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I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

245 points proberts | 1 comments | 17 Oct 24 16:01 UTC | HN request time: 0.213s | source

I'll be here for the few hours and then again at around 1 pm PST for another few hours. As usual, there are countless possible topics and I'll be guided by whatever you're concerned with. Please remember that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases for obvious liability reasons because I won't have access to all the facts. Please stick to a factual discussion in your questions and comments and I'll try to do the same in my answers. Thanks!

Previous threads we've done: https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=proberts.

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ondrsh ◴[18 Oct 24 14:06 UTC] No.41879605[source]▶
Hello,

What options are available for an EU national who wants to start a U.S.-based company and relocate there but doesn’t have the capital required for an E-2 visa?

Let’s assume they start a U.S. company while staying in the EU, and the company is generating significant revenue. From what I understand, the E-2 visa requires the investment to come from the entrepreneur’s personal funds. While they could pay out dividends and reinvest them to meet this requirement, this feels like an odd hack (it might also take much longer depending on when the financial year ends). Is there a more straightforward way for EU citizens to move to the U.S., given they have a successful U.S.-based startup? How is this done in practice?

replies(2): >>41879836 #>>41898359 #
1. preflight ◴[18 Oct 24 14:34 UTC] No.41879836[source]▶
IANAL: The correct approach here would be an O-1 Visa. Assuming your 'significant revenue' has also garnered you some level of public attention.

You also likely need some form of public recognition (awards, press etc).