igniters meetup: immigration hacking solving immigration puzzle for foreign-born entrepreneurs

Igniters Meetup Immigration Hacking: Solving Immigration puzzle for foreign-born Entrepreneurs Sweta Khandelwal Sponsored by: Hosted by: www.vorkspace.com - Workspace of the Future

Welcome! Immigration Hacking: Solving Immigration Puzzle for Foreign-born Entrepreneurs Employment-based US Visas for founders, their start-ups and their employees February 21, 2014, Hacker Dojo, Mountain View Sweta Khandelwal Principal Attorney Law Office of Sweta Khandelwal 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Introductions! Immigrant myself! Entrepreneur too! Owner/Principal Attorney- Law Office of Sweta Khandelwal Chair, Silicon Valley Chapter, American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Advocacy & Media Co- Liaison, AILA-SCV Understanding of how US Immigration laws intersect with entrepreneurship Overview of various work visas that can be used by foreign entrepreneurs and their start-ups Appreciate how seemingly small changes in fact patters can effect available visa options 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Disclaimer This presentation is not intended to give legal advice. It is for informational purposes only. It is geared to help participants get a basic understanding on how immigration law and practice intersect with entrepreneurship. 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Agenda/ Roadmap Importance of Immigration Key non-immigrant work visas (NIV) or temporary visas Key immigrant work visas (IV) or permanent visas or Green Cards Case Study: Apply elements to potential scenarios 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Entrepreneurs, Start-ups & Immigration Why is knowledge of US Visas critical to foreign entrepreneurs? Description Area Why Immigration 25% of high-tech companies founded between 19952005 had at least one immigrant founder Founders on right visa to ensure continuity of the company Able to hire top global talent Get creative Explore USCIS & Entrepreneurs Shift in policy towards entrepreneurs Old Wine in a New Bottle-Old Laws, New Business Approach Potential Problem Creative & Customized no one size fits all options Be-proactive Stay Structure business accordingly Plan really ahead Lack of standardization in applying laws Laws Notes: Entrepreneurs in Residence Initiative have gray areas Best immigration decisions are usually not good for business (1) TBD (2) TBD Source: Source 1; Source 2; Source 3 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com all informed

Agenda/ Roadmap Importance of Immigration Key Non-immigrant work visas Key Immigrant Work Visas Case Study: Apply elements to potential scenarios 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Non Immigrant/Temporary Visa Options Relatively easy, quick and economical! Typical purpose/ applicability Type of visa 1 2 Visitors B-1& Visa Waiver Program Students F-1 & OPT 3 Investors & their Eees E-2 Notes: (1) TBD (2) TBD Source: Source 1; Source 2; Source 3 Useful in the preliminary stages Limited purpose No employment in the US No remuneration Practical training- up to 12 months; +17 (STEM) Full time & Part-time; multiple jobs Not No minimum wage required applicable for India and China Available to Treaty Nationals (TN) Investor or Managers or Critical Employee At least 50% of business must be owned by TN Business must be controlled by TN 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Non Immigrant/Temporary Visa Options Relatively easy, quick and economical! Type of visa 4 Inter-Co. Transfer L-1 Visa 5 6 Typical purpose/ applicability Existing foreign business can set up affiliated US business Eee employed by overseas business for at least 1 year out of the preceding 3 years Managers(L-1A) & Special. Knowledge workers (L-1B) Professional Worker H-1B Visa Used for Specialized Occupation workers Foreign National must have a Bachelors Degree Only NIV for US Companies! Extra-ordinary Ability O-1 Visa Available for people in the arts, sciences or business who are at the top of their fields Must meet at least 3 criterion prescribed in law Notes: (1) TBD (2) TBD Source: Source 1; Source 2; Source 3 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Visitor Visas: B-1 & Visa Waiver Program (VWP) Who is eligible What it takes to succeed Temporary visitor for business Both B-1 & VWP to be used for limited purposes Negotiate contracts Attend meetings conferences Independent research VWP 37 participating countries Cannot change/ adjust status 90 Day Limit Can still apply for B-1 Must demonstrate non-immigrant intent Cannot be employed in the US No remuneration to be received What sucks What's great? Convenient, economical Quick process Great during early/planning stages Law unclear as to what activities are permitted and what are not No appeal against denial-must reapply 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Student Visa: F-1 & OPT Who is eligible What it takes to succeed Those who are studying full time (Grad. Undergrad. Ph.D. in accredited schools Generally, no employment while student is in school Up to 12 months of training/work permit after completion of program 17 additional months for STEM graduates STEM only for E-Verified Companies Completion of your academic program! Importance of accredited/reputed schools Cannot be out of job for more than 90 days during OPT period STEM extension must be timely applied What's great? What sucks Great for start-upsincubator/accelerator No wage requirement Full time, part-time, multiple jobs Cap-Gap solved (H-1B) Nothing-Its a great option! Limited duration-29 months max; must then move to another visa Timing issues 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Visa for Investors & their Employees: E-2 Who is eligible What it takes to succeed Those from E-2 country listTreaty Nationals Treaty Nationals must own at least 50% of the business Treaty Nationals must control the enterprise FN can be Investor/ Exec./Manag./Special Know. IF FN is Investors - develop & direct the business Generally, all nationals must be from the same country If 2 nationalities involved, both must have equal ownership & control Investment that is at risk-irrevocably committed Business is substantial; more than marginal return Great business plan required Source of funds must be legitimate-gifts, salary, o.k Money could have been earned in US or abroad Loans-only those secured by personal assets Whats Great? What sucks No high threshold investment$ Can use intangible assets if properly valued Spouse of E-2 can work Problem with VC fundingcontrol/ownership No set min. $ investmentunclear No immigrant intent-no path towards GC 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Inter-Company Transfer: L-1 Visa Who is eligible What it takes to succeed Foreign business can set up an affiliated US business Affiliate relationship defined in law FN must be employed by the overseas company for at least 1 yr. in the preceding 3 years Both owner/employee may be eligible New Office vs. Established Office Eligibility requirements critical Both Foreign and US Company must be in business Evidence of relationship between the two companies to be extensively documented What sucks What's great? Great for overseas co. No min. salary reqd. No fixed no. of visas CEO can spend time in US and home country GC for L-1A-EB-1 Spouse can work L-1A for owners & small business is tougher New Office L-1 req. Proving 1 year employment when no salary 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Specialty Occupation Visa: H-1B TN Visa-Professionals Canadians & Mexicans-no self employment What it takes to succeed Who is eligible Visa for Professionals Position must be a specialty occupation Foreign National must have a Bachelors Degree Visa tied to the sponsor company An organization structure that establishes an employer/employee relationship b/w US business & Foreign National (FN) Proof that there is enough work/specialty occupation for the duration of the petition A great story! What sucks What's great? Once FN is on H-1B, can change between employers with relative ease Part-time and full time Limited visas-Quota For founders, eer/eee relationship is hard Specialty occupation for founders is a challenge Minimum salary-high Spouse cannot work 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Visa for Extra-Ordinary Ability: O-1 Visa Who is eligible An individual who has extra-ordinary ability in the arts, sciences and business What it takes to succeed Sustained national/international acclaim Distinction in the field National/Internationally recognized award Membership in assoc. in the field based on ability Published material in trade journal or other media Judging the work of others Scholarly articles in the field; original contribution Prestigious org., critical capacity, high salary Whats great? Visa focus on person, as opposed to company Must show that FN meets at least 3 of the eligibility criterion No Quota No restriction on salary Renewed indefinitely A path to GC-EB-1 Room for creative lawyering! What sucks Burden of proof is high Not everyone can qualify 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Immigrant/Permanent Visa Options Challenging, time consuming, and expensive! Type of visa 1 EB-1 Eligibility requirements Three categories; two relevant here Extraordinary Ability Workers O-1? 2 Multinational Executive & Managers-L-1? EB-5 Notes: (1) TBD (2) TBD Source: Source 1; Source 2; Source 3 Not really useful for entrepreneurs Investor based GC Investment must meet all established criterion 3 EB-2/EB-3 $500,000-$1,000,000 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Employment Based Immigrant Visa: EB-1 Who is Eligible What it takes to succeed Available to three groups: Extraordinary Ability (similar to O visa); Multinational Exec./Man. (relevant for those on L-1A visas); Professors and Researchers Extraordinary Ability-outstanding achievers Multinational Executives& Managers-L-1A-must show that FN has managerial duties and supervises over professionals What sucks What's great? No Labor Cert. required Burden of Proof highhigher than NIV For Extr. Ability no employer is required Visa Bulletin is current-India & China 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Employment Based Immigrant Visa: EB-52 AnyWho is Eligibleto investor willing invest at least $1 million of their own funds; or $500,000 if investment is in a TEA Investment must be in a New Commercial Enterprise The business must employ at least 10 US workers full time Investor must be involved in day to day management of the company Conditional GC issued for 2 years What it takes to succeed Demonstrate the source of funds-own and legit Two years to show that all conditions have been met A comprehensive business plan required Loans o.k so long as secured by personal assets Investment must be at risk What's great? What sucks GC for investor & family $500,000 Invest. can be made in Regional Centers while investor works on his/her own business One of the easiest ways for a GC Model not suitable for entrepreneurs Requires investment of own money in business 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Launching a cool mobile payments business in France Clemente French Application Developer Par Excellence Bachelors Engineering- wants to do an MBA in the US Moracio Italian Brillianto Hacker No formal degree in EngineeringWants to get one in the US Jean Paul French Technologist with business mindset Bachelors degree in Engineering; considering a Masters Status of their start-up Working on an IPhone/Android app. that they claim will revolutionize the way handheld devices are used to make payments Bootstrap efforts /money to create a beta version Incorporate a business entity in France 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Meet some people Win hackathon Successful Trip to the US Clemente and Moracio enter the US on the Visa Waiver Program Participate and win $100000 in the grand hackathon-Can they? Incorporate a company in the US- Should they? Keen on the business- tell me more Santiago Mexicano: Eng. graduate looking for a job Chong: Chinese PhD student 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com Have contacts with VC : Can I help Dr. Daring Chongs advisor and USC

Decisions to be made Best for Business vs. Best for Immigration Structure: Who will be CEO Investment: How little/much can we invest ? Funding: Can we get VCs to show interest ? School: Can we go to Grad/ MBA school? Can we work in the business while at school? Payouts: Salary ? Dividend? None? Business continuity: someone in France to manage? Travel between US and France? 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Scenario 1: Trio do not invest own $ in the business This is what they do Clemente French Developer; goes for MBA MoracioItalian Brillianto Hacker thinks school not worth it! Jean PaulFrench Technologist with business mindset comes to the US to meet VCs and gets Dr. Daring-USC on BOD VC What are available visa options? Clemente No Change of Status from VWP to F-1 F-1; 12 months OPT; then Choice: O-1 vs. H-1B OPT then H-1B Cap/Gap Quota What about Moracio the E-2? O-1-CEO? Jean Paul B-1 or VWP for now H-1B Santiago May work on TN Problems with H-1B? Remember-H-1B must be paid a certain salary 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Scenario 1: Trio do not invest own $ in What about the E-2-now that we have VC? the business But they do things differently Now, What are available visa options? Clemente Application Developer drops plan for school MoracioItalian Brillianto Hacker decides to opt for formal education Jean PaulFrench Technologist with business mindset manage the business from France-gets French VC 1. Moracio Cant join co. unless finishes school (Eng.) After school, 29 months OPT 2. Clemente Can be an E-2 employee as long as 50% co. owned by French nationals Moracio can work on OPT & have a minor stake in the company Problem with dual nationality if Moracio wants to come in on E-2; H-1B better? 3. Jean Paul Can come on E-2 L-1 after at least a year so long as French entity is active and affiliated with US co. 4. Santiago May work on TN 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Scenario 2: Trio do invest own $ in the business This is what they do Clemente Application Developer $ MoracioItalian Brillianto Hacker $$ Jean PaulFrench Technologist with business mindset $ What are available visa options? 1. E-2 for all So long as business in owned and controlled equally by nationals of both Treaty countries 2. H-1B for any Will benefit if at least 1 USC on BOD; and H-1B holder does not have majority stake 3. O-1 for Clemente & Moracio Possible. O-1 focused on individual more than company 4. Jean Paul L-1 after a year; may shuttle b/w US & France so long as majority work/time in US In all scenarios Santiago may work on TN 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Its not the end! There is a ton of useful stuff still available-heres where & how To win a 45 minutes free consultation (valid for the next 6 months), drop your business card and participate in a raffle! Visit my website at www.khandelwalaw.com. It has relevant and practical insights, informational videos, FAQs, and more. For specific questions about your case, email me at [email protected] Contact details are also available by scanning the QR code below: 3333 Bowers Avenue Suite 130 Santa Clara CA 95054 P: 001 408 200 0972 C: 001 408 505 2065 Fax: 001 408 624 4527 Email: [email protected] Web: www.khandelwalaw.com

Igniters Meetup Immigration Hacking: Solving Immigration puzzle for foreign-born Entrepreneurs Sweta Khandelwal Sponsored by: Hosted by: www.vorkspace.com - Workspace of the Future