Applying to Y Combinator without a VISA? - gustaf
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lindsayrgwatt
Hey folks,

I've actually just gone through this process. I'm a Canadian who just finished
school and here are the option my US-based immigration lawyer laid out for me:

1) E2 investment visa: not easy to do. You need to meet an undefined "minimum
investment criteria" which is typically $500,000 but if you're lucky you may
be able to get in with less.

2) TN-1. A legitimate option for Canadians and Mexican. You need to find an
American to own your startup in the U.S. and you start a company in either
Mexico or Canada. You then get hired by the owner of the U.S.-based company
and get a TN-1. You can't be the owner of the U.S.-based company but you can
have an option to buy the whole thing.

The nice part about this is that you then get the American-based company to
issue you an H1-B visa the next year and you're well on your way to a Green
Card.

3) L2. Find someone on an L1 visa and marry them. You can then work for anyone
in the U.S. including your own company

~~~
python_kiss
As a Canadian, don't you just need the citizenship card to get in America? The
borders are pretty much open, so I wouldn't be surprised if that were the
case.

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jward
Thats if you want to spend money in America. I grew up on the border and even
worked a short stint in customs. They can be right anal if they think you're
actually do anything productive. Could've just been the fine folk in Montana.
Tight squinting eyes boring through your soul. Fingers rapping gently over the
grip of their pistol. Waiting and watching you as a stillness fills the air,
offering you no escape. "You boys ain't look'n at taki'n jobs from good
'merican boys now are ya?"

As someone mentioned, you can 'visit' but I'm not sure how well that'd work
overall. Boston is a 5 hour drive from Montreal. If I recall correctly YC has
funded outsiders before. I would be very interested to hear how they managed.

I think Y Combinator would be an amazing experience that I wouldn't get
anywhere else. I'd be more than willing to give up several months of my life
to move to a new country to learn and work with amazing people. The question
of the border is the biggest stumbling block in the path.

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ashu
I would like to share our (Buxfer) experience. We are F-1 students, currently
on a leave of absence from the Ph.D. program. We have applied for Optional
Practical Training. This provides a 1-year extension when you can legally work
and earn from your company. (Any F-1 student can set up a company, btw - they
just cannot earn money from it :)

Within this 1-year period, we need to secure some other work visa. Our most
likely bet is H-1B, but there are others like O-1 which we may consider. We
are in talks with lawyers currently, but from what I've heard till now, it
seems like getting H-1Bs approved will be possible if we demonstrate
significant investment in the company.

Also, s/^/IANAL: / for every sentence :P

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akkartik
How significant is significant? Will YC-level funding suffice?

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ashu
Sadly, no. It should be enough to provide a competitive salary to all the H-1B
employees of the company, for about a year or so... So, an order of magnitude
more than YC funding.

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akkartik
I'm indian, I'm about to graduate with a phd, and I have a job offer. My
options for starting a startup:

0\. Go back to india. This has a certain allure, but I need to start from
scratch on figuring out contacts for investment. Odds of finding a deal like
YC are slim.

1\. Work on the startup in the year of my OPT, hope to arrange a visa in a
year.

2\. Put off the startup for a year or so, and try to transfer my H-1 to a
startup. This is easier than applying for an H-1 from scratch, but it's not
clear how much easier it is, and what the other constraints are.

3\. Put off the startup for a few years (unbounded) until my green card.
Needless to say, this option has the stench of death to it.

These are my options as I see them. Am I missing something? Comments much
appreciated, especially on option 2. It's been hard to even find a lawyer in
Texas; everyone seems do be doing corporate H-1Bs right now.

~~~
bluishgreen
0.Finding a cool hacker co-founder will be a bit difficult too. We are all out
here ;) But if you have one in mind, Go ahead. You don't need the YC money.
Living in India is so much more cheaper, it's not like we need Health
Insurance or anything. But you have to fly back to market it, Second round
funding etc.

1.Very dicey.

2.No one really understands us, I have an appointment with the lawyer at the
International Center at my University. I will post to news.yc about what I
find out. Meanwhile, you can try to talk to your Univ. lawyers too.

3.Death.

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akkartik
Thanks, bluishgreen. I look forward to hearing more.

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jrbedard
There is another thread about it:
<http://news.ycombinator.com/comments?id=4458>

Where I described as a Canadian, how to to get the TN-1 Visa.

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gustaf
Hey,

I posted my email in an old discussion about non-americans wanting to apply to
Y Combinator. I got more than 10 emails so there seems to be a lot of people
with questions about this.

There are a couple of groups in previous Y Combinator programs with one or
more international founders, and I'm one of them.

Getting a real work-VISA to the US when you are 22 is virtually impossible,
but should it stop you from applying? I don't think so.

Let's keep this thread open for VISA discussion. I'm happy to share my
experience and knowledge

Gustaf

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vikram
So maybe do a tourist visa for the 3 months. Then sort it out properly later.
Is that what you would suggest?

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gustaf
I think that's a good suggestion. You can even apply for a longer tourist-visa
if you give them a good reason. The main downside is that wont be able to earn
money directly from your US corporation

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vikram
I think you can't pay salary. What about expenses? I think if it's profitable
(won't that be nice in the 1st 3 months) one can always pay dividends to
shareholders.

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e1ven
I'd say it's probably pretty difficult. I'm certainly not an expert, but to
come in to the US on an Investment Visa, I think you need a few million in the
bank..

To do it as a Employee, they'd need to do H1B (which I don't think applies
here), or standard immigration.. If it's a standard work-visa, there's a
problem in that you're not working for anyone..

It probably isn't impossible, but it'd make things substantially more
difficult.

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gustaf
To get a H1B to do Y Combinator is probably not an option at all. H1B require
certification of the employer etc, which you are unlikely to get for a brand
new startup.

If you find a way to be in the country then you can probably worry about VISA
when you know your startup is going to be a real company and you'll take
investments etc.

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semigeek
I wouldn't say it's impossible to get a work visa - I've gotten TN1's before,
and am currently on a L1-A with a few months left before my Green Card is
finished. I received my L1-A 2 years ago when I was 22, now at the age of 24
it took roughly 8 months to get my Green Card under the EB1 classification.

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gustaf
Interesting! But doesn't L1 require you to be employed by the same company
outside of US minimum 1 year? Did you study in the US?

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semigeek
Yes - this is where having a partner in the US is really helpful. My partner
was able to setup our holding company, and I was able to work for it for a
year and then go for my L1. We are then able to start smaller organizations in
which VC's can own their percentage, and rest being owned by our holding
company allowing for things to still be legal for my current Visa situation.

It's a little bit more complicated to setup, but well worth it and allows you
to qualify for a Green Card much faster than the traditional avenues. I'm not
sure YC/PG's standpoint on adding this layer of complexity to the
incorporation procedure they undergo with YC Funded Startups, but I'm sure
that if the team and idea is good enough they'd work with you on this.

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ericwan
I'd like to hear PG's opinion on that though. Also, Besides Gustaf what are
other people who's had similar situation but accepted by YC?

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amichail
What about frequent visits to Boston from Canada, say once a week? Would that
work?

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Navin
can you like do your H1B through a consultant and "consult/work" for your
company through the consultant.

