USCIS made a very surprise announcement on August 2nd that allows aspiring entrepreneurs to start their single-person startup in the US and at the same time qualify to apply for a green card under the EB2 category or get an H1-B visa. This is for ANYONE out there that qualifies for the H1-B or EB2 and wishes to start a business.
For the thousands that are waiting in the line for an EB3 visa or have an H1-B visa but want to start their own business. This has been a very sore point that we all know about and I’ve written about on this blog many times. For those that have followed this issue for years, August 2, 2011 marks a VERY VERY important step forward.
Long story short, if you really want to start your business, now there is nothing stopping you from doing it. Read the USCIS post carefully, consult with an attorney and get going! It’s imortant to consult with an attorney because the process of qualifying for it and establishing the employer-employee relationship that is required for this route is NOT CLEAR and most of us are confused about it. It’s so new that there are no right answers at this point but experienced attorneys have dealt with it and can recommend the right way to handle the petition.
USCIS is really making some strides. Hats off to Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano and Director of USCIS Alejandro Mayorkas for coming up with PRACTICAL solutions that make sense for the country and are possible to implement immediately outside of major changes to the law.
As immigrants, knowing that the possibility of running our own business is out of limit forces us to curb our creative side and limit our option to the corporate career. Break out of that mode today. Let your imagination run wild and chase your dreams!
