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

199 points proberts | 1 comments | 16 May 25 15:05 UTC | HN request time: 0s | source

I'll be here for the next 5-6 hours. As usual, there are countless topics given the rapidly changing immigration landscape and I'll be guided by whatever you're concerned with. Please remember that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases because I won't have access to all the facts. Please stick to a factual discussion in your questions and I'll try to do the same in my answers.

Edit: I am taking a break now and will return later this afternoon/evening to respond to any comments and answer any questions. Thank you everyone for a great and engaged AMA so far.

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fooker ◴[16 May 25 16:11 UTC] No.44007138[source]▶
Are O1 visa applications getting significantly more scrutiny nowadays?

I comfortably qualify for one, based on the USCIS criteria, but my employer (big tech company, big law firm for immigration) wants to wait one more year for another H1B attempt before trying this.

Hence I am wondering if switching jobs could potentially help here.

replies(2): >>44007397 #>>44007842 #
bubblethink ◴[16 May 25 17:20 UTC] No.44007842[source]▶
O1 is an inferior visa, so they are right that you should be trying for H1B before going for an O1. I'm assuming that you are on OPT or some other visa category. There is likely no advantage to getting an O1 in your current situation.
replies(1): >>44008443 #
fooker ◴[16 May 25 18:26 UTC] No.44008443{3}[source]▶
> likely no advantage

Freedom to travel. Can't realistically renew F1.

replies(2): >>44008565 #>>44009720 #
bogzz ◴[16 May 25 20:51 UTC] No.44009720{4}[source]▶
Seriously? I can't renew it? I'm just at the start of my OPT, I can't not visit home for 3 years ...
replies(1): >>44010322 #
1. fooker ◴[16 May 25 22:27 UTC] No.44010322{5}[source]▶
Well, in theory you can. In practice it gets rejected so often that it's not worth risking unless you have a solid backup plan.