
Engineer's Guide to US Visas - maccman
http://blog.sourcing.io/visa-guide?
======
jbarham
I'm Canadian and worked for over four years a software engineer in SoCal on
work visas (TN then H1B).

My wife, an Aussie and high school teacher with several years of teaching
experience in top international schools in Asia, couldn't legally work in the
US. So she volunteered teaching ESL at a local adult school. Ironically many
of her students were Hispanics who had originally entered the US illegally.
Doubly ironically she got a special commendation award for her volunteering
signed by George W. Bush's signing machine.

Eventually I got fed up with the bureaucratic farce whereby US visa
regulations provide compliant, indentured foreign programmers to US businesses
at below market salaries in exchange for the remote possibility that they'll
eventually get a green card.

So I left and now live in Australia, where I am self-employed, can take time
off to work on my own side-projects, and pay less than $300/month for private
medical insurance for my family of four. American exceptionalism? Sure--if
you're a sucker.

~~~
nodemaker
Similar story here. Indian citizen with a US masters degree. Left after
working in the US for a year, travelled around SE Asia ,and then moved to
Amsterdam! Can choose to work four days a week, have side projects and take 26
days of vacation a year.

H1B is totally a sucker's game.

~~~
ashray
How did you move to Amsterdam ? Is it like fulltime work or did you sponsor
yourself with an EU Blue Card ? I'm always interested in learning about the
various possibilities engineers have around the world! :)

~~~
nodemaker
I applied to a few companies, got an offer and moved with a Dutch residence
and work permit. The whole thing took about a month. There is a huge demand
for skilled engineers in the EU.

~~~
moondowner
Indeed there is, I have a friend (Java developer, early 40ties) who moved to
Amsterdam with his wife and two kids. It's pretty easy for in-demand jobs.

------
kartikkumar
This is the main reason I've given up. It's not an effective use of anyone's
time to wade through the US immigration mess. My J-1 visa expired last
October. I was in SF for my PhD research on a J-1 and had to suddenly return
to Europe last April due to unforeseen family circumstances. I was in the
process of filing for a waiver when I was in SF and had a long call with
someone at Google about a position I'd applied for. I discovered that I had
just missed the H1B deadline, so there was pretty much no way for me to get a
job in 2013.

Now that I'm back in Europe, I've been looking into applying for a J-1 waiver
and it's just form after form after form. Additionally, you have to pay
something in the region of $2000 according to an immigration lawyer I sought
out and with that I'd only be throwing my name in the ring, with the
possibility that the State Department would reject my waiver application
apparently.

I absolutely fell in love with SF whilst I was living there and would love to
make it back now that I'm wrapping up my PhD, but I think it's neigh on
impossible given the current bureaucracy involved.

Guess I'm just gonna wait it out and hope for immigration reform to kick in.

~~~
ankzap
J1 waiver isn't too bad. Yes, it involves some paper-work, but nothing that
would need an immigration lawyer. You can do everything yourself, and costs
about $200 last I checked.

Also look into the O1 visa that doesn't require a waiver, and has no quotas.

~~~
kartikkumar
Ok, that's good to know. That's an order-of-magnitude less than I was told. I
guess I should look into it in more detail. In the meantime I have accepted a
postdoc position in Europe, so I'm in no immediate rush to get the visa
situation sorted out. Would just be nice to be able to sort things out so that
once my postdoc is done I've got a better chance of returning to the Bay Area.

With regards to the O1 visa, I've heard that you have to really stand out in
your field of research, as the original article states, and unfortunately,
during my PhD I haven't really achieved that level of success.

Thanks in any case for the info!

~~~
ankzap
Start the waiver process now. It is multi-staged, and takes several months if
everything goes smoothly. You'll need a no-objection letter from the embassy
of your home country. This is usually the most tricky part. Once the US
Department of State gets this, you can track your status online. Start now so
you are done with it by the time you finish your postdoc.

Re the O1, read up on the requirements, and work on publishing more during
your postdoc.

------
buro9
There are two things that give me serious pause about living and working in
the USA, and that have made me not pursue or accept opportunities that I've
been offered in Seattle and San Francisco.

1) Visas & immigration

2) Health

~~~
cbaleanu
Should also add that if you are married, your wife / husband _cannot_ work if
you are on H1B.

I found this deeply disturbing, as my wife is a skilled professional in
another field and if I were to accept an H1B offer, she would had to become a
house wife more or less.

~~~
hpagey
A minor correction, if you are married, your spouse cannot work if they hold a
H-4 visa. They are allowed to work if someone is willing to sponsor their H1B,
L1. They are also allowed to work on F1-Visa, using OPT/CPT.

------
devnonymous
FTA:"However, in my experience, it's absolutely worth it. Moving here was the
best thing I ever did. It's an incredible country, and the opportunities here
in tech are second to none."

I wonder if given the current political, social and economical situation in
the US, whether this (still ?) is the prevalent view within the tech community
? Having been to the US multiple times between 2005-2012, I was completely
turned off the country. While I agree some of the best companies are based
there, I wouldn't like living there.

~~~
jpatokal
"The US" is big and non-homogeneous. Even SF and LA are surprisingly
different, much less NY, DC, Austin, Orlando, Honolulu, Nashville, Fargo...

------
hackerboos
"It's for this reason I suggest coming out to SF on your own accord, staying
for a short while, and lining up a bunch of interviews with all the companies
you're interested in."

I believe this is only for B1/B2 visa holders and those who are part of the
Visa Waiver Program (UK/Aus etc.).

You're not supposed to look for work or attend interviews on a tourist visa.

~~~
ivanca
And you are not supposed to spy on the emails of all the other countries
including their prime ministers and senators... but who are we to judge?

~~~
hackerboos
Hardly relevant.

~~~
ivanca
Please, how is hardly relevant to talk about what you are "supposed to do"
based on an institution that does nothing of what is supposed to do?

What you are "supposed to do" must have a good reason beyond the law; like
actual victims of some sort.

------
raverbashing
It's not worth it

You can get a "similar to H1B" visa in Ireland in 2 months time and a lot less
paperwork. Germany (and other countries I believe) has a similar schema.

With some requirements slightly higher than an H1-B you can be a permanent
resident of Canada (maybe Australia and England as well, though I'm not sure
how the conditions are on the latter today)

So, why bother?

~~~
untog
_So, why bother?_

Better pay and opportunities, it's as simple as that. Having lived in the UK
and Canada, I can say that the tech (and particularly startup) industry in the
US is simply much bigger and more advanced than other places I've been.

~~~
raverbashing
Yes I suppose one can make 100k in the valley. And pay how much again for
rent?

The pay and the opportunities are better, but they may not be _significantly_
better to justify it.

In the valley it looks like everything will get an angel round if it stands
still long enough or go to enough CV meetings but it is not all there is to
life or a career.

~~~
DrJokepu
Rent is a day-to-day concern that does not matter in long term. Opportunities
give you access to experience, connections and reputation that will stay will
stack up and stay with you throughout your entire career.

To put it other way: resources sunk into cost of living add up linearly over
time, the benefits of (exploited) opportunities get amplified and yield
exponential results over the years. You want to go for the exponential curve.

~~~
turnip1979
I disagree. Day to day concerns are exactly what turn into 5-10 year issues.
Non-software people get shocked when they hear you make over 100K and can't
save much. I do agree that part of it is that what we take for being a normal
standard of living is pretty up there. But still ... I find it sad/messed up
that after working for 5+ years in a high income, high rent part of the
country, I am no closer to buying a house/condo. I just have 50K in the bank.
About 100K in retirement. Makes me want to cry :'(

~~~
mahyarm
Move, save up a whole bunch of money, work remotely with your built up
connections.

------
daleharvey
I am fairly interested in the rules around Visa Waivers.

I have been working for american companies remotely for a while, I do fairly
regular visits to the american offices, generally 'Work Meeting' will get you
straight passed, but I have a few times been questioned exactly what I do at
these work meetings and once tiredly and mistakenly mentioning programming,
was very close to being refused entry.

The other issue I couldnt find any documentation on how long a visa waiver is
valid for, it is given for 3 months, but is that 3 months out of the year or
just 3 months at a time? over a full year I occasionally get close to this and
was mostly curious.

~~~
DrJokepu
If the customs officer admits you to the United States on visa waiver (WT/WB
status) you need leave the United States within 90 days or less. In addition
to that, you cannot change your visa waiver status to any other non-immigrant
status without departing the United States (e.g. you cannot switch to H1B
within America while on WT/WB).

~~~
nobodysfool
You can change your visa waiver status to another status without departing the
USA. My ex wife was from Italy, she came here on vwp and we got married. She
stayed during the AOS process.

~~~
DrJokepu
Your ex wife has changed her status to an _immigrant_ status. The rules forbid
changing WT/WB to a _non-immigrant_ (e.g. H1B) status.

------
mehrdada
> If you lose in the lottery, they'll refund the fees. One caveat to bear in
> mind is that applying for this visa shows intent, which may disqualify you
> for visas in the future which aren't dual intent, such as the B-1 & B-2
> visitor visas.

(IANAL, but:) This is very wrong on at least two counts: there is no fee for
enrolling in the lottery and if anyone charges for it, they are a scammer and
you should enroll directly on dvlottery.state.gov site (as explicitly stated
in its FAQ). Also, simply signing up for lottery is generally not sufficient
ground for immigration intent (though being conservative doesn't hurt).

~~~
hartator
I think he was confused with the situation when you actually win it. If you
start the process of getting it, it will show immigration intents and you have
fees to pay.

~~~
mehrdada
That's certainly true: it shows immigration intent at that point, like any
application for permanent residence, but no fees will be refunded if for some
reason your application gets denied.

------
jongold
Excellent guide; shame the situation sucks.

The H-4 & O-3 mean that I have these options: \- Work at a US startup, marry
my girlfriend, she has to be a non-working housewife \- Work at a US startup,
live the rest of our lives in a long distance relationship \- Move to work at
a big company like Google (not my scene at all) where I could get an L-1
(which has a good spouse visa) \- Go for an O-1 or H-1B & hope that my
girlfriend can get one in the same batch. \- Just give up on the idea of
living in the US

I love California; wish it wasn't so hard for me to live there :(

------
drpgq
"When the H-1B cap is reached, large companies like Google often look to L-1s
instead, moving new employees to their Canadian offices for a year to make
them eligible."

Huh. I knew Microsoft did this in Vancouver but hadn't heard about Google also
using it although it makes sense. As a Canadian I'm not sure if the country
really benefits from it, although I guess it boosts the Canadian offices.

~~~
ryanweal
I think the Google location is Windsor, but I know they have an office in
Montréal and probably Toronto as well.

~~~
theycallmemorty
I haven't heard about a Google office in Windsor but I know there is one in
Waterloo.

------
ldite
I found this diagram informative (although not comprehensive, and probably a
bit politicised):
[http://reason.com/assets/db/07cf533ddb1d06350cf1ddb5942ef5ad...](http://reason.com/assets/db/07cf533ddb1d06350cf1ddb5942ef5ad.jpg)

(via [http://reason.com/blog/2008/09/24/new-at-reason-mike-
flynn-s...](http://reason.com/blog/2008/09/24/new-at-reason-mike-flynn-shikh)
)

------
courtson5
If you are are fortunate enough to have the liquidity needed (E.g.: you've
already participated in a successful exit in a startup in your home country),
there is always the EB-5 investor visa. (invest a half a million to a million
dollars and create 10 jobs)

Obviously not an option for everyone, but if it is available to you, it may be
one of the easiest ways, as you can get a green card relatively quickly via
that route.

------
rabble
It's missing the H1B1 visa which is very easy to get but isn't dual intent.
It's only available for citizens of Singapore and Chile. It requires little
paperwork and takes about a week to get. If you're so lucky as having a
Singaporean or Chilean passport i recommend you look in to it.

------
speeq
"L-1 visa for inter-company transfers

If you've worked for the company in a foreign subsidiary for at least one year
in the preceding three years, you may be eligible for a L-1 visa. When the
H-1B cap is reached, large companies like Google often look to L-1s instead,
moving new employees to their Canadian offices for a year to make them
eligible.

The foreign subsidiary must be related to its US counterpart in one of four
ways: parent and subsidiary, branch and headquarters, sister companies owned
by a mutual parent, or 'affiliates'.

It's a fairly straightforward visa to get if you qualify, and has the added
bonus of being dual intent."

Would it be possible to open a US business remotely, then a foreign subsidiary
in your country of residence - work for a year there and then be eligible for
an inter-company L-1 transfer?

~~~
anextio
USCIS is generally very wary about L-1 abuse. The US company would need a full
staff and board of directors.

i.e. Both sides of the equation have to be real companies doing real things
who have a legitimate need to occasionally bring employees across. Neither of
the companies can exist solely to funnel workers into the US.

~~~
speeq
Well, let's say I own a successful business in the UK, want to expand to the
US and expect significant growth within the first year - does a L-1 visa allow
me to open a new office in the US, if I hire someone competent to take over UK
operations?

~~~
psuter
In your scenario, you will likely (legitimately) qualify for an E-2 visa.

------
dhfromkorea
This is a nice run-down for those looking to swerve into the U.S. for a valid
reason (work/study)

If anyone seeks less-than-a-year-long work, J-1 Visas are arguably the easiest
to get if one has some affiliation with a university. (i.e. students)

Proof of concept: I have co-run a non-profit program which connected people in
Finland with startups in the Bay Area. I wish there would be more programs
similar to [http://startuplife.fi](http://startuplife.fi) (sent close to 100
so far and more than a dozen YC companies have signed up for the program last
batch.)

Another related blogpost for the J1 track:
[http://blog.sendtoinc.com/2013/12/11/silicon-valley-
internsh...](http://blog.sendtoinc.com/2013/12/11/silicon-valley-
internship-j1-visa/)

------
NVI
L-1B (Intracompany Transferee Specialized Knowledge)

"Specialized knowledge means either special knowledge possessed by an
individual of the petitioning organization’s product, service, research,
equipment, techniques, management, or other interests and its application in
international markets, or an advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the
organization’s processes and procedures (See 8 CFR 214.2(l)(1)(ii)(D))."

[http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-
workers...](http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-
workers/l-1b-intracompany-transferee-specialized-knowledge)

The definition of "Specialized knowledge" is very broad. Can somebody share
their experience of getting L-1B visa?

------
thomseddon
To anyone with experience with a H1-B: How closely related does your degree
have to be?

I get the impression this is a relatively grey area - I have a BEng in Civil
Engineering, in my opinion it's somewhat related, I just wondered if there is
a clear guidance on this?

~~~
NhanH
Another question regard the H1-B: is it a bad idea trying to file H1-B without
a lawyer? I'm working for a startup, and in the spirit of not-wasting-money,
we're trying to file the H1B by ourselves, would that be too risky?

~~~
spiralpolitik
Do not do anything immigration related without a lawyer. Ever.

~~~
jorde
Except J1 visas and waivers, both are easy enough to deal without a lawyer if
you have some help from someone who has done it.

------
lucasnemeth
Nice summary. I think it missed one important detail, only US-masters can
apply to the extended H1-B quota, if you got a master degree outside the US
you are not eligible to that quota and falls under the normal cap.

------
fitzpasd
Great guide, I'd love a similar one for Green Cards.

For instance, does a Masters in CS qualify you for an EB-2 filing? A search
shows that the employer would have to give evidence of the advanced degree
being necessary for the job. Usually you wouldn't need a Masters degree for a
programmer role but I'm wondering how strict this is in practice.

Concretely, if you were to enter the US on a H1-B for a SDE role with BigCorpA
and had a Masters degree in CS, could you immediately file for a Green Card
under EB-2 category?

~~~
spiralpolitik
Assuming that everybody else performing that role at the company has a
Master's degree (or equivalent) there is nothing stopping filing the labor
certification on day one.

As with anything immigration related. Consult a lawyer, not the internet.

------
TravisLS
What's the perceived benefit of not allowing the spouse to work? Is this a
"they took our jobs" situation, or is there something substantive behind that
policy?

~~~
yardie
I'm assuming it's 2 things:

1\. These visas are for specializations. This implies that the job is unique
and pays well above average salaries so a spouse shouldn't need to work.

2\. They want to be attractive yet not too attractive. I'm sure in the
subcommittee negotiations on quota it came down to spouses or quotas, (we can
let 35,000 families or 70,000 workers). If you watch the government channel
they negotiate endlessly over petty things like this.

------
rjzzleep
i'm surprised no one is mentioning the eb-2 visa. if you have a masters or
higher in cs and are not born in the india or china the wait times seem to be
reasonable. [1]

the h1b is a dangerous game. it's essentially a do whatever i say, and i "may"
sponsor your green card "eventually", with an emphasize on the may. not
everyone uses it that way, and i would would be leaning out of the window
saying most do, but it's definitely enough to be a common issue.

i was brought into a university with an h1b under the premise that i could
work on my own startup. what didn't tell me was that that what they meant was
that i should work for them for 5 years before they would consider sponsoring
a green card application, and that they expected me to work unpaid overtime
whenever they asked me to.

i've heard from a friend running a consulting company in the area, that a lot
of companies bring in workers with h1b's and then don't even have the decency
to sponsor a green card after keeping them for 6 years.

to my remembrance there was a house voting sometime last september about an
immigration reform. one side of the table was asking for better accessibility
to visa's for specialized workers(including cali afair), and the other was
asking for more audits.

sadly i can't tell you how much good came out of it, maybe someone else can
elaborate on that.

edit: there is a reference at the end of the ops post, but it's not really
prominent. eb-3 wait times can be years, which is why it's not really a
reasonable choice, but eb-2 is different

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EB-2_visa](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EB-2_visa)

~~~
huherto
I have a MS from a good US university. I am one of the principal software
engineers at my company, and I lead the technical development on some of the
most critical systems. It is medium size company.

But, I don't do any state of the art research, or highly specialized academic
work, or anything worth publishing on academic journals.

How hard is to do the Labor Certification for the EB-2 green card?

Edit:grammar

~~~
rjzzleep
IANAL, but I think in theory you already qualify. The effort is a little on
the employers side. They have to post the job offer publicly in a news paper
in the area, and then they have to have a good reason for hiring you. In
theory I would say it's just a question of having a good lawyer. But then
again those things have to be done ANYWAY if you want a green card.

~~~
geoffnorton
Classifying the effort as 'little' for any EB based green card is nuts.
Especially for an Indian citizen. In order to apply for EB-2 or EB-3 you need
to first do a prevailing wage determination (about 2 weeks). Then your
employer has to recruit for the position they want to offer you (30 days
posted + 30 days quiet period). After this your employer gets to apply for a
PERM (this is currently taking 8-9 months to be adjudicated by the DOL). If
you're unlucky enough to be audited in your application you can tack another
year on to this step.

After your PERM is approved, you get to file for I-140, which takes another
4-6 months. Then you get to wait until your priority date becomes current
which depends on your category and country of origin. This could be anywhere
from immediate to 10+ years.

Once your PD is current, you get to apply for I-485 which takes anywhere from
2-6 months and includes doctors exams, finger printing and possible interviews
by USCIS. Of course while they're processing this there is no guarantee they
wont retrogress your priority date and put you back into the waiting game.

Of course all of this starts again if you change employers (but you do get to
keep your priority date if you had an approved I-140).

~~~
pucallpa
This is terrible, a lot of us are waiting and dont even know if we'll get
audited, to make things worst the DOL did not process any perm petitions
during the government shutdown. Please see this petition to improve the
procesing time: [https://www.change.org/petitions/department-of-labor-dol-
to-...](https://www.change.org/petitions/department-of-labor-dol-to-speed-up-
perm-processing-as-promised-when-perm-was-established-dol-needs-to-speed-up-
to-decrease-the-processing-timeline-of-perm-applications-to-60-90-days-
instead-of-230-days)

------
mdda
I'm surprised no-one mentioned the E-2 (Treaty Investor) visa. It allows
someone from a Treaty country (which includes a lot of developed countries) to
start a business in the USA. It's not an intent visa, though (more on that
later).

I'm from the UK, and did the E-2 application myself (having found that it took
as much time to explain to a lawyer as to write the application). My initial
investment was $100k (enough to start a software business, provably). I have
been renewing that visa since 1999, while living in NYC.

Now, however (partly to do with having a 3-year-old), I've moved with my
family to Singapore. Visa process took 3 days, and is valid for 12months (and
a 12month extension will be very doable, apparently).

One aspect of the Green Card process (which is, I believe, somewhat achievable
even starting on a E-2, is that you get caught in the US tax regime semi-
permanently. Which is taxation on world-wide income. That would make moving to
another country relatively painful (and that's partly why there are so few
Americans in Singapore : there's no tax advantage to them).

Happy to answer any questions.

~~~
thelonelygod
My parents moved my entire family here on a h1 when I was younger. We obtained
our Green Cards about 5 years ago.

I'm about to graduated college and go start working in NYC. My parents are
currently starting the process to get citizenship and I'm choosing not to do
it mainly because I'm not sure if I want to stay in the country for the rest
of my life and didn't want to be stuck in the US tax abroad issue.

You mentioned that getting a green card does in fact put you into the US tax
regime semi-permanently. Do you have any links or more information about that?

~~~
mahyarm
People with green cards or citizenship are subject to the same unique
worldwide citizenship-based taxation scheme that the US has. You will have to
revoke your green card anyway to escape it so I would just get the citizenship
since you can renounce it later with a somewhat more involved process. You can
be subject to an exit tax if your 'rich enough' when you revoke your green
card or citizenship. Something like $150k annual income for 5+ years or $2+
million in assets. Research it yourself, etc.

------
tmich
This thread seems like an excellent opportunity to ask for some advice.

I'm a British software engineer based in London, while my girlfriend of 3 and
a half years is an American working for a publishing company in NYC. We've
been trying to work out whether we think the relationship will work out in the
long term, but the only time we've ever been in the same city for more than 3
weeks was the 6 month stint we were at university together. She's very
reluctant to move to London - apparently publishing jobs are hard to come by,
and she's loathe to leave the current one. As a result, I've been tasked with
finding a way that I can spend some time in New York. It wouldn't have to be
long - 6 months would be plenty - but I would have to be able to earn money
since she currently doesn't really make enough to support herself, let alone
me.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to how I could go about doing this?

~~~
janantala
marry her

------
falsestprophet
This is a guide to US visa fraud.

Software developers are expressly excluded from the TN visa program. If you
show up at the Canadian border as an American or the American border as a
Canadian and announce you intend to work as a software developer, you will not
be admitted. Of course many commit fraud and represent themselves as "Computer
Systems Analysts" or "Management Consultants."

L1B visas are meant for those who possess special knowledge of "the
petitioning organization’s product, service, research, equipment, techniques,
management, or other interests and its application in international markets,
or an advanced level of knowledge or expertise in the organization’s processes
and procedures." If you announce you intend to work as a software developer
you will not be admitted.

~~~
canistr
It's a game of semantics for border services. If you have an engineering
degree, it doesn't matter. If you get your employer to change your title from
"Developer" to "Engineer" it works out.

~~~
falsestprophet
It isn't a game of semantics.

“Engineers may not fill computer-related jobs under TN classification unless
they have credentials as computer or software engineers from institutions that
recognize computer or software engineering as bona fide engineering
specialties offering full engineering credentials, such as professional
engineering licenses.”

[http://www.tnvisabulletin.com/nafta-tn-
blog/2010/6/21/degree...](http://www.tnvisabulletin.com/nafta-tn-
blog/2010/6/21/degree-in-engineering-required-for-tn-visa-status-as-
softwar.html#sthash.6Vkvr3XI.dpuf)

~~~
canistr
That's precisely what I mean by it being a game of semantics. Any
computer/science-related degree gets you through the border. Anecdotally, I've
heard numerous friends claim that the distinction at the border was their
title being changed from "Developer" to "Engineer". Mind you, they all had
various computer-related degrees but the scenarios were different depending on
whether their degree was titled "Computer Engineering" or "Computer Science".

------
tn13
Please note that spouse can not do any consulting for home company. Spouse can
do no productive work.

~~~
botolo
You're right. I have been a spouse of an H1B holder and I could not do
anything, not even volunteering or starting my own business. Before doing any
of this, please get the assistance of an immigration lawyer. Doing something
wrong under your current visa can jeopardize future visas you may receive one
day.

------
artmageddon
Can someone further explain the dual-intent portion of this? I'm a US citizen
and my girlfriend, who is from Iran, is working toward her PhD in CS here in
the States. Currently, she's on a F-1 visa(the site says it's not dual-
intent), and would like to remain in the states after she completes her
studies to work at a US company(most likely in the valley). This caught my eye
as a point of concern, so if anyone can elaborate it'd be greatly appreciated:

"If you're not on a dual intent visa then you may be asked to prove that you
have significant ties to your home country, and no intent to reside in the US
permanently or apply for a green card."

It's worth mentioning we will probably marry before she completes her PhD.

~~~
milemi
Even if you don't marry, after graduation she can get one year of so called
Optional Practical Training, during which she can apply for a dual-intent
visa. This is the path I had personally taken. If you do get married, I am
almost 100% sure her having been on an F1 visa is no obstacle for her green
card application.

~~~
artmageddon
Ok - how difficult was it to get on the Optional Practical Training? She'll be
interning at a major company in the valley this summer(assuming the export
control process doesn't pose an issue), and will most likely be doing so next
summer as well. Basically, finding work shouldn't be an issue for her after
graduation.

~~~
milemi
It was a long time ago, but I remember it being totally routine, no queues and
no uncertainty. She should go to her school's immigration office, I'm sure
they'll be able to walk her through the application and explain any other
options while they're at it.

~~~
tricolon
One of my summer internships was delayed for two months because USCIS thought
my photo was overexposed (it wasn't)... so I definitely wouldn't say "no
uncertainty" but all the paperwork was possible to complete without
representation.

------
jval
Cool guide, but I think the E-3's dual intent rules are a bit weird:

[http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Memorand...](http://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Memoranda/Static_Files_Memoranda/Archives%201998-2008/2005/e3polgdnc_121505.pdf)

"An application for initial admission, change of status or extension of stay
in E-3 classification, however, may not be denied solely on the basis of an
approved request for permanent labor certification or a filed or approved
immigrant visa preference petition."

It's not explicitly dual intent but the memo makes it clear that they won't
kick you out for pursuing PR.

~~~
adaml_623
Kicking someone out of a country for deciding that they like working there and
would like to stay permanently should fit everyone's definition of weird.

(I am of course aware that it is standard practice in the immigrant fearing
bureaucratic world we live in today.)

------
CodeMage
The article missed pointing out a very important detail about H-1B1 visa (for
Chile and Singapore): unlike the dual intent H-1B visa, the H-1B1 is a non-
immigrant visa. This means that you must establish the non-immigrant intent to
get it. It also means that, should you happen to change your mind after some
time, you would have to switch to H-1B visa before trying for the green card.

Also, speaking from the personal experience, the fact that the H-4 visa
doesn't allow your spouse to work deserves more emphasis. If there's anything
that might drive me and my family back to Chile, it's the H-4 visa.

------
knuxus
Anyone know about something similar but applied to Canada?

~~~
deskamess
NAFTA treaties have options for US and Mexico citizens.

For the rest there is the temporary foreign worker program. Your Canadian
company has to do labor market opinions and all that stuff - could be time
consuming. It is valid for 4 years. After 1 (one) year of starting your job,
you can apply for permanent residency under the Canadian Experience Class
[CEC] and it is self directed (no employer help needed at that point). Current
processing times if you have applied within Canada is 13 months.

If you have not got your permanent residency by 4 years, but you have applied
for and have a reference number, you can get a renewable 1 year open work
permit that lets you work for anybody.

Computer jobs are covered by CEC, but not all jobs are.

You are eligible for health care after 3 months of being on the job. Until
then you can get private coverage.

------
k3oni
Here's another one which might help some that want to move to US - Diversity
Visa Program(DV Lottery).

If you are lucky enough(like my wife was) you will have your green card and
visa for the whole family.

Some more info:
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diversity_Immigrant_Visa](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diversity_Immigrant_Visa)

------
justadude
With reference to the Green Card Lottery [1] "if you lose in the lottery,
they'll refund the fees", there are no fees to enter the lottery, however if
you win the lottery there are fees to start the interview and visa process.

[1] [https://www.dvlottery.state.gov/](https://www.dvlottery.state.gov/)

~~~
k3oni
Indeed it's free to enter, just make sure you qualify in the case you win. The
required qualifications are minimal but worth reading into it so you don't pay
any money and not get the visas.

We went through it and it took about half a year for everything to be ready.

Lucky wife :)

------
jplmelanson

      The important difference is that the TN isn't dual intent, and you therefore can't apply for a green card while on it
    

Is there a path to permanent residency for this specific visa or you're better
off finding H1B sponsorship?

~~~
cdhdc
The information given regarding TN status isn't entirely accurate. I
transitioned from a TN to a Greencard directly. There were several conditions
that my immigration lawyer prepared me for so I wasn't violating dual-intent
and there was a period of several months when I was unable to leave the US
while I waited for my "Advance parole" travel documentation.

------
donohoe
Credit History

It would be worth adding a note about Credit history and some simple steps you
can do to start establishing a good one. I recall getting a joint-loan with my
wife (girlfriend at the time) to get things started. I'm sure there are many
other ways.

~~~
ojbyrne
Secured (not pre-paid) credit cards worked for me.

~~~
foobarqux
Do you know of a no-fee secured credit card that is easy for a foreigners
apply for online?

~~~
ojbyrne
This worked for me: [https://www.capitalone.com/credit-cards/secured-
mastercard/](https://www.capitalone.com/credit-cards/secured-mastercard/)

There is a fee though. Plus of course, you have to secure the card. I
deposited $500 and initially got a credit line of $700. A few months later it
was bumped up to $1300.

------
coin
"Getting a bank account is fairly straightforward, and most don't require a
SSN." I don't know about this. It's pretty much impossible to open a bank
account without a SSN or TIN.

~~~
spiralpolitik
You can open the account without an SSN. However most banks will generally
require you to provide a valid SSN or TN with a certain period of time
otherwise they will close the account.

Generally if you are in the US legally you will have one of those numbers.

------
daGrevis
Thanks for this a lot! I'm planning to move to USA when I can and this helps
to see the whole picture.

My best bet would be a company that really wants me to work for them and
arranges all of this.

------
ma2rten
> TN Visa

> Processing time: Weeks

Actually for Canadians the visa is usually given at the border at time of
entry. I applied at the US embassy in Bangkok and it didn't take more than a
couple of days.

------
curiousDog
You should also mention EB-5. Pay $500k and get a green-card. No questions
asked. Although, you may or may not get back that $500k (considered an at-risk
investment) :).

------
blackjable
As a UK citizen I am making a living as a software engineer (contractor).
Would I be able to get live and do the same work in America?

------
foobarqux
This article is geared mostly to employees. Since this is HN, what do
foreigners launching startups do?

------
venomsnake
What is the situation if you are cofounder of startup? So you own some part of
US company.

~~~
TheCoelacanth
With an investment of at least $100,000, you could get an E2 visa, but that
doesn't come with the possibility of getting a green card. If you have
$500,000 to $1 million to invest in a business that will create at least 10
jobs, you can get an EB-5 visa that would put you on track to get a green
card.

------
gdiocarez
Title is deceiving....

