

Indian entrepreneurs in US stuck with temporary, non-immigrant work visas - suprgeek
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/services/travel/visa-power/indian-entrepreneurs-in-us-stuck-with-temporary-non-immigrant-work-visas/articleshow/7811713.cms

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happyfeet
Reading these lines I can't help but feel how distorted & out-of-touch the
author is with the facts.

"Over half-a-million highly-educated and skilled immigrants are stuck with
temporary, non-immigrant work visas like the H-1B, which don't allow them to
start a company or even change jobs. Pushed to a corner, they come back to
India, where the entrepreneurial climate is far from ideal."

Being an Indian who chose to come back from US after couple of years, I know
this is not true, but this statement is being made as if its authentic. There
will always be a genuine few who are trying to start a company and stuck due
to these issues.

But saying that half a million can't change jobs due to this is ridiculous.
They choose not to change jobs, because they want to get their permanent
residency status in US. But they know it is their choice.

And if ALL these are people who want to start companies & do well, I can't see
why they cannot come back & do it. It is not necessary that you need to have
the "perfect" environment before you start something.

If you can't see a change happening, be the change yourself. If you want to do
something so much, just do it anywhere.

~~~
iqster
I don't think the article misleads on the point you are contending with. I'm
not from India but do know quite a few very talented Indians in the US who are
stuck with their present employment because of visa BS. The process for
permanent residency is surprisingly painful and rigid (e.g. restricts job
mobility). There are multi-year roadblocks such as getting labor
certifications, etc. Additionally, many employers require you work with them
for a number of years (get to year 4 or 5 of your H1 before they will apply
for permanent residency). I don't see too many viable alternatives here.

Let me put it differently ... to a young foreign student who just earned a
degree from a top US/Canadian school, this is what say: "If you want to stay
in the US, you can't change your job." Would this be a fair assessment of the
situation faced by thousands of Indians (and people from many other foreign
countries) in the US?

P.S. I hope I don't sound harsh in response to your comment. That's not my
intent. I'm just a bit sad at how these folks are being treated. I don't want
to start a flame war over this.

~~~
happyfeet
I agree that the visa requires reforms and definitely people are affected in
terms of job mobility and permanent residency status.

I absolutely agree with you that thousands are affected (especially students
who studied on a equal footing with their peers while completing the course)
but having disadvantage to get employment just because of the lottery system
and their status.

But claiming that half a million are stuck unable to start a company / change
jobs due to a visa is BS just to push the author's opinion down the reader's
throat and this is where I differ.

~~~
intended
Doesn't surprise, considering it is the Times group. Their reporting, while
good in several cases, is highly opinionated and unsubstantiated/lacking
research in others. Their gaming and tech coverage is usually cringe inducing.
Whats tragic is that they are the most read newspaper in the country.

~~~
yummyfajitas
According to Wikipedia, the WSJ and USA Today beat the NYT.

[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_newspapers_in_the_Unite...](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_newspapers_in_the_United_States_by_circulation)

Though if that excludes online views, the NYT may indeed be #1 (quite possibly
their paywall will nuke this, however).

~~~
intended
I'm referring to the Times of India group, and I was referring to India. Sorry
about the mix up that caused. :)

The Times of India is the largest circulated English-language daily newspaper
in the world, across all formats (Broadsheet, Compact, Berliner and Online)

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newspaper_circulation>

I always assumed that WSJ appealed only to business and finance types who
needed it for work. I'm surprised that the WSJ is that well circulated, does
this mean that it has broad appeal? Or is it that the WSJ can be expensed to
the a firm, driving up its circulation?

~~~
yummyfajitas
My bad. I read the article with readability and by the time I was done, I
forgot where it came from.

I suspect the popularity of the WSJ is due mainly to the fact that WSJ
demographics are more likely to buy a subscription than NYT demographics.

------
microarchitect
I'm all for visa reform and stuff but some of these quotes are cringe-worthy.

    
    
      By as close as 2016, he claims the company will 
      grow in revenue to $1billion and employ over 
      4,000 people. "These jobs could have belonged 
      to the US," says Wadhwa. 
    

Another:

    
    
      You don't tell mummy and daddy that you're back 
      because America didn't want you.

~~~
intended
The second quote is quite relevant, coming back to India can easily mark you
as someone who didn't make it which carries a lot of stigma.

------
goombastic
The entrepreneurial climate is terrible in India, but it is getting better.
The crumbling infrastructure, rampant corruption and terrible quality of life
mean that a lot of educated experienced Indians are now going away from the
cities and into areas that really need them -- in the countryside.It still is
difficult to get things done, but the bureaucracy is getting better albeit
slowly. It will take another 3 generations for all of it to fall in place for
India and it's people.

~~~
microarchitect
Is this really feasible?

It's hard enough getting regular electricity in places like Bangalore and
Delhi, won't it be much worse in the countryside? What about Internet
connectivity -- do we have broadband penetration outside the cities?

I do agree the bureaucracy is getting better. However, corruption and the
political climate is getting worse. I'm still not sure where we're headed ...

~~~
kingsidharth
Internet penetration is 10x better than it was 2 years ago with wire-less
broadband devices and with so many cell-phones around, almost everyone I know
"at least" has a GPRS.

Electricity is getting better but till then power back-up ftw!

I find it strange bootstrapping startups complaining about environment, looks
like someone wants to be mouth-fed.

~~~
microarchitect

      Internet penetration is 10x better than it was 2 
      years ago with wire-less broadband devices and with 
      so many cell-phones around, almost everyone I know 
      "at least" has a GPRS.
    

I agree it's better than two years ago. However, I'm not sure it's good enough
to warrant moving out of a big city to start a company.

    
    
      Electricity is getting better but till then 
      power back-up ftw!
    

From what I've heard from my friends many villages have between two to four
hours of power a day. So, UPS backup isn't going to fly. If you use a
generator, you have to put up with the noise, not to mention the additional
cost.

    
    
      I find it strange bootstrapping startups 
      complaining about environment, looks like 
      someone wants to be mouth-fed.
    

The OP suggested that entrepreneurs were moving to the countryside. I just
asked whether that's feasible. I think this snide remark was uncalled for.

I also submit that not having to worry about electricity and broadband is
worth more than you think.

~~~
goombastic
I need to be clear here. Not all entrepreneurs are Internet based. There is a
ton of non-internet things people are trying to do.

------
FameofLight
I don't think India is bad in terms of entrepreneurs environment , in opposite
India is ideal place for startup , technology is yet to reach grass root , is
starting to flow like in US. Broadband penetration is doubling every year.

Yeah we have social problems , corruption etc. Where does these don't exist.I
would bet my money on India to be great for entrepreneurs for new business in
coming years.

~~~
dimmuborgir
Spot on! A lot of people, especially expat Indians, mindlessly complain about
infrastructure problems and corruption in India. I fail to see what's the big
deal.

For a web startup in India, the only infrastructure hurdle I can think of is
uninterrupted electricity (it's not as bad as it's made out to be) and as
someone said earlier, this can be easily solved by power backup which is
affordable in India.

Corruption only matters if you're in a hurry to register your startup or get
some licenses. Refusing to pay bribes in India only makes the processes a bit
slower. People say this exact attitude is what keeping the corruption alive in
India. But it's high time we need to move on. One can't forever say "let India
become corruption free, then only I'll plan on contributing to the country".

Despite all its flaws, the Indian economy is growing at about 9% a year and
this level of growth is most likely to continue for many decades to come.
<http://bit.ly/f8OukZ> . Not to mention India is one mammoth market. Those who
miss this train will only repent.

~~~
goombastic
I somehow feel that tolerating corruption is not an option. The "chalega"
attitude is what got us in this mess today.

------
nandemo
> Over half-a-million highly-educated and skilled immigrants are stuck with
> temporary, non-immigrant work visas like the H-1B,

I don't quite understand this. On one hand, it would probably be in USA's
advantage to accept more skilled people as permanent residents. But given it's
a temporary, non-immigrant visa, why do people act surprised/outraged when
they find they cannot stay indefinitely? And why would someone start a company
on a temporary visa at all?

~~~
elai
Other than family sponsorship, marriage, adoption and the DV lottery, the only
way to start the immigration process to the US is through these "dual intent"
temporary non-immigrant employment visas. That's it. And for the majority of
workers, the whole labor certification, the bureaucracy and long long long
wait times makes it a fairly ridiculous process.

