator like YC, is it better to:
1) wait to be admitted into YC and get B1 visa for 3 months. Do you get some kind of invitation letter from YC that increases your chances of approval?
2) get a normal tourist visa now and specify you will go to the US for a week or two like a normal tourist and later use that to go to incubator training.
There's no need to get a new B-1/B-2 visa to attend YC if one already has such a visa. But when to try to get such visa if one doesn't have it already, whether before or after getting accepted into YC, will depend on a variety of factors specific to that person, such as his or her countries of citizenship and residence, current employment/student status, U.S. immigration history, etc.
Hi Peter, thank you for doing this on a regular basis!
In the event of a company-sponsored EB1A with an approved I140 but with an I485 pending for less than 180 days, is it possible for the company to rescind the approval? Or does the approval belong to me even though it is company-sponsored?
If the approval can be rescinded, could I lose my priority date and my I485 as well?
That the I-140 petition is an EB1A petition (which can also be filed by an individual) doesn't change the analysis. If the employer-filed I-140 petition was approved more than 180 days ago even if the I-485 has been pending for less than 180 days, while an employer can withdraw the I-140 petition (thus requiring the employee to get a new approved I-140 petition to get a green card), the individual still would keep his or her priority date.
I am Australian, working in tech using an E-3 visa in the Bay Area.
My wife is considering moving forward with an EB-2 NIW application, she is currently in F1 OPT. She doesn't have a very strong profile currently, but is willing to work on it.
I am concerned that this might complicate me being able to renew the E-3 in the future. My understanding is that an approved or even denied I-140 from a spouse potentially signals immigrant intent for both, and it is at the discretion of the CBP agent to make this assessment.
More generally my understanding is that even if her I-140 was approved, and we stayed in the US until the I-485 was filed, that would permanently make me not eligible for any future E-3.
Is this accurate?
I previously was thinking of following the E-3 -> EB-3 -> GC route myself, but I don't see how I can do this if I'm sacrificing the E-3 if anything goes wrong.
First, the NIW standard has changed significantly recently so it might not be a good option for your wife to pursue if her profile isn't very strong since the standard as now applied looks more and more like the EB1A standard and focuses more on the applicant's individual qualifications and achievements rather than end-purpose of the applicant's work. While one spouse's immigration actions can impact the other's immigration status and options, the real risk isn't until the I-485 stage. We've had many E-3 visa holders renew their E-3 visas without issue when their spouses have pending or approved I-140 petitions and even when the E-3 visa applicants have pending or approved I-140 petitions. Now, to be clear, the world has changed so what held true before might not hold true now but historically - and during the past 6 months - we have not had any issues with Australians traveling or renewing their E-3 visa under such circumstances.
Just in case you circle back, assuming I go the EB-3 route via my employer, am I correct in thinking that an I-485 application or even going the consular processing route makes the E-3 unobtainable in the future if either fail?
A bit "off topic" but this is called AMA, so why not:
To which degree do you see your own profession (law practice) changing with AI? As an outsider it looks like most of the legwork, research work or basically anything a non-senior attorney would spend their time on could soon be done by LLMs. How accurate is that impression? What future do you envision for law-related professions?
I can only speak about immigration law and AI is changing it significantly. This might also change but right now I think a lawyer is still needed to understand the nuances of the law, to understand the risks of different approaches, and to determine the best strategy, but more and more, initial legal research and initial drafting are being done by AI.
The issue is that it's completely up to the company how it conducts its PERM recruitment and you can't have any say or role in this process. One option, to take control back, is to look at self-petition options, such as the NIW or EB1A. To be clear, however, the EB1A is a very high standard and I would argue getting higher and the NIW, while easier than the EB1A, is much harder now but still worth looking at.
Hello Mr Roberts, I appreciate you for doing this.
I am currently on OPT working in the US, and I got selected this year for my H1B visa for Consular Notify. I have to get a visa stamp from a consulate abroad after October 1st for the H1B to be valid. I am applying for the YC batch this fall, would I be eligible to attend the YC batch in time? And would I need to do a h1-b transfer for this process from my company to YC?
And if I can't make the YC batch in time(my other co-founders would be joining the batch without me), what would be the best option for me?
Is it legal to rehearse or practice how to interact with border guards?
I don’t need to explain why someone could be deeply anxious interacting with US border officials… it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain. And since looking anxious is a sign that you could be concealing things, thus drawing more attention from border officials… Coaching on how to handle an experience and avoid that anxious spiral and minimise the risk for such travellers… But I’m curious if this is legal. Or if it is legal, would it be construed as evidence of intent to deceive should a traveler do this and wind up being investigated in such a way that it turns up that they have undertaken such practice?
It's 100% appropriate and in fact highly recommended to prepare oneself when seeking admission since the admission process can be stressful. Preparation here doesn't mean deceit; it just means being truthful but well prepared, not being caught off guard.
Are non-US citizens banned from working on <2nm GAA technologies? What are the ITAR limits on non-US citizens from working on these tech? Can we incorporate in another country to allow hiring on non-US citizens to work on <2nm GAA technologies?
Your EAD allows you to work at any job. You're in a much better place compared to anyone who needs sponsorship.
There's no particular difference between a person having G-4 status and any other person in nonimmigrant status when it comes to green card sponsorship. It's just as easy, and just as difficult.
I’m a midlife career changer about to start law school at 45 after 20 years in tech, and right now I am trying to figure out if criminal defense or immigration is the field I want to pursue since I have relatively equal passion for each but neither keeps me up at night so to speak.
What would you say I should be thinking about to reach answers that I am more likely to be happy with in terms of the choices that will determine the major contours of my career as an attorney? Or am I asking the wrong question and should instead be asking something else entirely?
That's funny because those were my two areas as well. The way that I look at it is that criminal law is much more intellectually challenging and interesting while immigration law is pretty straightforward but the application of the law to an unending variety of facts is incredibly interesting and challenging. I'd be happy to speak with you about this choice.
As a Canadian on an L-1B visa, approaching the 3-year mark and an upcoming renewal, is it recommended to process it within the US or travel outside and re-enter for the processing at the border?
Hi Peter,
I'm from Europe and currently in the US on a B2 visa (I’ve traveled frequently between the US and Europe over the past year, so we chose B2 over ESTA to be safe). I’m preparing my O-1 case to legally work on my startup here. I would love to participate in an accelerator here. This would also strengthen my application for the membership/awards criteria but I am not sure if I am even legally allowed to participate in these programs (e.g. YC) on a B2 before officially having the O-1?
Thank you!
First, while acceptance into and participation in an accelerator, particularly a well-known one, definitely moves the needle with O-1 petitions, this can't be counted on as evidence of membership or award. While B-1 status is appropriate for participation in an accelerator, B-2 is not.
My time to apply for citizenship based on my EB green card is approaching (4 years and 9 months, right?). Is it still advised for employment-based cases without children to file the N-400 without a lawyer?
Additionally - I will be getting married, to a US citizen, after filing the N-400 but likely before it will be approved or before the oath ceremony. Does that change the answer? In theory, she's not benefiting my case and not benefiting from my case, but I'm not sure if USCIS has a different opinion.
Your impending marriage doesn't change the answer and the answer is that naturalization applications are very easy and don't require the assistance of a lawyer unless there's an issue, specifically, a criminal record, a history of immigration violations/non-compliance, or extended absences (more than 6 months) from the U.S. while a green card holder.
I'm a US citizen and my wife has a green card.
We like to travel extensively, but feel limited by the need to be in the US for at least 6 months out of the year.
In an ideal world, we could get a digital nomad visa in Portugal and my wife and I could live and work there while we wait out some of the chaos that seems to be occurring in the US.
But, we're not sure if we can live/work in Europe while simultaneously fulfilling the green card requirements. Do you know if there's an exception for cases like this?
There's no requirement that a green card holder spend 6 months in the U.S. during the year. You and your wife can and should travel freely. And you could live outside the U.S. for several years and still keep your green card. If you decide to move to Portugal for a period of time, for example, you should consult an attorney but the solution to protect your green card status (for at least 5 years) is to get a document called a reentry permit, which is easy to get.
"...there are two ways outlined in the statute in which the continuity of residence can be broken:
The applicant is absent from the United States for more than 6 months but less than 1 year; or
The applicant is absent from the United States for 1 year or more."
Is this only for citizenship/naturalization and not to maintain a green card?
Yes "the continuity of residence" is required for naturalization.
> An applicant for naturalization ... must have resided continuously in the United States after his or her lawful permanent resident (LPR) admission for at least 5 years prior to filing the naturalization application and up to the time of naturalization.
I’ll spare a new thread and just ask here as we are in the same situation (sorry OP!).
My understanding is we at least need to be in the US once every six months in order for my partner to maintain their green card status while we live abroad.
We were not aware of the reentry permit, does this avoid the requirements of needing to enter the country periodically? We are of course concerned about losing their green card status.
Lastly, how realistic is the timing in obtaining the permit? We have our move planned for next month.
Re-entry permit is granted for 2 years and the only requirement is that you apply for it while in country. Usual processing time nowadays is around a year so in effect you need to apply once every 3 years for it. They have the option of sending it to a us embassy abroad for pick up but we have always had it sent to a friends address in US and picked it up while visiting US.
Thanks for sharing your experience. A year is a very long time..I am also curious about the pickup options and address.
My partner will be updating their address to have mail sent to a family member’s address in the US, but we will also be living in a country that has a US embassy easily accessible.
My partner is Mexican, so as you can imagine, they almost always have awful experiences with immigration in the US.
Yes, a year is a long time but evidence of having applied for a reentry permit in the form of a receipt notice is usually enough to reenter the U.S. without issue even with absences of more than 6 months.
That is useful to know. We were expecting a 5-month wait (as of January 2025) and recently learned it could take over a year. Since we've been out of country since applying (no biometrics required) we were concerned about being out of country for over a year with just a receipt notice and permit in pending state.
Thank you both for the responses and sharing, crazy helpful.
I admittedly haven’t done my research today on the permit, but reading your reply now and seeing you can apply while abroad…that’s great news. I suppose my partner can start the process while we are still here, but glad we have the option it seems to do this once we are slightly more settled abroad.
To clarify, we applied while in USA (you MUST be there when submitting application and can only leave after biometrics are done (or you get a receipt notice saying you don't need them if they were done recently enough). So definitely don't go anywhere until you apply! (Otherwise you'll need to come back). And I recommend having an immigration attorney fill out the paperwork since the risk of a mistake could cause problems later on.
More info:
The 6-month thing is only used for naturalization; if she's out of USA for longer than that it can reset the 5-year clock. And 1 year thing (without reentry permit) means she'd need to come in on a returning resident visa (which technically can be granted upon arrival). If you don't have one already, any immigration attorney would be able to clarify these details. Much easier for your situation as you're a US citizen!
The status quo looks dangerous in the US even for born-and-raised citizens. With ICE targeting people based on skin color, what should a citizen do to protect themselves?
These are unprecedented times where green card status and even citizenship can be taken away. I think that all that one can do is to know one's rights and have the name and number of a lawyer handy who can be contacted in the event the worst happens. The ACLU has some very clear guidance regarding the rights of U.S. citizens and non-U.S. citizens when questioned or detained by ICE (or another immigration agency).
Hi there, love your little series. Are you seeing any clients face deportation while possessing greencards? If so, can you share some context as to why and what recourse they have?
Thanks. Not yet. But there are reports, as I'm sure you have seen, of DHS revisiting previously approved green card and citizenship applications with an eye toward revoking them.
I'm Australian and have always wondered about how easy it is to get an E-3 visa. What does it take from the sponsoring companies side to actually do it and get me over there?
We handle a lot of E-3 visas and it's arguably the easiest U.S. work visa to get both from a company standpoint and an applicant/employee standpoint. The company requirements are minimal. For example, startups with limited or no revenue and limited or no funding can sponsor an E-3 visa. That being said, there is a prevailing wage requirement so a company - while it doesn't need to demonstrate to a U.S. Consulate its ability to pay a specific wage - in the end has to be able to pay a specific wage.
I'm stuck on the part of finding a job offer for the E3. Is there a path you recommend to that or is it just the same as anyone finding a job? I've got a limited network, I met someone at a party recently who leads a company in California but i'm reluctant to ask for a job.
Australian who's been in the USA almost a decade in 4 different roles, each requiring a new E3 as well as multiple E3 renewals;
I've found that companies are pretty eager once they hear that you only need an E3 visa. Unlike H1B the quota for E3 visas are never hit. Companies view it as a very straightforward and guaranteed process.
Assuming the company files their side of the paperwork in a timely manner, From accepting a role you can be working in the USA within 2 months end to end. The consulate appointments in Syd/Mel are the biggest pain point. It takes some refreshing since they are booked out for months at a time and you need to look for cancellations each day. That's literally the biggest pain point though, everything else is painless.
West coast climate and culture is the same as East coast Australia so that part is straightforward. Easy to make friends and a good life in that aspect.
For work-life balance I will acknowledge the biggest boom times are over. It was ridiculous at one point and the best move of my life. Nowadays though all big tech are starting to adopt some form of stack ranking and demands and pressure are going up while benefits are falling so it's not nearly as good as it once was.
Big tech is still ~5x take home pay though. I see a stint of working in the USA as necessary given Australian house prices. Do it for as long as you can stand, don't live up to the lifestyle of the wages. The net result is a big win for your life. As in if you work here for a year and get hit with layoffs? You'll still have 5x in savings for that year as you would have had in Australia.
warning you might end up with an american partner and get stuck there, ask me how i know :). But yeah, the comp difference is crazy, if we ever move back to aus we will have set ourselves up for a very nice life with our US earned savings.
Plus, far more interesting companies to choose from.
My question is in fact is there a chance to request waivers about founders seeking O1 visa that are affected by the recent travel ban on certain countries (with Iranian passport)?
Hi Peter, thanks for doing this.
Wife and I are both Canadians.
Wife is on a H1B and I'm on TN - separate employers.
My 9089 is being reviewed, while she is on labor market test.
What is the best path forward to getting GC for the both of us while working?
Should we keep going forward with this setup and whoever can file for I-485, add the spouse to beneficiary?
Thanks for being here and taking the time to answer questions.
I’m currently on an L1B visa with company A. I have an approved H1B (consular processing, not yet activated) for company B. If I get an offer from company C, is it possible to switch directly from L1B to H1B with company C while staying in the U.S.? In other words, can company C file a change of status to activate the H1B?
Yes, this is possible but it the petition has to be prepared the right way to avoid USCIS responding with a request for evidence saying that company C needs to go through the H-1B lottery before it can employ you.
How hard/slow is it for an American citizen to bring their non-American wife over these days? My friend is a dual citizen considering taking a job in the USA but he's a little concerned about whether his non-American wife and kid could join him. She has a B1/B2 visa already. Is there some strategy to it? I heard the process is super backed up.
There are specific visas available to those from a handful of countries (Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Singapore). The other options are the O-1, E-2, and E-1 visas. One important point is that while the E-2 and the E-1 visas allow founders to get visas to build and run their companies, it also allows citizens of the same nationality as the company to get an E-2 or E-1 visa. The E-2 and E-1 visas aren't available to citizens of every country but they are available to most.
Asking for someone else: is the NIW category still backlogged? If the goal is to get a green card within the STEM-OPT extension timeline of 2 years, for someone who has very high achievements that fit either NIW or EB1A categories, which of these is likely a better option? I'm hearing some rumors that NIW can happen faster these days.
The NIW (EB2) category is still backlogged and the standard as applied by USCIS has changed significantly and I would argue now isn't much easier than the EB1A, which used to be one of the reasons to pursue an NIW. With the changing standard and the worsening backlogs, the EB1A is the much better option, although a higher standard, and probably worth aggressively pursuing.
Thank you for doing this, as you know we've probably have seen some crazy news articles and segments of ICE agents arresting people all over the U.S. with some for good and some for wrong reasons. What is your advice or best practice for someone who is "wrongfully" approached by ICE agents but has legal status to be in the U.S.? (whether work visa or green card)
I've read that someone should carry their green card with them or if they have some sort of REAL ID mark on their drivers license it may help.
It’s a legal requirement to carry your green card with you at all times. INA 264(e) has required this for as long as I’ve been in the US (which is since 2004).
To be more specific:
>> (e) Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him pursuant to subsection (d). Any alien who fails to comply with the provisions of this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction for each offense be fined not to exceed $100 or be imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.
Where evidence of registration is an I94 or a green card or whatever.
I’m constantly surprised how many permanent residents don’t do this.
Personally I don’t carry my GC, because I’m far more likely to lose it than for anyone to ever ask for it. And it’s kind of a nightmare to replace, takes awhile and you can’t travel.
To put it another way, the $100 fine is less expensive to me than the consequences of losing it.
If I understand the comment above correctly, one can carry an I94 too and those you can just print on the website [1]
I'm guessing there's no size requirements? If so it might be a good idea to just print four on an A4, and have one folded in your wallet, one tucked in your bag-pack, one in the car, etc.
There are a lot of things that are "perfectly legal" to do. Doesn't mean that, in practice, law enforcement would necessarily take the most extreme legal action possible.
This is a new development (well, new-ish for many communities... I imagine predominatly-black communities have always experience this) whereby LE is explicitly instructed to look for any legal course of action to punitively enforce the law (rather than using a more judicious interpretation, which was more in line with the spirit of many of these regulations).
So yes, technically, law-abiding citizens should always xxxx. Does that mean that, in real life, folks always do this? Only if they are in a paranoid state whereby LE maliciously enforces the law for any minor violation and enforces overwhelming (often illegal) responses to these infractions.
> Only if they are in a paranoid state whereby LE maliciously enforces the law for any minor violation and enforces overwhelming (often illegal) responses to these infractions.
It sounds like the current administration is specifically targeting democratic stronghold states, but I don't know if that means you would be any safer in Republican majority states.
Generally no, because those are more likely to have state or local government employees working on ICE’s behalf. For instance in Florida a weigh station employee said they were calling ICE on people who looked (and sounded?) Hispanic.
Reading that article, it reads more like the person skipped the weigh station and got pulled over by the highway patrol cop usually at the weigh station. Weigh stations will often have a patrol car sitting by the highway that pulls over anyone speeding or who needs to stop at the weigh station but didn't. So CBP (not ICE) was called by a highway officer.
Still to your point of a state government authority calling the feds because someone they interacted with looked Hispanic.
Many don't do this because they don't feel the need. I've spent about a decade in the US as a green card holder, and the only cases I ever been asked for it is either crossing the border or being hired. And I never heard about anyone being fined (let alone going to prison) for failure to carry the green card on them. Yes, the law says that, but I don't think anybody paid much attention to that, at least until now.
You act as if the last 6 months are a continuation of the the last 9.5 years, and there is some status quo that hasn't changed. Maybe for an affluent SWE in his Tesla, but this isn't the case for many on their way to work in a construction work van.
> this isn't the case for many on their way to work in a construction work van.
How many of those van-traveling green card holding construction workers have been fined or imprisoned for failure to carry the green card lately? I don't mean brief detention - anybody can be detained by the police, especially when not having any identification - I mean actual conviction under 1304(e) and court-assigned fine or jail time. How many such cases do you know?
Immigration law enforcement is at the discretion of the Executive (President). If the President decides they want to pump up the numbers of deported criminals, doing anything that's technically a crime as an immigrant is a risky proposition. Even saying you do it on a public forum is risky.
The best defense so to speak is to carry evidence of your status whether that's a green card or foreign passport and I-94 admission record, to have the number of a local immigration attorney whom you can call if you need to, and to be aware of one's rights. The ACLU has a good discussion of these rights: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/immigrants-rights.
What would you recommend for foreign born US citizens worried about being approached by ICE? What are the basic ground rules for interacting?
For example, some of us here look very much like we didnt grow up in an Iowa cornfield and have genuine concern that one negative interaction is going to result in being roughed up by untrained ICE agents at best and tossed into jail or worse.
Do we just get used to the idea of carrying our passport at all times? Is an ICE agent authorized to demand it and take it from us "for checking", say?
Bar two pieces of fragile paper - a passport and a naturalization certificate - it's not obvious that a citizen is a citizen.
Carry a REAL-ID enabled state ID? Those are not available to illegals in any state. All newer state IDs AFAIK are REAL-ID enabled by default. And you probably will need to use some form of ID anyway pretty frequently.
Thats a good idea, although it is not completely robust.
REAL-ID only proves that the holder had legal presence at the time of issue, not that the holder maintains legal presence at the point of presenting it to the ICE officer. For example, holders of Temporary Protected Status would have been here perfectly legally and been able to get and hold a REAL ID. But their status has just been revoked. So an ICE officer could still refuse to accept it as proof of legal status.
Hi Peter,
Thank you for taking your time to do this.
I currently hold J-1 research scholar visa. I would like to better understand what visa options I have after my J-1 ends. I am considering applying for O-1 but I need a professional advice on that. Can you recommend any immigration lawyers that can help me with that?
Schedule an initial consultation with me and then I can refer you to a good immigration lawyer to execute the plan. The O-1 is probably your best - and only - option.
Hi Peter, My H-1B status is set to expire in November of this year, marking the end of my 6-year limit. My NIW (EB-2) petition is currently under review. In the event that my NIW is approved after my H-1B has expired, would my employer still be able to file for an H-1B extension on my behalf?
Yes, because the EB2 (NIW) green card category is "backlogged," your employer will be able to file a 3-year extension (beyond your 6-year max-out date) once your NIW petition is approved.
I’m British working in the US on an E2 visa (as an essential employee).
How would you approach getting a green card? My employer is willing to support me in this.
It seems the lawyers suggested going for an EB2, but that looks set to take 3-4 years. Is there anything you’d recommend?
Hello!
I may not be as knowledgeable about immigration as previous speakers, but could you provide me with a bullet-point list of the latest legal requirements? I’d like some guidance as someone currently outside the U.S. who wants to work in your country.
Thanks.
The options will depend in part on this person's countries of citizenship and qualifications. There are a handful of citizenship-specific visa (the countries are Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Singapore), which usually are relatively easy to obtain. If the person doesn't qualify for one of these citizenship-specific visas, then the options will depend on his or her qualifications.
Hi Peter! Heard your name from a couple of friends who have gotten their visas from you! Nice to see you here.
What kind of travel restrictions apply for someone on an O-1 visa (potentially looking to file for EB-1A)? Is there a recommended minimum period of stay in the US?
What are the H1B visa extension options for a H1B visa holder, who had a PERM application (Labor Certification) filed with the DOL before his company got liquidated, leaving him job searching with only 3 months left in his 6 year H1B window?
How does USCIS look to someone who is applying O1 visa directly from F1 (no opt/cpt). I have raised some VC money and have number of extraordinary achivements in the past.
I just got my green card but the category mentioned on it is wrong (E18 instead of E17). Is there an action I need to take? Separately, can I use the existing card to travel outside the US and reenter?
Since this was USCIS error, you should be able to get it corrected without paying a filing fee by filing a Form I-90 application. You will need to mail in your green card, however, when you submit this application. Regarding travel on your green card before you get it corrected, I don't see any issue since it's still a valid green card.
Hi Peter - do you have any specific thoughts for people posting about immigration scenarios here, to help keep themselves safe? Given that it was recently revealed that ICE is monitoring these comments.[0][1]
Everyone has to weigh the pros and cons for themselves but I think that being well-informed is the best defense so to speak, that is, to know what one's rights are and what the law is, so I think these open forums play an important role.
It is absolutely wild that people are posting about the ways that they have broken the letter of immigration law on here using their regular accounts and identifiable IP addresses.
Serious question, does anyone actually care about immigration law at this point? Because on the surface it doesn't seem to matter if you followed the law exactly or you completely ignored it if you're someone targeted by ICE. They seem to find their target and then work backwards on how to deport them. Is anyone who wouldn't normally be in the sights of an ICE agent getting targeted by some HN comment?
When the cost of failure is high, and the cost of mitigation is low, I think it's reasonable to use throwaways and VPNs whenever you might comment something that might unknowingly increase your risk exposure. Admittedly, this is going to be a pain for forum anti abuse systems.
I'm more so wondering what public data on these sites is really useful for finding/building deportation cases. It looks to me they are wrapping a bunch of scrapers into a product and selling it as "intelligence tools".
What's the fastest timeline to get green card under EB-3? What things does the employer company does that could speed things up like batch process, generic existing applicable job posting?
Country of birth is the most important factor. Certain countries, most notably China and India, have significant backlogs and the process can take many years. For those not from a heavily backlogged country, the ways to speed up the green card process are limited, including, during the PERM process, commencing recruitment when the prevailing wage request is submitted (and not yet approved) and using recruitment to cover multiple positions/employees. And then, once the PERM application is approved, using premium processing to accelerate the approval of the next step, the I-140 petition.
Wait -- is it country of birth or country of citizenship? If I was born in Switzerland but held a Bangladeshi passport could I possibly use the former's priority queue?
It is birthplace, so if you were a Bengladeshi national but were born in CH, you would fall into the Swiss queue (which is the "everyone else" queue).
If this is you, congratulations, this is the shortest possible line. Though, if you were Bengladeshi-born I think you may actually be in the same queue? The queues are India/China/Mexico/Phillipines/Everyone Else.
Hi Peter, appreciate for hosting the AMA. I am a Chinese and holding a L1B visa and now just submitted PWD with paralegal's help, how long would it cost to get a green card?
Hi Peter,
I am on a H1B visa; Is it allowed to run a company by myself if I never take out the revenue off the company bank account (so, effectively unrealized gains).
The analysis is nuanced and the answer (which can be Yes or No) depends on a variety factors, such as what "running" the company involves, whether there are multiple founders, what the corporate structure of the company is, whether the company is generating revenues, whether the company has clients, whether the company has received funding, and whether the company has employees. To state the obvious, before embarking on such a venture, get a consultation so that you understand what's possible and what you can and can't do. There's also the option of getting a concurrent part-time H-1B to actually work for your startup.
Hello, a friend of mine is a strong systems programmer from Poland but has not graduated from college. Is he basically unable to get a work visa for the US?
If he has a lot of experience, then he might have the equivalent of a bachelor's degree, which would make him potentially eligible for an H-1B visa. Also, if he's very accomplished and talented, even without a degree, he might qualify for an O-1 visa; education is not a requirement for the O-1 visa.
I believe that it already has reviewed this question and to be clear, it's not the right to give legal advice, anyone can do that, it's the right to represent others in legal proceedings and before government agencies and to charge fees for the provision of such services.
hope not to late,
i am a contractor working on a project for a company not registered in USA. recently when arriving to USA to visit this companies' local office i was stopped at border control and almost denied. took 8 hours and a body search to get out of there. how to explain clearly to immigration officer this situation.
I haven't seen that - nearly all our O-1 petitions are still getting approved - but my view like everyone's view on this is anecdotal so I don't really know. The major changes I've seen are in the NIW context and to a lesser degree in the EB1A context.
There are a lot of options. In the end, creating a successful business in the U.S. is the best path to a green card but more specifically, assuming that you have employees in Canada whom you are managing, opening an office in the U.S. and transferring yourself to this office and then growing the business is a great way to get initial work authorization and a green card. Another option, if you have strong credentials, is to come over on the O-1 and then pursue an extraordinary ability green card then or after you have built up the company.
I'm not a business person so I'm not really in a position to comment but one mistake I've made - I have my own firm so I'm not too different from a startup founder - is not putting administrative/human resources infrastructure in place from the beginning and not hiring a chief of staff early on.
Unless you have an issue (that is, a criminal record, a history of immigration violations/fraud, or extended absences from the U.S. while a green card holder), it's an easy application and process and doesn't require assistance from a lawyer.
i'm probably going to marry my american partner next year and thinking of moving to america. what are (generally speaking) my options for working? coming from the united kingdom.
Can you convince YC to have programs outside the US by any chance? It's not exactly easy getting into the USA these days and by no means a smooth experience either.
The E-2 is very much a check the box type of visa but whether $100k is enough would depend on a number of factors so you should consult with an immigration attorney. One relative advantage of the E-2 is that spouses can work and that it is in large part a company benefit that makes it relatively easy to bring over talented people from the founder's/owner's home country.
Hey Peter! Thank you again for doing this series. Apologies for the broad question, but do you think it applying for PERM during the current administration is a good idea? My understanding was that in the first Trump administration, PERM denials went up quite a bit, and with immigration being an even larger concern for the second administration I'm wondering if it makes sense holding out for a few years if that's a possibility.
As odd as it might sound, there seems to be an effort on the part of the DOL to speed up the processing of PERM applications, which are now taking longer than ever. From an outcome standpoint, I haven't seen an uptick in denials or bad decisions.
Thank you for doing this, yet again - your insights are always so valuable.
I am on an H1B, and my company applied for a Greencard, and I have received a Priority Date with my i-140 (sorry if I'm not using the correct terms here, this process confuses me). When am I able to leave my current employer without losing my priority date? Would I need to get my new employer to apply for an H1B transfer and extension for me, or how does that work? Thank you!!
The priority date is your property and only in very limited circumstances can you lose it after leaving your employer. The general rule is that the beneficiary of an I-140 petition - you - needs to wait at least 180 days after the approval to protect the priority date. I'm not sure what you are asking about a new employer.
What is the likelihood today that Trump and his allies in Congress may improve the ability for H1B holders to obtain green cards? This was repeatedly raised during his campaign and his first weeks in office and it sounded like this was going to be a thing....
Given the newly (as of yesterday) appointed chief of USCIS was just confirmed and has a marked history of strong opinions against OPT in it's entirety and H1B - I'd assume it's not looking good haha.
I haven't heard anything about this since he's taken office and I suspect that if something like this is done that it will be limited to those in certain fields and industries.
So, I have a wife who just got her citizenship. We're very happy about that.
Concerning, though, is the current presidential administration's talk of trying to do large-scale denaturalization of citizens.
I know you don't have the ability to read minds, but would you care to hazard a guess to much of this is the president just blowing smokes or how worried I should be?
It is hard not to be moderately worried, since the administration has already made concrete attacks on citizenship pathways, immigrants and legal residents. Most notably, it's targeted birthright citizenship via executive order, tried to push through the power to unilaterally revoke green cards, and arbitrarily cancelling the ability of universities to host foreign students.
More importantly, successful legal challenges to these efforts are being vacated or reversed by the Supreme Court. That means the administration's attempts aren't being fully checked by balances.
You should take the rhetoric fairly seriously. There is no good-faith explanation for this pattern of attacking people who have gone through the process faithfully, and no credible ongoing efforts to prevent those happening.
The President isn't blowing smoke - denaturalization efforts are going to increase - but there still has to be a reason, such as fraud or misrepresentation in getting her green card or citizenship or her failure to disclose a material fact in one of these processes. But absent something like this, I wouldn't worry at all.
1. she lied or concealed any past convictions (or maybe other information) on her visa/GC/citizenship application. in the past they only went after serious omissions like felonies, but now they'll go over any minor mistake with a fine-tooth comb. courts have held in the past that such omissions must have material significance to the decision (e.g. lying about a degree obtained, but not a typo about graduation year.)
2. she joins the Communist party or another totalitarian party within 5 years of becoming a citizen. expect them to interpret this broadly (e.g. supporting causes rather than officially joining, counting DSA as "totalitarian.") she should keep her head down, unfortunately.
I don't think she'll join a party any more radical than "Democrat", and we were extremely thorough with the lawyer to make sure everything on the application was completely honest.
If what you're saying is true, then I maybe shouldn't worry too much.
Immigration is actually directly related to how CEOs and VCs intend to change the landscape for all things government related, and democracy as a whole. There is very much a subjective intent to tear down the rule of law, the rights that safeguard Americans as a whole, starting with immigration. IT's an entry point, a target to whittle away basic rights of the average American. Peter Thiel touches on this need for a tech revolution in his paper "The Straussian Moment", https://www.hoover.org/research/peter-thiel-straussian-momen..., who also funded JD Vance's rise to VP, and DJT.
These guys, "Tech Bros", love the concepts written in Srinivasan's book "the Network State", and want to replace our current government with distributed monarchies. Srinivasan, Thiel, Andresen, and Curtis Yarvin actually have a documented plan to achieve this which is being executed, to a "T", which involves attacking immigration, not just as a distraction so they can attack the courts directly, but also cause it's part of their vision. This plan is referred to the butterfly revolution, by Curtis Yarvin, which states the following:
1. Reboot (“full-power start”) Suspend or bypass existing constitutional limits; concentrate absolute sovereignty in one new organization—analogous to Allied occupation powers in post-1945 Japan/Germany. Eliminate checks and balances that block rapid change.
2. CEO-Monarch model A single executive (chosen like a corporate CEO) rules; the former president becomes a figurehead “chairman of the board.” Treat the state as a firm run for efficiency, not democratic representation.
3. RAGE strategy “Retire All Government Employees” by mass-firing the civil service and replacing it with loyal appointees. Remove institutional resistance (“the Cathedral”) and ensure obedience.
4. Parallel regime Build a fully staffed shadow government in exile before inauguration; unveil it on Day 1 to take over agencies at once. Prevent the bureaucratic slow-rolling that stymied Trump’s first term.
5. Media & academia clampdown Defund or shutter universities and independent press seen as hostile. Break what Yarvin calls the Cathedral’s cultural dominance.
Curtis Yarvin's writings include pointed attacks on immigration, both as a policy and as a reflection of deeper systemic problems. He uses immigration as an example to argue for the failure of democracy and to advocate for his preferred model of authoritarian governance. He also frames immigration debates as distractions from what he sees as the real issues-namely, the incompetence and self-serving nature of current elites and institutions.
Do you understand why the current administration would want to attack immigration? Altman, Theil, and others(Tech Bros) that manage YC, Palantir, OpenAI. A16Z prescribe to these beliefs. It is no secret, no conspiracy, they publicly talk about this. How do you feel about their approach, and YC's involvement, to changing governance and the future of our country? How do feel about Immigration as a tactic to attack the judicial branch as well assault innocent legal civilians with ICE, which is part of their reboot strategy?
YC does try to bury this topic, but it needs to be discussed. Developer and engineers need to be aware of the intent some of these corporations have in mind for their temporary employment. I say temporary as they intend to automate away the whole workforce and build utopias in their name. This isn't secret or a "deep state", they've plainly stated this agenda publicly and have written material online selling this agenda to other billionaires. Look at https://www.praxisnation.com. This is also referred to as Freedom Cities in Trumps presser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJA_GBhCGgE Many people will die in the pursuit of this :/
Yep, I would've voted for Bernie and it's important for the greater population to understand that Trump and the GOP have basically done nothing to curb abuse of the LEGAL immigration system. Elon and Big Tech WANTS Trump to import infinity foreign labor to continue driving wages and opportunity down for American tech workers.
The fact that only a 3.5% remittance tax on non-digital payments was barely implemented is pathetic.
Hi Mr. Roberts, Thank you for doing this.
I was adopted as a child by my uncle in my home country, where record-keeping is poor. As a result, all my official documents, including my birth certificate, list my uncle and aunt as my parents. I used this documentation when I obtained U.S. citizenship. I now want to petition for my biological parents to immigrate to the U.S. My uncle still lives in my home country and has never received any immigration benefits from me. Is it possible to petition for my biological parents under these circumstances, and how complex would the process be?
Also, could you recommend a reputable immigration attorney in Washington State or the West Coast?
This is a very interesting question but too complex to answer in writing. Please email me and I can share the names of good immigration attorneys near you.
What sort of people get O-1 visas? I assume it is people with multiple degrees and have decades of experience in a specific field?
I am good at what I do, have done public speaking at major conferences on what I do but no degree and so assume that i've no chance of ever getting into the USA. Currently a UK citizen living in Ireland.
The O-1 is a high standard but it's less about overall achievement or standing (like the EB1A green card category) and more about meeting specific criteria, which many talented professionals and founders do. I would recommend reviewing the O-1 criteria (they're listed on USCIS's website, www.uscis.gov) and then having an immigration attorney evaluate your background. People are often surprised that they meet the O-1 criteria or with a bit of work will qualify.
One of the qualifications is "Evidence that the beneficiary has either commanded a high salary or will command a high salary or other remuneration for services as evidenced by contracts or other reliable evidence" How does a startup founder go about proving this? They don't have quite the "high salary" and get paid in equity. What have you seen here? How do founders quialify for this part?
The clue is "other remuneration". USCIS will accept stock based compensation for founders under comparable evidence if you have raised money, i.e. your equity has a fair market value set by a professional investor in an arms-length transaction. Your total compensation will still need to objectively high compared to peers in your geographical area (supported by data).
It's open to things like sport and entertainment, so definitely not everyone has many (or any) degrees. Assuming your field is somewhat science based I don't know how realistic it would be with no degree, but you can search some blogs about it, people have covered what they did to rack up publications and stuff to check all the boxes (if their work/field wouldn't have otherwise needed them).
If you are starting your own business, the treaty investor visa could also be a good route. It doesn't require as much investment as the investor green card; it is a nonimmigrant visa similar to the O-1.
There's a list of qualifying criteria on the USCIS website. You have to satisfy at least three out of the eight or so.
The issue is it's a bit subjective, a lawyer writes down how you qualify and some random government employee has to believe what the lawyer wrote.
If you receive a RFE or rejection, all your dealings with USCIS will face extra scrutiny in future. So it's a bit of a gamble.
The evidentiary standard is preponderance of evidence, i.e. there is a greater than 50% chance what is claimed clears the statutory bar.
RFE's and rejections don't cause problems by themselves. A denial can cause problems if the reason for denial is fraud or misrepresentation.
My dance instructor, who has won an international championship, is here on an O-1B. However, his 3 year initial eligibility is coming due, and the processing times for the 1-year extension is looking like it's going to take longer than 1-year! According to Wikipedia, Justin Beiber is here on an O visa, I wonder how his gets processed.
You can request premium processing for the O-1s, which is roughly $3k and guarantees a response within 15 business days. [0]
[0] https://www.uscis.gov/forms/all-forms/how-do-i-request-premi...
You can ask for 3 years again on the renewal and sometimes USCIS make the mistake of giving it to you even though they are not allowed (unless it's a new engagement) according to the statutory text
It's beyond a joke. Recently spent some time at an accelerator and the partners of the VC firm were very open about purchasing "fake" research or presenting investments as if they were from more than one "investor".
I still fail to understand how Dwarkesh Patel managed to "self-sponsor" an O-1 with a... tech podcast...
Podcasts are a very significant medium, and Dwarkesh is probably comfortably in the top 1% of podcasts. Isn't that exactly what O-1 is for?
At the time he barely had 10k subscribers. The merits of the "genius" VISA should be for research and engineering endeavors.
In practice they want people of high ability who will contribute positively to the US, not necessarily geniuses. My friend who was supporting actress in some Netflix thing got in on that basis.
O-1 isn't a genius visa, it is for [1] Individuals with Extraordinary Ability or Achievement, the government website specifically calls out categories that are not research or engineering.
[1] https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/temporary...
The jokes really do write themselves "Extraordinary Podcasting Ability".
Would much rather that visa had gone to a researcher or engineer who's motto wasn't "not wanting to push pixels around at a FAANG".
Why not both? I can see the argument for not having millions of unskilled immigrants crossing from Mexico but both Dwarkesh and the researcher/engineer would benefit the US. I don't think it's that hard to get O1 as a researcher/engineer - you basically have to get to the level where you present at conferences and are seen as an expert in whatever.
Do you honestly think it's a good idea to make it harder to get a visa in this country? Particularly one that's based on merit/markets?
Melania Trump got an EB-1 visa as a model. That’s the permanent resident version of the O-1, which is temporary.
I don't think so, personally, because I see that podcast as entertainment rather than education, and I don't think entertainers should ever receive O-1 visas.
Legislators thought otherwise, when they explicitly created two subcategories of O-1 visas:
* O-1A: Individuals with an extraordinary ability in the sciences, education, business, or athletics (not including the arts, motion pictures or television industry).
* O-1B: Individuals with an extraordinary ability in the arts or extraordinary achievement in motion picture or television industry.
The reason is pretty simple. Entertainment industry depends more on specific individuals than most other industries. If you have cast a foreign actor for a role, you can't easily replace them with generic interchangeable talent. But that foreign actor is not magically allowed to work in the US. They need a visa that allows it. Hence O-1B.
i did o1 twice and then eb1. it’s not a joke if you set expectations too high in your mind.
all visas are just about fulfilling the legal criteria. if you do that, you get the visa. same is true for extraordinary alien ones.
Hi Peter! Thank you for doing this. Are you seeing any issues/concerns with Green Card holders traveling internationally and returning to the US in the past few months?
Only that even with green card holders, we have seen instances where CBP is asking to see electronic devices and reviewing their social media accounts. But we haven't had a green card holding client detained or denied admission.
lol. in LA everyone's instagram just shows ICE getting beaten and the epstein files posts that follow these. I wonder how fun it must be to travel nowadays.
thank you!
There is the case of a German Green Card holder being detained: https://newhampshirebulletin.com/2025/05/09/nashua-german-am...
There’s also some tourists being detained, e.g. https://www.dw.com/en/german-nationals-us-immigration-detain... One common thread seems to be past DUIs, misdemeanors and infractions.
I'm graduating from my PhD and starting a FAANG research role. I'm Australian and about to start in F-1 OPT status.
I am interested in an EB-1 or EB-2 (possibly NIW) visa, but am concerned about a long period where I can't travel (aka re-enter).
What's the practical difference between E-3 and F-1 OPT (with STEM extension) in my case? Is it easy to switch from F-1 to E-3 at the same role?
Your green card process will have two steps, the I-140 filing and then the green card application, either in the U.S. with USCIS (known as an I-485 application) or outside the U.S. with a U.S. Consulate (known as an Immigrant Visa application). During the I-140 stage, there is some risk traveling on an F-1 or an E-3 visa (with the F-1 riskier), but this risk is relatively low and can be mitigated. One way to reduce this risk to zero is to switch to O-1 status, which as a PhD grad you probably would qualify for but your employer would need to support this. At the second stage, with an I-485 filing, whether you are in E-3, F-1, or O-1 status, you should expect to be unable to travel for at least 6 months unless you have a family emergency. With an IV application, you will be able to travel on an O-1 visa but there will be some risk traveling on an E-3 or F-1 visa (again, with the F-1 riskier).
Thank you Peter, this is super helpful!!
Does your firm do immigration law consultations or do you have any that you would recommend to ask some more questions?
I'd be happy to answer some questions gratis and then refer you to another immigration lawyer for paid assistance.
Thank you!
I am wondering how narrow the focus has to be for an EB-1A. I have been involved in a wide variety of projects, some receiving a good amount of media publicity (100+ mentions across various media), others adding up to a good number of citations (100+ total citations), and I'm also involved in a startup venture that while not yet a breakaway success, is growing quickly (60k+ users, growing 50% yoy). I'm unsure if these can be molded into an appropriate form given they don't necessarily make a coherent story.
I'm also wondering what the bar is for "command a high salary or other significantly high remuneration in relation to others in the field". Is a solid salary within the usual bands at a big tech enough? Or does it have to somehow be significantly higher in relation to others in a similar job position at the company?
All interesting and good questions requiring a consultation. Schedule a call with me and I can give you an initial assessment and then refer you to a good immigration lawyer.
Hey Peter,
I'm still waiting for my family based GC to be approved. It was applied for in March 2023.
I've tried contacting my senators to see if it can be expedited but USCIS replied to say that it's still within "normal processing times" and that there is not yet an immigrant number available as my priority date is not earlier than the final action date.
I've been keeping a close eye on the USCIS Visa Bulletin final action dates and have noticed that they don't always move forward each month. I.e. there has been no change between July and August: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/v...
Is this normal? Or due to the current administration?
You don't need peter for this one: The action date is indicating the place in the queue of the application they are currently working on. Every month they don't deal with 1 month worth of applications: Sometimes it might take 6 months to go through a single month of applications, other times it can move much faster. Either way, it all depends on what was submitted a long time ago, their maximum speed, and the number of visas allotted: It's possible for USCIS to run out of visas for a country and just process nothing more for the rest of the year.
So its all normal, it's been happening for decades, and there's been no significant action in the legislature to speed things up. As things are right now, there are specific queues where the delay might as well mean 'forever', because it's going to take many decades for the current processing speed to reach July 2025.
So just SOL here, and nothing that can be done but wait? :(
Bringing siblings to U.S. as a citizen is currently about a 15-17 year backlog for most countries (fourth preference), so yeah, there’s often some or a lot of waiting in these processes.
If your spouse is a green card holder and they become a citizen, then you're no longer subject to quota/queue
Hi Peter, when i went to Hacker news this morning and saw this post i thought, that's a bit unusual, an attorney??, so i think its cool that an immigration attorney visits channels like this. Anyways, me and my soon to be wife (we get married next Friday) have consulted an immigration lawyer regarding my status, i overstayed my tourist visa, so now im out of status, the lawyer mentioned that i have a pretty good chance to adjust my status since i came here legally and i don't have any felonies or anything bad on my record, however my concern is this, should we and my future wife wait a bit longer to apply for this change of status until we have more hard evidence? we live together and have a joint bank account, in which i deposit a certain amount each month so she can pay bills etc, thing is she is not regularly using the card, she just uses a big portion on the rent or she just transfers it to her personal, we will also get our phone and car insurance bills together, we have joint Costco membership too, what other evidence do you recommend we should work on or is there a resource online i can use as a guide to build an excellent case? thank you!!
Peter does this every few months on Hackernews.
Yup: https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=proberts
Assuming that your wife is a U.S. citizen, you should be fine; the law forgives overstays and unauthorized employment for those pursuing green cards based on marriage to a U.S. citizen. Of course, I haven't reviewed your background but on the face of it, I don't see any reason for you to wait to file but I would recommend that you defer to your lawyer since he or she will have all the facts.
Not a lawyer, but this is similar to my situation.
I personally would not delay. It will be awhile before you get to the interview stage so you also have that time to show your relationship is genuine and collect proof of a life together.
I don't know of a list; but my wife and I had things like:
We didn't need most of it in the end but you never know - and this was over 15 years ago.Congrats!
Hi Peter,
Thanks for hosting this AMA. I’ve an immigration issue related to status transition. So I came to the U.S on an F-1 visa about 6 years ago. However, during the course of my undergraduate study, I found out that I qualified for TPS. So I applied and received it. Afterwards, I decided to take a leave of abscence from school to work on a startup because TPS allows me to. I was also made to change my status from F1 to TPS. And my I-20 status period expired a few months after I took the leave at the beginning of 2024.
Owing to the recent TPS terminations of various countries, I’m afraid that my TPS will be terminated once it’s up for review in a few months. My question regards transistioning back to F1 status. I’m wondering if I can change status back from TPS to F1 without having to leave the country. This is because a visa ban is currently in place for the country for which I hold TPS. As such I can’t risk traveling outside the country as I won’t be able to get back in because of the visa ban. Btw the ban anpplies to all visa categories including F1 and O1.
Thanks!
If you worked pursuant to a TPS EAD, then I believe you cannot change your status to F-1 in the U.S. Definitely schedule a consultation with an immigration attorney. If you need a referral, email me.
Since it was coincidentally posted as a news thread today, it might be nice to clarify here when the new $250 nonimmigrant visa fee takes effect and who it applies to?
My understanding is that it applies to all approved visa applications and is billed when the visa is issued. I believe that it takes effect immediately but there was some confusion about this. I will try to confirm and advise on this thread.
Hmm, so it looks like no on really knows when it takes effect, the law itself specified a cost for the current fiscal year, but in addition to the usual time to implement the fee in the IT systems, there appear to be two issues: what rulemaking notices/approvals are needed to decide and impose it (the law allows the executive to decide the fee, it just sets a minimum), and the fact that DHS not State is supposed to collect it, which would greatly complicate processing.
State already has a global cashiering system for visa fees that would have been easier to use, although DHS collecting fees is not without precedent. For one, the SEVIS fee (a surcharge on student visas) is paid directly to DHS by credit card. For two, the surcharge on green cards is paid to USCIS, but this one is not actually enforced before visa issuance or arrival (they will not mail you the card if you don't pay, but you still have the status).
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/07/18/visa-integrity-fee-what-to-k...
Hi Peter!
There's a lot of confusion and uncertainty around a June policy update regarding TN visa (some related links in https://www.reddit.com/r/tnvisa/comments/1lerikw/nonengineer...). At least one big tech (my personal anecdote that I don't feel comfortable sharing) temporarily paused new TN applications for software engineers with a CS degree, citing this change.
This seems to have always been a fuzzy area on paper, and some people in this category apparently still got their TN in the past month after this change. Is this a material change in your mind? If so, how are employers responding to it?
Recently I heard of an instance where CBP denied a TN application by an applicant with a CS degree for a software engineering position. While this is of course concerning, this has always been a potential issue - I've seen this happen several times over the years - and there are ways to mitigate the risk (by, for example, highlighting the applicant's engineering courses or getting a letter from the school or an expert in the field). We have continued to pursue TNs for software engineers with CS degrees and have not had any issue yet.
why is ycombinator promoting immigration thru H1B when so many US born CS grads are finding it hard to get job. In 2023, American colleges graduated 134,153 citizens or green card holders with bachelor's or master's degrees in computer science. That same year, our federal government handed out work permits to at least 110,098 foreign workers in computer occupations through just three major guest worker programs. That's equal to 82% of our graduating class who are guaranteed jobs even before any Americans walk across the stage for their diploma. https://ifspp.substack.com/p/data-on-how-america-sold-out-it...
That's not an apples to apples comparison. You don't know if the foreign workers were senior-level employees, for example, or whether there were specialized requirements they might have been hired against that entry-level grads won't qualify for.
I agree there should be more entry-level roles. But this is not an indictment of the system. You should ask what percentage of those foreign workers were hired into entry-level roles.
I'll also point out that it's actually harder for entry-level foreign workers (read: international students) to get jobs in general. F1 visa students are limited to one year of OPT, unless they have a STEM degree, in which case they can work for two more years for an e-Verified employer only in a field related to their major. There are significantly fewer e-Verified employers in the country. So you have a concentrated labour pool vying for a much smaller fraction of jobs than the general population - remember, we can't even be employed at McDonald's on STEM OPT.
Another factor that complicates the analysis is that foreign students do not necessarily represent the same cross-section as US students. The high cost of US education tends to bifurcate the sample size into a bimodal distribution: you have rich foreign students who can afford tuition rates, or you have scholarship students who earned their scholarship quite fairly thanks to merit. Neither population can be fairly compared against the average US citizen in terms of hiring likelihood - either you're pitting the top 1% of someone in the home country to the median US student, or you're comparing someone who's got the resources to find opportunities in ways US students can't.
Finally, it's been my experience, seeing others though the F1 -> H1B pipeline, that most people pursue that pipeline through a master's degree rather than a bachelor's degree. This is because both immigration law and tuition rates incentivise shorter programs for advanced education. If you're comparing the hiring rates of master's students to bachelor's students, naturally you're going to get a revealed preference for master's students.
tl;dr the simple statistic cited needs critical questioning.
It's disgusting.
Many VC firms outside of YC flagrantly promote what is basically fraud. There are literally YC companies that provide pseudo visa fraud as a service.
Following the law and having respect for the immigration system is simply seen as an "inconvenient challenge" to these people.
I myself am a person of color, but in the cohort I was in (of 30) maybe three individuals were native born Americans of any race. The rest were exclusively Canadian immigrants largely from India and China (not actually born in Canada). It's also quite common in the US for people to work on visitor VISA's while applying for O1s.
To name a few...
https://extraordinary.com/ (promulgated by https://x.com/0xsigil?lang=en)
https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/gale
https://www.deel.com/paid-lp/immigration/
On my LinkedIn saw some guy saying "Hit me up if you want EB-1 I know a guy" not sure what it entails but was weird to promote that. Guy is a hustler/grinder though in general.
Some of these "visa as a service" startups offer incentives and pseudo cash (or even cash) referral incentives. Which is actually illegal both in CA and Federally.
Thanks so much Peter - how do non-US people typically work in SF during YC?
I am a US citizen but have a few non-US citizen friends who might join if accepted.
A distinction must be drawn between working during a startup program, which requires a work visa, and attending the program and not working. For the latter, there are several options, including, most commonly, the B-1 visa/status.
Out of curiosity, what percentage of YC founders just go to the office hours and dinner and not work for the duration of the program? Is this encouraged?
I can't comment on that but the issue here is what constitutes work and actively participating in YC doesn't even if this participation results in benefit to a company.
Participating in YC isn't work? Isn't it a startup accelerator for teams to grow their business? Isn't growing one's business work?
Work in the context of immigration means participating in the local economy. A person visiting SF to attend YC is not working for a U.S. company, they are not participating in the local economy, they’re on a business trip conducting business.
> A person visiting SF to attend YC is not working for a U.S. company
They very well could be. And it could be a US company with US investors (YC)
Sure, you can describe it that way if you want but that’s not the spirit of immigration law. A founder of a company (registered in the U.S. or overseas) visiting YC to raise money is not working in the local economy by the spirit of immigration law. A founder who registered a Delaware c-corp through stripe atlas is not working in the U.S. when they go to SF to raise money. That’s what business visas exist for.
I have a question for a friend who is looking to work at US-based companies either remotely and is open to relocating and moving there if required, but she is from the UK and a citizen there who just left her job as a software engineer at a startup in the UK recently.
She is looking to be able to legally work for some of these US based companies and is also interested in US startups but when applying she cannot answer the US authorization question in the application (If she said 'No' it will get her an immediate rejection). So my question(s) are:
What is the best visa for her to apply for as a UK citizen to work for a US company?
How long will it take for her to get the visa so she can apply for US jobs?
U.S. work authorization isn't required to work for a U.S. company if the worker will be working remotely outside the U.S. Regarding her work visa options, they are limited. The only option immediately available is the O-1 visa, which is for people of "extraordinary ability," a high standard but attainable by many talented professionals. The H-1B "professional worker" visa is much easier to qualify for but it's only available once a year and via a lottery so it's not a realistic option. If she really wants to work for a U.S. company remotely or in the U.S., then she should have a consultation with an immigration attorney and have her background evaluated.
Thank you very much, I'm in a similar position as OP's friend and this is very helpful!
The O-1 can cost upwards of $100K to put together. It’s a very high bar.
That is not remotely true. An O-1, EB2NIW, or EB1A ranges from $5K-$15K.
Correct. While there are some outliers, I think that that range is accurate.
I am assuming this includes manufacturing the evidence?
Hi Peter, thanks for doing this.
For myself as a UK citizen, what are the most realistic options for obtaining a visa to work in the US? The H1B is the main one I'm familiar with, but with the lottery and the one year application cycle it doesn't seem an easy route. The other option I'm aware of is the L1, do you know how realistic it is to obtain one of those? I don't currently work for a multinational company but would look to move jobs if an L1 visa was a possibility.
Are there any other realistic routes available?
The L-1 is very easy through a large multinational company after a year of employment with that company outside the U.S. and is attainable although more difficult through a small multinational company. The other options are the E-2 (treaty investor visa), which could allow you to work for a British-owned company in the U.S., or the O-1 (extraordinary ability visa), which requires a relatively high level of achievement but is often attainable by talented professionals.
Thanks Peter, all very useful to know. I wasn't aware of the E-2 visa. How does one justify extraordinary ability for the O-1, if pursuing that route? I can see it varying a signifcant amount between applicants, but what (if any) successful justifications have you seen?
Yes, it varies significantly from applicant to applicant. Justifying extraordinary ability is more about checking certain boxes/criteria than extraordinary ability per se and so, in the end, it's usually pretty clear whether or not someone qualifies.
I will be taking a short break. Please keep the interesting questions and comments coming. Thanks.
Hi there, I'm working in the UK on a work visa. I previously applied for a US position at Fermilab and NASA ADS. Although, I didn't get the position I was told the H-1B visa process for these positions was much simpler (not through lottery) as they fall under a special category.
Can you advise other what other sectors offer these privileges? Also, if I get the H-1B through this process, am I allowed to switch to a different employer in the future?
Those organizations are "H-1B cap-exempt" organizations that are not subject to the annual H-1B lottery. Cap-exempt organizations include non-profit institutes of higher education, organizations affiliated with these institutes (like hospitals), non-profits primarily engaged in research, and government research organizations, like Fermilab and NASA. If you get a cap-exempt H-1B, you could transfer to another cap-exempt organization but you would not be able to transfer to a cap-subject private for-profit entity although you could get approved for part-time concurrent employment with such an entity.
> although you could get approved for part-time concurrent employment with such an entity.
Can you elaborate on what you mean here?
You would continue to work for your H-1B cap-exempt employer but then get an H-1B through a private cap-subject employer that would allow you to work at the same time on a part-time basis.
The sex designation on my birth certificate has changed since the last time I got a work visa. Am I at risk for trying to enter the US on a new work visa as an engineer, or on personal travel?
https://www.erininthemorning.com/p/marco-rubio-may-have-just...
Where there was no risk, there now is some. I'm not saying don't travel but absolutely consult with an attorney before doing so because this is an evolving issue.
Thank you
If you want to get a visitor visa to attend an incubator like YC, is it better to:
1) wait to be admitted into YC and get B1 visa for 3 months. Do you get some kind of invitation letter from YC that increases your chances of approval?
2) get a normal tourist visa now and specify you will go to the US for a week or two like a normal tourist and later use that to go to incubator training.
There's no need to get a new B-1/B-2 visa to attend YC if one already has such a visa. But when to try to get such visa if one doesn't have it already, whether before or after getting accepted into YC, will depend on a variety of factors specific to that person, such as his or her countries of citizenship and residence, current employment/student status, U.S. immigration history, etc.
Hi Peter, thank you for doing this on a regular basis!
In the event of a company-sponsored EB1A with an approved I140 but with an I485 pending for less than 180 days, is it possible for the company to rescind the approval? Or does the approval belong to me even though it is company-sponsored?
If the approval can be rescinded, could I lose my priority date and my I485 as well?
That the I-140 petition is an EB1A petition (which can also be filed by an individual) doesn't change the analysis. If the employer-filed I-140 petition was approved more than 180 days ago even if the I-485 has been pending for less than 180 days, while an employer can withdraw the I-140 petition (thus requiring the employee to get a new approved I-140 petition to get a green card), the individual still would keep his or her priority date.
Thank you for doing this Peter!
I am Australian, working in tech using an E-3 visa in the Bay Area.
My wife is considering moving forward with an EB-2 NIW application, she is currently in F1 OPT. She doesn't have a very strong profile currently, but is willing to work on it.
I am concerned that this might complicate me being able to renew the E-3 in the future. My understanding is that an approved or even denied I-140 from a spouse potentially signals immigrant intent for both, and it is at the discretion of the CBP agent to make this assessment.
More generally my understanding is that even if her I-140 was approved, and we stayed in the US until the I-485 was filed, that would permanently make me not eligible for any future E-3.
Is this accurate?
I previously was thinking of following the E-3 -> EB-3 -> GC route myself, but I don't see how I can do this if I'm sacrificing the E-3 if anything goes wrong.
First, the NIW standard has changed significantly recently so it might not be a good option for your wife to pursue if her profile isn't very strong since the standard as now applied looks more and more like the EB1A standard and focuses more on the applicant's individual qualifications and achievements rather than end-purpose of the applicant's work. While one spouse's immigration actions can impact the other's immigration status and options, the real risk isn't until the I-485 stage. We've had many E-3 visa holders renew their E-3 visas without issue when their spouses have pending or approved I-140 petitions and even when the E-3 visa applicants have pending or approved I-140 petitions. Now, to be clear, the world has changed so what held true before might not hold true now but historically - and during the past 6 months - we have not had any issues with Australians traveling or renewing their E-3 visa under such circumstances.
Appreciate the response.
Just in case you circle back, assuming I go the EB-3 route via my employer, am I correct in thinking that an I-485 application or even going the consular processing route makes the E-3 unobtainable in the future if either fail?
Not necessarily but you will have some explaining to do when you apply for a new E-3 visa again.
Thank you, I will look into it more.
A bit "off topic" but this is called AMA, so why not:
To which degree do you see your own profession (law practice) changing with AI? As an outsider it looks like most of the legwork, research work or basically anything a non-senior attorney would spend their time on could soon be done by LLMs. How accurate is that impression? What future do you envision for law-related professions?
I can only speak about immigration law and AI is changing it significantly. This might also change but right now I think a lawyer is still needed to understand the nuances of the law, to understand the risks of different approaches, and to determine the best strategy, but more and more, initial legal research and initial drafting are being done by AI.
I'm on a L1B and my labor market test just failed for the PERM process.
I found my job ad on LinkedIn and it had over 300 applications within a few days of going live.
I have a suspicion that due to the ATS we use for our company it showed the job application on many different channels unnecessarily.
What do you suggest I do next?
The issue is that it's completely up to the company how it conducts its PERM recruitment and you can't have any say or role in this process. One option, to take control back, is to look at self-petition options, such as the NIW or EB1A. To be clear, however, the EB1A is a very high standard and I would argue getting higher and the NIW, while easier than the EB1A, is much harder now but still worth looking at.
Hello Mr Roberts, I appreciate you for doing this.
I am currently on OPT working in the US, and I got selected this year for my H1B visa for Consular Notify. I have to get a visa stamp from a consulate abroad after October 1st for the H1B to be valid. I am applying for the YC batch this fall, would I be eligible to attend the YC batch in time? And would I need to do a h1-b transfer for this process from my company to YC? And if I can't make the YC batch in time(my other co-founders would be joining the batch without me), what would be the best option for me?
Is it legal to rehearse or practice how to interact with border guards?
I don’t need to explain why someone could be deeply anxious interacting with US border officials… it should be obvious to anyone with half a brain. And since looking anxious is a sign that you could be concealing things, thus drawing more attention from border officials… Coaching on how to handle an experience and avoid that anxious spiral and minimise the risk for such travellers… But I’m curious if this is legal. Or if it is legal, would it be construed as evidence of intent to deceive should a traveler do this and wind up being investigated in such a way that it turns up that they have undertaken such practice?
It's 100% appropriate and in fact highly recommended to prepare oneself when seeking admission since the admission process can be stressful. Preparation here doesn't mean deceit; it just means being truthful but well prepared, not being caught off guard.
Are non-US citizens banned from working on <2nm GAA technologies? What are the ITAR limits on non-US citizens from working on these tech? Can we incorporate in another country to allow hiring on non-US citizens to work on <2nm GAA technologies?
No, at Intel Foundry we have plenty of non-citizens working on sub 2 nm technology (me included).
I haven't seen any ITAR restrictions on logic nodes, only on 70+ GHz RF and adjacent work that obviously has a direct application to radar.
I have a g-4 visa as a dependent and I'm afraid that many startups won't be seeing my EAD as a competitive candidate for employment.
What do you think about this kind of employment and is there a fast way to earn a green card in my situation?
Your EAD allows you to work at any job. You're in a much better place compared to anyone who needs sponsorship.
There's no particular difference between a person having G-4 status and any other person in nonimmigrant status when it comes to green card sponsorship. It's just as easy, and just as difficult.
I’m a midlife career changer about to start law school at 45 after 20 years in tech, and right now I am trying to figure out if criminal defense or immigration is the field I want to pursue since I have relatively equal passion for each but neither keeps me up at night so to speak. What would you say I should be thinking about to reach answers that I am more likely to be happy with in terms of the choices that will determine the major contours of my career as an attorney? Or am I asking the wrong question and should instead be asking something else entirely?
That's funny because those were my two areas as well. The way that I look at it is that criminal law is much more intellectually challenging and interesting while immigration law is pretty straightforward but the application of the law to an unending variety of facts is incredibly interesting and challenging. I'd be happy to speak with you about this choice.
As a Canadian on an L-1B visa, approaching the 3-year mark and an upcoming renewal, is it recommended to process it within the US or travel outside and re-enter for the processing at the border?
Came in to USA from Belgium with L-1B. Renewed twice outside of the USA based on lawyer's recommendation that outside has a higher chance of success.
Don't put yourself at risk of going to a detention camp and stick with doing it in Canada.
If you are eligible for a blanket L-1B, then absolutely do it outside through a U.S. Consulate.
Hi Peter, I'm from Europe and currently in the US on a B2 visa (I’ve traveled frequently between the US and Europe over the past year, so we chose B2 over ESTA to be safe). I’m preparing my O-1 case to legally work on my startup here. I would love to participate in an accelerator here. This would also strengthen my application for the membership/awards criteria but I am not sure if I am even legally allowed to participate in these programs (e.g. YC) on a B2 before officially having the O-1? Thank you!
First, while acceptance into and participation in an accelerator, particularly a well-known one, definitely moves the needle with O-1 petitions, this can't be counted on as evidence of membership or award. While B-1 status is appropriate for participation in an accelerator, B-2 is not.
My time to apply for citizenship based on my EB green card is approaching (4 years and 9 months, right?). Is it still advised for employment-based cases without children to file the N-400 without a lawyer?
Additionally - I will be getting married, to a US citizen, after filing the N-400 but likely before it will be approved or before the oath ceremony. Does that change the answer? In theory, she's not benefiting my case and not benefiting from my case, but I'm not sure if USCIS has a different opinion.
Your impending marriage doesn't change the answer and the answer is that naturalization applications are very easy and don't require the assistance of a lawyer unless there's an issue, specifically, a criminal record, a history of immigration violations/non-compliance, or extended absences (more than 6 months) from the U.S. while a green card holder.
Thank you! Luckily none of those issues apply :)
Hey Mr. Roberts!
I'm a US citizen and my wife has a green card. We like to travel extensively, but feel limited by the need to be in the US for at least 6 months out of the year.
In an ideal world, we could get a digital nomad visa in Portugal and my wife and I could live and work there while we wait out some of the chaos that seems to be occurring in the US.
But, we're not sure if we can live/work in Europe while simultaneously fulfilling the green card requirements. Do you know if there's an exception for cases like this?
There's no requirement that a green card holder spend 6 months in the U.S. during the year. You and your wife can and should travel freely. And you could live outside the U.S. for several years and still keep your green card. If you decide to move to Portugal for a period of time, for example, you should consult an attorney but the solution to protect your green card status (for at least 5 years) is to get a document called a reentry permit, which is easy to get.
Interesting. Thank you for the response. If this is true, that's amazing!
Do you know where the 6-month requirement (rumor?) is from? Reading over https://www.uscis.gov/policy-manual/volume-12-part-d-chapter... section C states
"...there are two ways outlined in the statute in which the continuity of residence can be broken:
The applicant is absent from the United States for more than 6 months but less than 1 year; or The applicant is absent from the United States for 1 year or more."
Is this only for citizenship/naturalization and not to maintain a green card?
Yes "the continuity of residence" is required for naturalization.
> An applicant for naturalization ... must have resided continuously in the United States after his or her lawful permanent resident (LPR) admission for at least 5 years prior to filing the naturalization application and up to the time of naturalization.
I’ll spare a new thread and just ask here as we are in the same situation (sorry OP!).
My understanding is we at least need to be in the US once every six months in order for my partner to maintain their green card status while we live abroad.
We were not aware of the reentry permit, does this avoid the requirements of needing to enter the country periodically? We are of course concerned about losing their green card status.
Lastly, how realistic is the timing in obtaining the permit? We have our move planned for next month.
Thanks you as always for these threads!
Re-entry permit is granted for 2 years and the only requirement is that you apply for it while in country. Usual processing time nowadays is around a year so in effect you need to apply once every 3 years for it. They have the option of sending it to a us embassy abroad for pick up but we have always had it sent to a friends address in US and picked it up while visiting US.
You didn't have any issues re-entering the US prior to picking up the permit from your friend's address?
Thanks for sharing your experience. A year is a very long time..I am also curious about the pickup options and address.
My partner will be updating their address to have mail sent to a family member’s address in the US, but we will also be living in a country that has a US embassy easily accessible.
My partner is Mexican, so as you can imagine, they almost always have awful experiences with immigration in the US.
Yes, a year is a long time but evidence of having applied for a reentry permit in the form of a receipt notice is usually enough to reenter the U.S. without issue even with absences of more than 6 months.
That is useful to know. We were expecting a 5-month wait (as of January 2025) and recently learned it could take over a year. Since we've been out of country since applying (no biometrics required) we were concerned about being out of country for over a year with just a receipt notice and permit in pending state.
Thank you both for the responses and sharing, crazy helpful.
I admittedly haven’t done my research today on the permit, but reading your reply now and seeing you can apply while abroad…that’s great news. I suppose my partner can start the process while we are still here, but glad we have the option it seems to do this once we are slightly more settled abroad.
Hope your family gets the permit soon.
To clarify, we applied while in USA (you MUST be there when submitting application and can only leave after biometrics are done (or you get a receipt notice saying you don't need them if they were done recently enough). So definitely don't go anywhere until you apply! (Otherwise you'll need to come back). And I recommend having an immigration attorney fill out the paperwork since the risk of a mistake could cause problems later on.
More info: The 6-month thing is only used for naturalization; if she's out of USA for longer than that it can reset the 5-year clock. And 1 year thing (without reentry permit) means she'd need to come in on a returning resident visa (which technically can be granted upon arrival). If you don't have one already, any immigration attorney would be able to clarify these details. Much easier for your situation as you're a US citizen!
Thank so much Mr. Roberts.
The status quo looks dangerous in the US even for born-and-raised citizens. With ICE targeting people based on skin color, what should a citizen do to protect themselves?
These are unprecedented times where green card status and even citizenship can be taken away. I think that all that one can do is to know one's rights and have the name and number of a lawyer handy who can be contacted in the event the worst happens. The ACLU has some very clear guidance regarding the rights of U.S. citizens and non-U.S. citizens when questioned or detained by ICE (or another immigration agency).
Thank you!
Hi there, love your little series. Are you seeing any clients face deportation while possessing greencards? If so, can you share some context as to why and what recourse they have?
Thanks. Not yet. But there are reports, as I'm sure you have seen, of DHS revisiting previously approved green card and citizenship applications with an eye toward revoking them.
I'm Australian and have always wondered about how easy it is to get an E-3 visa. What does it take from the sponsoring companies side to actually do it and get me over there?
We handle a lot of E-3 visas and it's arguably the easiest U.S. work visa to get both from a company standpoint and an applicant/employee standpoint. The company requirements are minimal. For example, startups with limited or no revenue and limited or no funding can sponsor an E-3 visa. That being said, there is a prevailing wage requirement so a company - while it doesn't need to demonstrate to a U.S. Consulate its ability to pay a specific wage - in the end has to be able to pay a specific wage.
Wow, that is unexpectedly relaxed given what I've heard about US immigration. Thanks for the info!
I'm stuck on the part of finding a job offer for the E3. Is there a path you recommend to that or is it just the same as anyone finding a job? I've got a limited network, I met someone at a party recently who leads a company in California but i'm reluctant to ask for a job.
Australian who's been in the USA almost a decade in 4 different roles, each requiring a new E3 as well as multiple E3 renewals;
I've found that companies are pretty eager once they hear that you only need an E3 visa. Unlike H1B the quota for E3 visas are never hit. Companies view it as a very straightforward and guaranteed process.
Assuming the company files their side of the paperwork in a timely manner, From accepting a role you can be working in the USA within 2 months end to end. The consulate appointments in Syd/Mel are the biggest pain point. It takes some refreshing since they are booked out for months at a time and you need to look for cancellations each day. That's literally the biggest pain point though, everything else is painless.
Great info, thank you. How's working there compared to Aus? Do you enjoy it?
West coast climate and culture is the same as East coast Australia so that part is straightforward. Easy to make friends and a good life in that aspect.
For work-life balance I will acknowledge the biggest boom times are over. It was ridiculous at one point and the best move of my life. Nowadays though all big tech are starting to adopt some form of stack ranking and demands and pressure are going up while benefits are falling so it's not nearly as good as it once was.
Big tech is still ~5x take home pay though. I see a stint of working in the USA as necessary given Australian house prices. Do it for as long as you can stand, don't live up to the lifestyle of the wages. The net result is a big win for your life. As in if you work here for a year and get hit with layoffs? You'll still have 5x in savings for that year as you would have had in Australia.
warning you might end up with an american partner and get stuck there, ask me how i know :). But yeah, the comp difference is crazy, if we ever move back to aus we will have set ourselves up for a very nice life with our US earned savings.
Plus, far more interesting companies to choose from.
Anecdotally, the E-3 is very easy compared to other options
Has YC rejected applicant because of possible visa issues due to country of origin because of travel bans? Should those still apply for YC?
These questions should be addressed to YC. All I can say is that I have seen founders from just about every country around the world accepted into YC.
Right, apologize about misunderstanding.
My question is in fact is there a chance to request waivers about founders seeking O1 visa that are affected by the recent travel ban on certain countries (with Iranian passport)?
I see. Yes, waivers are possible but the standard for them is high and reports so far are that the vast majority of such requests are being rejected.
Thank you for your answer
Hi Peter, thanks for doing this. Wife and I are both Canadians. Wife is on a H1B and I'm on TN - separate employers. My 9089 is being reviewed, while she is on labor market test. What is the best path forward to getting GC for the both of us while working? Should we keep going forward with this setup and whoever can file for I-485, add the spouse to beneficiary?
That's exactly right, have two sticks in the fire.
Thanks for being here and taking the time to answer questions.
I’m currently on an L1B visa with company A. I have an approved H1B (consular processing, not yet activated) for company B. If I get an offer from company C, is it possible to switch directly from L1B to H1B with company C while staying in the U.S.? In other words, can company C file a change of status to activate the H1B?
Yes, this is possible but it the petition has to be prepared the right way to avoid USCIS responding with a request for evidence saying that company C needs to go through the H-1B lottery before it can employ you.
Hi Mr. Roberts,
How hard/slow is it for an American citizen to bring their non-American wife over these days? My friend is a dual citizen considering taking a job in the USA but he's a little concerned about whether his non-American wife and kid could join him. She has a B1/B2 visa already. Is there some strategy to it? I heard the process is super backed up.
Hi Peter, I wanted to know what all options are available other than H1B after F1 OPT visa expires to continue working in United States?
There are specific visas available to those from a handful of countries (Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Singapore). The other options are the O-1, E-2, and E-1 visas. One important point is that while the E-2 and the E-1 visas allow founders to get visas to build and run their companies, it also allows citizens of the same nationality as the company to get an E-2 or E-1 visa. The E-2 and E-1 visas aren't available to citizens of every country but they are available to most.
Hi Peter,
Asking for someone else: is the NIW category still backlogged? If the goal is to get a green card within the STEM-OPT extension timeline of 2 years, for someone who has very high achievements that fit either NIW or EB1A categories, which of these is likely a better option? I'm hearing some rumors that NIW can happen faster these days.
Thanks!
The NIW (EB2) category is still backlogged and the standard as applied by USCIS has changed significantly and I would argue now isn't much easier than the EB1A, which used to be one of the reasons to pursue an NIW. With the changing standard and the worsening backlogs, the EB1A is the much better option, although a higher standard, and probably worth aggressively pursuing.
Excellent thank you. This helps an extraordinary person in need who currently can't afford legal services.
To everyone else: I've worked with Peter before and he's the real deal, and a pleasure to work with.
Hello Mr. Roberts,
Thank you for doing this, as you know we've probably have seen some crazy news articles and segments of ICE agents arresting people all over the U.S. with some for good and some for wrong reasons. What is your advice or best practice for someone who is "wrongfully" approached by ICE agents but has legal status to be in the U.S.? (whether work visa or green card)
I've read that someone should carry their green card with them or if they have some sort of REAL ID mark on their drivers license it may help.
Thank you again for doing this!
It’s a legal requirement to carry your green card with you at all times. INA 264(e) has required this for as long as I’ve been in the US (which is since 2004).
To be more specific:
>> (e) Every alien, eighteen years of age and over, shall at all times carry with him and have in his personal possession any certificate of alien registration or alien registration receipt card issued to him pursuant to subsection (d). Any alien who fails to comply with the provisions of this subsection shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and shall upon conviction for each offense be fined not to exceed $100 or be imprisoned not more than thirty days, or both.
Where evidence of registration is an I94 or a green card or whatever.
I’m constantly surprised how many permanent residents don’t do this.
Personally I don’t carry my GC, because I’m far more likely to lose it than for anyone to ever ask for it. And it’s kind of a nightmare to replace, takes awhile and you can’t travel.
To put it another way, the $100 fine is less expensive to me than the consequences of losing it.
If I understand the comment above correctly, one can carry an I94 too and those you can just print on the website [1]
I'm guessing there's no size requirements? If so it might be a good idea to just print four on an A4, and have one folded in your wallet, one tucked in your bag-pack, one in the car, etc.
[1]: https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/search/recent-search
They can also put you in jail for up to 30 days if they're feeling like it. Seems crazy to me but also perfectly legal for them to do.
There are a lot of things that are "perfectly legal" to do. Doesn't mean that, in practice, law enforcement would necessarily take the most extreme legal action possible.
This is a new development (well, new-ish for many communities... I imagine predominatly-black communities have always experience this) whereby LE is explicitly instructed to look for any legal course of action to punitively enforce the law (rather than using a more judicious interpretation, which was more in line with the spirit of many of these regulations).
So yes, technically, law-abiding citizens should always xxxx. Does that mean that, in real life, folks always do this? Only if they are in a paranoid state whereby LE maliciously enforces the law for any minor violation and enforces overwhelming (often illegal) responses to these infractions.
> Only if they are in a paranoid state whereby LE maliciously enforces the law for any minor violation and enforces overwhelming (often illegal) responses to these infractions.
ICE operates in every state. e.g. US citizens are being jailed in California (https://apnews.com/article/us-army-veteran-immigration-raid-...)
It sounds like the current administration is specifically targeting democratic stronghold states, but I don't know if that means you would be any safer in Republican majority states.
Generally no, because those are more likely to have state or local government employees working on ICE’s behalf. For instance in Florida a weigh station employee said they were calling ICE on people who looked (and sounded?) Hispanic.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2025/07/09/attor...
Reading that article, it reads more like the person skipped the weigh station and got pulled over by the highway patrol cop usually at the weigh station. Weigh stations will often have a patrol car sitting by the highway that pulls over anyone speeding or who needs to stop at the weigh station but didn't. So CBP (not ICE) was called by a highway officer.
Still to your point of a state government authority calling the feds because someone they interacted with looked Hispanic.
Interesting, it seems like you read “was stopped” as an action, and I had read it as a state.
Many don't do this because they don't feel the need. I've spent about a decade in the US as a green card holder, and the only cases I ever been asked for it is either crossing the border or being hired. And I never heard about anyone being fined (let alone going to prison) for failure to carry the green card on them. Yes, the law says that, but I don't think anybody paid much attention to that, at least until now.
You act as if the last 6 months are a continuation of the the last 9.5 years, and there is some status quo that hasn't changed. Maybe for an affluent SWE in his Tesla, but this isn't the case for many on their way to work in a construction work van.
> this isn't the case for many on their way to work in a construction work van.
How many of those van-traveling green card holding construction workers have been fined or imprisoned for failure to carry the green card lately? I don't mean brief detention - anybody can be detained by the police, especially when not having any identification - I mean actual conviction under 1304(e) and court-assigned fine or jail time. How many such cases do you know?
2,452
Care to provide any evidence for at least some?
Immigration law enforcement is at the discretion of the Executive (President). If the President decides they want to pump up the numbers of deported criminals, doing anything that's technically a crime as an immigrant is a risky proposition. Even saying you do it on a public forum is risky.
Are you user proberts?
The best defense so to speak is to carry evidence of your status whether that's a green card or foreign passport and I-94 admission record, to have the number of a local immigration attorney whom you can call if you need to, and to be aware of one's rights. The ACLU has a good discussion of these rights: https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/immigrants-rights.
What would you recommend for foreign born US citizens worried about being approached by ICE? What are the basic ground rules for interacting?
For example, some of us here look very much like we didnt grow up in an Iowa cornfield and have genuine concern that one negative interaction is going to result in being roughed up by untrained ICE agents at best and tossed into jail or worse.
Do we just get used to the idea of carrying our passport at all times? Is an ICE agent authorized to demand it and take it from us "for checking", say?
Bar two pieces of fragile paper - a passport and a naturalization certificate - it's not obvious that a citizen is a citizen.
Carry a REAL-ID enabled state ID? Those are not available to illegals in any state. All newer state IDs AFAIK are REAL-ID enabled by default. And you probably will need to use some form of ID anyway pretty frequently.
Thats a good idea, although it is not completely robust.
REAL-ID only proves that the holder had legal presence at the time of issue, not that the holder maintains legal presence at the point of presenting it to the ICE officer. For example, holders of Temporary Protected Status would have been here perfectly legally and been able to get and hold a REAL ID. But their status has just been revoked. So an ICE officer could still refuse to accept it as proof of legal status.
(I'm not Peter)
I'd suggest also applying for a Passport Card, you can keep it in your wallet.
Hi Peter, Thank you for taking your time to do this.
I currently hold J-1 research scholar visa. I would like to better understand what visa options I have after my J-1 ends. I am considering applying for O-1 but I need a professional advice on that. Can you recommend any immigration lawyers that can help me with that?
Schedule an initial consultation with me and then I can refer you to a good immigration lawyer to execute the plan. The O-1 is probably your best - and only - option.
Thanks, I emailed you.
Hi Peter, My H-1B status is set to expire in November of this year, marking the end of my 6-year limit. My NIW (EB-2) petition is currently under review. In the event that my NIW is approved after my H-1B has expired, would my employer still be able to file for an H-1B extension on my behalf?
Yes, because the EB2 (NIW) green card category is "backlogged," your employer will be able to file a 3-year extension (beyond your 6-year max-out date) once your NIW petition is approved.
Thank you for the great questions and comments. I will be taking a brief break and will return shortly.
I’m British working in the US on an E2 visa (as an essential employee). How would you approach getting a green card? My employer is willing to support me in this.
It seems the lawyers suggested going for an EB2, but that looks set to take 3-4 years. Is there anything you’d recommend?
Thanks!
Hello! I may not be as knowledgeable about immigration as previous speakers, but could you provide me with a bullet-point list of the latest legal requirements? I’d like some guidance as someone currently outside the U.S. who wants to work in your country. Thanks.
The options will depend in part on this person's countries of citizenship and qualifications. There are a handful of citizenship-specific visa (the countries are Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, and Singapore), which usually are relatively easy to obtain. If the person doesn't qualify for one of these citizenship-specific visas, then the options will depend on his or her qualifications.
Hi Peter! Heard your name from a couple of friends who have gotten their visas from you! Nice to see you here.
What kind of travel restrictions apply for someone on an O-1 visa (potentially looking to file for EB-1A)? Is there a recommended minimum period of stay in the US?
What are the H1B visa extension options for a H1B visa holder, who had a PERM application (Labor Certification) filed with the DOL before his company got liquidated, leaving him job searching with only 3 months left in his 6 year H1B window?
Hey Peter, thanks for doing the AMA.
Kind of a high-level question... but what is the typical process of hiring someone to work in the US who isn't a US citizen?
i.e. what steps does the potential employee need to take vs the company, & in what order?
Thanks!
Thanks for helping community Peter!
How does USCIS look to someone who is applying O1 visa directly from F1 (no opt/cpt). I have raised some VC money and have number of extraordinary achivements in the past.
I just got my green card but the category mentioned on it is wrong (E18 instead of E17). Is there an action I need to take? Separately, can I use the existing card to travel outside the US and reenter?
Since this was USCIS error, you should be able to get it corrected without paying a filing fee by filing a Form I-90 application. You will need to mail in your green card, however, when you submit this application. Regarding travel on your green card before you get it corrected, I don't see any issue since it's still a valid green card.
Hi Peter - do you have any specific thoughts for people posting about immigration scenarios here, to help keep themselves safe? Given that it was recently revealed that ICE is monitoring these comments.[0][1]
[0] https://www.404media.co/the-200-sites-an-ice-surveillance-co...
[1] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1VyAaJaWCutyJyMiTXuDH...
Everyone has to weigh the pros and cons for themselves but I think that being well-informed is the best defense so to speak, that is, to know what one's rights are and what the law is, so I think these open forums play an important role.
Attorney status confirmed
(not peter)
It is absolutely wild that people are posting about the ways that they have broken the letter of immigration law on here using their regular accounts and identifiable IP addresses.
Serious question, does anyone actually care about immigration law at this point? Because on the surface it doesn't seem to matter if you followed the law exactly or you completely ignored it if you're someone targeted by ICE. They seem to find their target and then work backwards on how to deport them. Is anyone who wouldn't normally be in the sights of an ICE agent getting targeted by some HN comment?
When the cost of failure is high, and the cost of mitigation is low, I think it's reasonable to use throwaways and VPNs whenever you might comment something that might unknowingly increase your risk exposure. Admittedly, this is going to be a pain for forum anti abuse systems.
Yes, ICE put out RFIs in the last month for companies to provide AI and other analysis for mass lead generation.
ex
https://sam.gov/opp/83693d33244e424191f58271c7faf72b/view
People who previously "flew under the radar" will now become investigation leads.
So how are Abrego Garcia and Mahmoud Khalil not deported?
Why are they monitoring Zillow...
Zillow has rental management services - i.e. there are people who pay their rent though zillow.com
because securing housing is a big part of residing somewhere?
I'm more so wondering what public data on these sites is really useful for finding/building deportation cases. It looks to me they are wrapping a bunch of scrapers into a product and selling it as "intelligence tools".
Many companies share non-public data with law enforcement if asked nicely.
What's the fastest timeline to get green card under EB-3? What things does the employer company does that could speed things up like batch process, generic existing applicable job posting?
Country of birth is the most important factor. Certain countries, most notably China and India, have significant backlogs and the process can take many years. For those not from a heavily backlogged country, the ways to speed up the green card process are limited, including, during the PERM process, commencing recruitment when the prevailing wage request is submitted (and not yet approved) and using recruitment to cover multiple positions/employees. And then, once the PERM application is approved, using premium processing to accelerate the approval of the next step, the I-140 petition.
Wait -- is it country of birth or country of citizenship? If I was born in Switzerland but held a Bangladeshi passport could I possibly use the former's priority queue?
It is birthplace, so if you were a Bengladeshi national but were born in CH, you would fall into the Swiss queue (which is the "everyone else" queue).
If this is you, congratulations, this is the shortest possible line. Though, if you were Bengladeshi-born I think you may actually be in the same queue? The queues are India/China/Mexico/Phillipines/Everyone Else.
Personally naturalized via marriage a long time ago but the birthplace/nationality arb is super interesting!
Hi Peter, appreciate for hosting the AMA. I am a Chinese and holding a L1B visa and now just submitted PWD with paralegal's help, how long would it cost to get a green card?
Hi Peter, I am on a H1B visa; Is it allowed to run a company by myself if I never take out the revenue off the company bank account (so, effectively unrealized gains).
The analysis is nuanced and the answer (which can be Yes or No) depends on a variety factors, such as what "running" the company involves, whether there are multiple founders, what the corporate structure of the company is, whether the company is generating revenues, whether the company has clients, whether the company has received funding, and whether the company has employees. To state the obvious, before embarking on such a venture, get a consultation so that you understand what's possible and what you can and can't do. There's also the option of getting a concurrent part-time H-1B to actually work for your startup.
Hello, a friend of mine is a strong systems programmer from Poland but has not graduated from college. Is he basically unable to get a work visa for the US?
If he has a lot of experience, then he might have the equivalent of a bachelor's degree, which would make him potentially eligible for an H-1B visa. Also, if he's very accomplished and talented, even without a degree, he might qualify for an O-1 visa; education is not a requirement for the O-1 visa.
Would licensed lawyers' monopoly on the right to give legal advice in the US survive a First Amendment challenge if it ever reached the Supreme Court?
I believe that it already has reviewed this question and to be clear, it's not the right to give legal advice, anyone can do that, it's the right to represent others in legal proceedings and before government agencies and to charge fees for the provision of such services.
Anyone want to trade citizenships? I'm US looking for European or other citizenship. I'm not using mine productively anyway.
Why not move to a European country and acquire citizenship through normal means?
hope not to late, i am a contractor working on a project for a company not registered in USA. recently when arriving to USA to visit this companies' local office i was stopped at border control and almost denied. took 8 hours and a body search to get out of there. how to explain clearly to immigration officer this situation.
If someone is coming from China or India and is equally interested in working in Canada or the US, which way would you point them?
Unfortunately, my knowledge of Canadian immigration law - and life in Canada - is very limited so I can't give an informed response.
Have O1 visa approvals slowed under the current administration, and what steps can individuals take to address this?
I haven't seen that - nearly all our O-1 petitions are still getting approved - but my view like everyone's view on this is anecdotal so I don't really know. The major changes I've seen are in the NIW context and to a lesser degree in the EB1A context.
What are the changes you have seen regarding EB1A?
Im a Canadian, I want to expand my business to US - what’s the right way to do that and use that for green card?
There are a lot of options. In the end, creating a successful business in the U.S. is the best path to a green card but more specifically, assuming that you have employees in Canada whom you are managing, opening an office in the U.S. and transferring yourself to this office and then growing the business is a great way to get initial work authorization and a green card. Another option, if you have strong credentials, is to come over on the O-1 and then pursue an extraordinary ability green card then or after you have built up the company.
Hey Peter! What are some of the most common legal mistakes you see startups make and how can they be avoided?
I'm not a business person so I'm not really in a position to comment but one mistake I've made - I have my own firm so I'm not too different from a startup founder - is not putting administrative/human resources infrastructure in place from the beginning and not hiring a chief of staff early on.
Interesting - how would it have helped you to have HR in place earlier/what problems did not having it cause?
Should I hire a lawyer to fill out the form to apply for citizenship as a Green Card (marriage) holder
Unless you have an issue (that is, a criminal record, a history of immigration violations/fraud, or extended absences from the U.S. while a green card holder), it's an easy application and process and doesn't require assistance from a lawyer.
i'm probably going to marry my american partner next year and thinking of moving to america. what are (generally speaking) my options for working? coming from the united kingdom.
Hi Peter,
Thank you.
What should my next steps be if my employment-based green card renewal is denied?
That's incredibly rare by the way but next steps would depend on the reason for the denial.
Can you convince YC to have programs outside the US by any chance? It's not exactly easy getting into the USA these days and by no means a smooth experience either.
After you convince Europe to make it easier to have such programs.
Good news, Canada exists!
To be fair they’ve done it a little. There are European accelerators (tech stars is here for one) but they’re comparatively rinky dink.
As an American in the Netherlands the ecosystem is dire by comparison.
is E2 still an easy option for (small) investors to buy/start a business with ~100k capital?
The E-2 is very much a check the box type of visa but whether $100k is enough would depend on a number of factors so you should consult with an immigration attorney. One relative advantage of the E-2 is that spouses can work and that it is in large part a company benefit that makes it relatively easy to bring over talented people from the founder's/owner's home country.
Hey Peter! Thank you again for doing this series. Apologies for the broad question, but do you think it applying for PERM during the current administration is a good idea? My understanding was that in the first Trump administration, PERM denials went up quite a bit, and with immigration being an even larger concern for the second administration I'm wondering if it makes sense holding out for a few years if that's a possibility.
As odd as it might sound, there seems to be an effort on the part of the DOL to speed up the processing of PERM applications, which are now taking longer than ever. From an outcome standpoint, I haven't seen an uptick in denials or bad decisions.
Hi Mr. Roberts;
Thank you for doing this, yet again - your insights are always so valuable. I am on an H1B, and my company applied for a Greencard, and I have received a Priority Date with my i-140 (sorry if I'm not using the correct terms here, this process confuses me). When am I able to leave my current employer without losing my priority date? Would I need to get my new employer to apply for an H1B transfer and extension for me, or how does that work? Thank you!!
The priority date is your property and only in very limited circumstances can you lose it after leaving your employer. The general rule is that the beneficiary of an I-140 petition - you - needs to wait at least 180 days after the approval to protect the priority date. I'm not sure what you are asking about a new employer.
What is the likelihood today that Trump and his allies in Congress may improve the ability for H1B holders to obtain green cards? This was repeatedly raised during his campaign and his first weeks in office and it sounded like this was going to be a thing....
Given the newly (as of yesterday) appointed chief of USCIS was just confirmed and has a marked history of strong opinions against OPT in it's entirety and H1B - I'd assume it's not looking good haha.
I haven't heard anything about this since he's taken office and I suspect that if something like this is done that it will be limited to those in certain fields and industries.
Only if you're a Russian model willing to marry one of his cronies
That's O-1(BJ) type of visa, not h1b
How can a citizen support colleauges who are dealing with well-placed ICE anxiety?
So, I have a wife who just got her citizenship. We're very happy about that.
Concerning, though, is the current presidential administration's talk of trying to do large-scale denaturalization of citizens.
I know you don't have the ability to read minds, but would you care to hazard a guess to much of this is the president just blowing smokes or how worried I should be?
(Not Peter, not a lawyer)
It is hard not to be moderately worried, since the administration has already made concrete attacks on citizenship pathways, immigrants and legal residents. Most notably, it's targeted birthright citizenship via executive order, tried to push through the power to unilaterally revoke green cards, and arbitrarily cancelling the ability of universities to host foreign students.
More importantly, successful legal challenges to these efforts are being vacated or reversed by the Supreme Court. That means the administration's attempts aren't being fully checked by balances.
You should take the rhetoric fairly seriously. There is no good-faith explanation for this pattern of attacking people who have gone through the process faithfully, and no credible ongoing efforts to prevent those happening.
The President isn't blowing smoke - denaturalization efforts are going to increase - but there still has to be a reason, such as fraud or misrepresentation in getting her green card or citizenship or her failure to disclose a material fact in one of these processes. But absent something like this, I wouldn't worry at all.
(not Peter.)
she can only be denaturalized if:
1. she lied or concealed any past convictions (or maybe other information) on her visa/GC/citizenship application. in the past they only went after serious omissions like felonies, but now they'll go over any minor mistake with a fine-tooth comb. courts have held in the past that such omissions must have material significance to the decision (e.g. lying about a degree obtained, but not a typo about graduation year.)
2. she joins the Communist party or another totalitarian party within 5 years of becoming a citizen. expect them to interpret this broadly (e.g. supporting causes rather than officially joining, counting DSA as "totalitarian.") she should keep her head down, unfortunately.
Source: https://immigrationforum.org/article/denaturalization-fact-s...
I don't think she'll join a party any more radical than "Democrat", and we were extremely thorough with the lawyer to make sure everything on the application was completely honest.
If what you're saying is true, then I maybe shouldn't worry too much.
Immigration is actually directly related to how CEOs and VCs intend to change the landscape for all things government related, and democracy as a whole. There is very much a subjective intent to tear down the rule of law, the rights that safeguard Americans as a whole, starting with immigration. IT's an entry point, a target to whittle away basic rights of the average American. Peter Thiel touches on this need for a tech revolution in his paper "The Straussian Moment", https://www.hoover.org/research/peter-thiel-straussian-momen..., who also funded JD Vance's rise to VP, and DJT.
These guys, "Tech Bros", love the concepts written in Srinivasan's book "the Network State", and want to replace our current government with distributed monarchies. Srinivasan, Thiel, Andresen, and Curtis Yarvin actually have a documented plan to achieve this which is being executed, to a "T", which involves attacking immigration, not just as a distraction so they can attack the courts directly, but also cause it's part of their vision. This plan is referred to the butterfly revolution, by Curtis Yarvin, which states the following:
1. Reboot (“full-power start”) Suspend or bypass existing constitutional limits; concentrate absolute sovereignty in one new organization—analogous to Allied occupation powers in post-1945 Japan/Germany. Eliminate checks and balances that block rapid change.
2. CEO-Monarch model A single executive (chosen like a corporate CEO) rules; the former president becomes a figurehead “chairman of the board.” Treat the state as a firm run for efficiency, not democratic representation.
3. RAGE strategy “Retire All Government Employees” by mass-firing the civil service and replacing it with loyal appointees. Remove institutional resistance (“the Cathedral”) and ensure obedience.
4. Parallel regime Build a fully staffed shadow government in exile before inauguration; unveil it on Day 1 to take over agencies at once. Prevent the bureaucratic slow-rolling that stymied Trump’s first term.
5. Media & academia clampdown Defund or shutter universities and independent press seen as hostile. Break what Yarvin calls the Cathedral’s cultural dominance.
Curtis Yarvin's writings include pointed attacks on immigration, both as a policy and as a reflection of deeper systemic problems. He uses immigration as an example to argue for the failure of democracy and to advocate for his preferred model of authoritarian governance. He also frames immigration debates as distractions from what he sees as the real issues-namely, the incompetence and self-serving nature of current elites and institutions.
Do you understand why the current administration would want to attack immigration? Altman, Theil, and others(Tech Bros) that manage YC, Palantir, OpenAI. A16Z prescribe to these beliefs. It is no secret, no conspiracy, they publicly talk about this. How do you feel about their approach, and YC's involvement, to changing governance and the future of our country? How do feel about Immigration as a tactic to attack the judicial branch as well assault innocent legal civilians with ICE, which is part of their reboot strategy?
My girlfriend is an immigrant from the UK. I support immigration but only if it respects the rights of US citizens.
Frankly I'm stunned this post hasn't been flagged by one of HN's moderators yet.
Truly sad to see YC clearly play favorites with non-citizens claiming what can be found within the U.S. isn't good enough.
YC does try to bury this topic, but it needs to be discussed. Developer and engineers need to be aware of the intent some of these corporations have in mind for their temporary employment. I say temporary as they intend to automate away the whole workforce and build utopias in their name. This isn't secret or a "deep state", they've plainly stated this agenda publicly and have written material online selling this agenda to other billionaires. Look at https://www.praxisnation.com. This is also referred to as Freedom Cities in Trumps presser: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJA_GBhCGgE Many people will die in the pursuit of this :/
Yep, I would've voted for Bernie and it's important for the greater population to understand that Trump and the GOP have basically done nothing to curb abuse of the LEGAL immigration system. Elon and Big Tech WANTS Trump to import infinity foreign labor to continue driving wages and opportunity down for American tech workers.
The fact that only a 3.5% remittance tax on non-digital payments was barely implemented is pathetic.
That's all very interesting. I will give this some thought and respond later.