I'm supposed to put out a job advertisement (but the job isn't real) for my employer. If an applicant passes the interview process, I don't have to hire that person (I probably can't - I don't have budget or permission from the organization). But I do have to honestly say if they have all the required skills -- I'm not permitted to say "wouldn't be a culture fit."
Nor do I have to fire my employee. But maybe my employee won't get a green card six years down the road.
1) Do I have any details wrong here? The one time I talked to a law firm about this they more-or-less refused to state the above outright, but answered all questions in this direction. 2) Doesn't this seem disrespectful to, among others, the applicants to the fake job?
The "or" part in the last sentence is worth noting. At the place I've worked, the employer invokes the second clause (i.e. PERM process is canceled/suspended, and they try again 6-12 months later).
The way it worked there was: Employer publishes an open req. We get lots of resumes. Manager calls the few people who may be a match. Then the manager has to justify why the person doesn't have the skills and the process continues.
Sometimes (and this is likely a bit random), the government does an audit, where they get the details of all who applied. Then they call the manager and start grilling him on why a particular candidate was rejected. If the manager can convince them, the PERM process continues. If not, they fail the Department of Labor Certification and the PERM process is canceled.
The person doesn't lose his job. They're just ineligible and need to apply again after a certain window.
I do know folks applying for PERM who were rejected twice because of this. The insane thing was that their roles (EE with specific specialty) were legitimately hard to fill, whereas other people in the team doing trivial scripting easily got through PERM.
The process is messed up in many ways.
Since they are clearly violating the law, how can I report this?
Related, iirc H1-B has a 6-year limit. Under the current policy what's the path forward if the holder is not ready to adjust their status to PR within the timeframe or not qualified to EB category? O1? But there were a wave of news stories about O1 being abused and I wouldn't be surprised if that was a prelude to major changes to the category.
Just curious. Thanks for making this thread.
It's possible to extend H-1B status beyond the 6-year max-out period if the beneficiary is in the green card process. But if the beneficiary isn't in the green card process, then the most common option is the O-1 and while it's getting harder to get an O-1, it's still within reach of many talented professionals and founders.
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72095497/chamber-of-com...
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71541425/global-nurse-f...
What's an ask you'd make to startups in the legal AI space?
Not selling something, but have heard primarily negative sentiments from other lawyers due to hallucination risk.
I'm a postdoc at a US university. My school's international office suggested there was no limit on how long I could travel outside of the US, but most sources online suggest there is a limit of 30 days before the SEVIS record goes inactive. It seems this can be avoided if the university sponsor records the travel in SEVIS. I think I've finally convinced them that this is a real limitation, but some actual expert knowledge would still be very appreciated! I am Canadian, in case that affects the answer.
Thanks for doing this!
So technically possible but also a tall ask (I didn’t know at the time of asking and my PI went with it).
I then came back and carried on without any immigration issues.
Any thoughts there?
If those students are actually concerned about staying in status, simply saying they're volunteering might not be sufficient.
There's also the L1B Company transfer, if you work for a company with offices in the US and they would be able to transfer you after a year. Bit of a gamble to find a company that would be willing to do this though, and you gotta work for probably years to find out.
H-1B, if you're not already in the US has a 100k fee attached to it. Though AFAIK that was a proclamation that expires at some point, but probably won't. So it's really not an option for 99% of people.
I'm not a lawyer, so definitely verify what i say, but i'm pretty sure these are also valid options.
Thank you.
[0]: https://www.usimmigrationadvisor.com/active-e-2-treaty-count...
If the Dates for Filing (DFF) chart reaches my priority date, what is the latest viable timeline to return to my previous employer to file an I-485 based on their approved petition? Additionally, are there legal risks to joining after the date has already become current?
I am considering a concurrently filed EB-5 petition and am curious as to what you are noticing of late.
Thank you for doing this AMA, Peter!
- How difficult has it become to get O1 for founders compared to say 5 years ago?
-What advice would you have for founders who think they should be able to get O1 once they have a bit of seed money (say YC, 500k) and press coverage?
Now, my us citizen spouse and I are filing a spouse based green card application. (of course, we also filed for EA and AP)
Anything you can tell us about how long it might take, how many requests for extra documents they might ask for? (I understand you haven't seen our application, to our minds it's very thorough, like 400 pages, but yeah, in all generality)
Thank you Peter!
I had to wait 2 years for my uncomplicated GC case.
1. STEM OPT + self-employment: I've seen the E-Verify employer requirement, but conflicting takes on whether a solo founder's own LLC enrolling in E-Verify and W-2'ing the owner is acceptable to USCIS in practice. Is this a viable path, or has USCIS effectively foreclosed it?
2. The structural conflict: a single-member LLC is a disregarded entity (IRS doesn't allow owner W-2). But STEM OPT effectively requires W-2. Should solo founders convert to S-Corp or C-Corp before STEM OPT? When in the timeline?
3. SEVP Portal reporting for self-employed: what do you actually put for "Employer Name" — the LLC, or your own name? Any common mistakes here that trigger DSO/USCIS scrutiny?
4. The "20 hours/week" and "directly related to major" bars for solo founders pre-revenue: how does USCIS actually evaluate product-building time vs. business-side time during audits? Any compliance pitfalls you've seen?
5. International travel during OPT for self-employed: the "employer letter" requirement when self-employed — do you write it to yourself? Any real re-entry risks for solo founders, especially F-1 visa renewal abroad?
6. Pre-OPT business activity: I formed the LLC and have been doing product development before OPT starts (no revenue). Where's the line between permissible "preparation" vs. unauthorized employment for F-1?
7. Long-term path post-OPT for a solo technical founder (early-stage, no funding/revenue yet): realistic timelines and success rates for O-1A vs. EB-2 NIW (Matter of Dhanasar) vs. cap-subject H-1B? When should I start building the case?
Even partial answers on any of these would be hugely helpful. Thank you!
Is the common route something like BigLaw (possibly New York) first, then transitioning in-house later, or are there better alternatives?
You obviously have a front-row seat to how current US immigration policy is impacting tech and so would love to see some high level stats showing the actual change.
And another question: has 100k$ requirement on H1Bs make any meaningful impact on applications count (e. g. to remove the lottery)?
If someone is a a EU citizen and wanted to work in aerospace in the US, would that be possible in general?
What kind of visa or green card would they need?
Would they be able to work on everything like a US citizen or are there areas that are restricted?
Since then, he has guided me and many friends through complex immigration processes, always flawlessly and on time. I’d strongly recommend listening to his advice and considering his services.
I know there are some recent changes with OBBBA that will kick in Jan 2027 but as per my understanding only affect PTCs not ACA eligibility.
To be clear, we were completely honest on every form required to do this and my wife isn't part of any political groups and doesn't do much interesting stuff in that regard, so I don't think they would have much room to strip her citizenship.
On the off chance that this abduction happens from ICE, what is the best thing for us to do? Just call a lawyer?
As I said, I'm not that worried; the only concern I have is that we are traveling internationally at the end of the year and while I have no doubt that they are outlier cases, I have heard of a lot of scary stuff happening during customs upon reentry.
Anyway, thanks for the advice!
Around 2014-2020 I feel like there were lots of companies hiring worldwide online remote.
In the last couple years it seems like the tides moved way back out, and companies are terrified of hiring remote contractors. My impression is that it seems mostly about misclassification risks, but maybe there's another part I haven't seen.
1. Is this a real risk? I've looked it up in a few areas but AFAICT misclassification is strictly about same country relations. I know there's some edge cases (like if a foreign worker isn't actually residing outside the country...) but IIUC the laws are mostly to protect the employees and government from bad companies, so as long as the company doesn't try to do that it's not an issue. The bindings of international contracts are limited and both sides know about that.
2. Is this a real trend? Do you have any idea where it comes from? My gut feeling is that Remote.io and Deel who are in this business are spreading FUD because they're in the business of selling protection. I've heard of multiple companies rejecting candidates with like "Oh Deel doesn't have a contract for your country so we can't hire you" etc. But maybe there was some big case that put everyone on their toes?
https://web.archive.org/web/20240516075853/https://www.sss.g...
Seems to suggest that F-1 student, H-1B temporary worker, visitor do not have to register. Is that correct?
We're thinking to move back to the US at some point, so having a green card would be the royal road.
Thanks!
There does not seem to be much information about this besides very vague statements.
Anecdotes would suggest that a lot of people were able to get these visas because there was some fairly loose interpretation of the criteria.
I'm particularly interested in EB1A.
For context, am postdoc and I was told by a local immigration firm, within the last year, that I had a good profile for EB1A.
We are not married, though that could change eif it offers meaningful protection for her. I’m a white guy born in USA. How paranoid is “reasonable” for a guy who predicted that the USA would become a fascist state in my lifetime two years ago and yet has been surprised how rapidly it’s coming true? Any advice? Thank you.
The immigration rules for decades try detecting that transition for that purpose, as i recall. might want to look into that in case you're seriously thinking of such as a strategy.
But domiciling them in your own country implies something else entirely, and it involves social considerations far beyond the capricious nature the contract you've offered them.
In which case, those social and civic considerations become paramount.
Tech companies generally hire 'talent' not 'labour'. The people they need have specific skills and abilities, which are in short supply.
'Average Joes' are by definition not in the running for these mostly competitive opportunities.
If these companies could just hire average Joes they absolutely would.
That's not always the case - as local workers are sometimes displaced, and that could conceivably be seen an unfair. H1B for Tata etc. does overlap in this area.
By and large, if we move issues of 'culture and identity' aside, the US benefits enormously from immigrants.
Not in all aspects, but mostly.
Elon Musk, Google founders, Jensen at Nvidia, 1/2 involved in Frontier AI are 'born outside of the US'.
Those companies would probably not exist without them.
Maybe another way to think about it that the Bay Area is a 'Special International Economic Zone' hosted by the US, which is where Global HQ of many International tech companies are domiciled.
Apart from their staff, usually well over > 50% of revenues come from abroad as well, making these truly international companies.
The US gets the great benefit of hosting these mostly international organizations.
Were this an issue of regular employment, there's be a stronger case, but this is a more specific thing.
Because the numbers are small enough, there is almost zero downside for US citizens, and the companies that are created end up employing more Americans than they would otherwise. That said - locals can be priced out of these economic centres like the Bay and NYC, and that is arguably unfair.
Yeah, but issues of culture and identity are extremely important, so important that it's farcical to exclude them when evaluating to what degree the US benefits from immigrants or deciding what immigration policy ought to be.
> Because the numbers are small enough, there is almost zero downside for US citizens, and the companies that are created end up employing more Americans than they would otherwise. That said - locals can be priced out of these economic centres like the Bay and NYC, and that is arguably unfair.
I'm from the bay area as is my entire family; and locals getting priced out by immigrants who work for tech companies basically characterizes the demographic trajectory of my hometown.
It only really becomes an uncomfortable issue around 'large scale undocumented migration' - but that's a whole other separate concern, it's not within the bounds of the law, and it's not related to tech at all.
If we remove that from the equation there is only a very, very narrow scope of 'Settler Nationalists' who could claim there's an issue if 'identity' - I'm being polite by allowing an escape valve there. Rates of regular immigration to the US are 'relatively' low on the aggregate.
But more crucially - the 'identity' issue is irrelevant at least from an economic perspective.
"I'm from the bay area as is my entire family; and locals getting priced out by immigrants" - yes, this is a reasonable and fair concern, but, on the aggregate it's 'next to nothing'.
So - yes, immigration will be felt acutely by some for sure - and that's unfair and it's a moral dilemma - but on the aggregate - 'High Tech Migrants' have zero effect on the landscape of US overall. It's a small cohort.
If we want to talk 'ludicrous' - it's this ridiculously ignorant idea that somehow tech is an American phenom - it's not. It's international.
Bay Area + Tech is nothing without immigrants.
Would not exist a hugely notable tech hub.
Immigrants are a critical ingredient in everything important from founders to capital, to research, to 'filling out the ranks'.
It's not just jobs - it's entire classes of 'essential ingredients' without which - the recipe cannot work.
And without that level of inernationalism, there is no >2/3 revenues from outside US either. It's a slightly separate, but related issue.
Without immigrants the Bay would be about like the 'Research Triangle' in N Carolina, not an gigantic powerhouse.
Edit: Could you please stop posting unsubstantive comments and flamebait generally? You've unfortunately been doing it repeatedly, and we've already asked you more than once not to.
If you wouldn't mind reviewing https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html and taking the intended spirit of the site more to heart, we'd be grateful.
It's a very genuine question for how an attorney deals with these businesses? There are countless examples of startups breaking the law at mass scale (Uber, etc) and getting away with it. Sorry that asking difficult questions is wasting "community space". Your own profile cites conflict as essential, is asking difficult questions not part of that?
Part of the guidelines you asked me to review is "Assume good faith." Did you assume good faith from my comment?
One of the more recent discussions here was about Medvi, which described many illegal/unethical business practices. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/02/technology/ai-billion-dol...
Other examples include Airbnb building a bot poaching listings from Craigslist, Stripe not developing appropriate internal rules to enable fraud and drug transactions, pretty much all crypto exchanges and KYC, etc.
Obviously, payment processors like Stripe do not spring into existence fully formed with mature controls. My question relates partially to how attorneys in this domain handle the risks associated with undeveloped compliance, compliance failures, as well as business models that are diametrically opposing the law.
There is an area that many startups believe is "grey" where they operate outside of legal norms, whether it's to enable growth, lack of appropriate risk controls, etc.
Here, startups may knowingly, or unknowingly break the law related to immigration in order to further their business. That's what my question relates to.