Ask HN: Options for foreign hackers looking to work in the US? | Hacker News Reader

Ask HN: Options for foreign hackers looking to work in the US?

Using a throwaway because I don't want the discussion to be centered around me personally (although my account is 1k+ days old)

I'm sure I'm not alone in being frustrated seeing all of these posts and discussions on how hot the job market is for software developers in the US.

Rather than suffer in silence, I figured we could have a real discussion about what the practical options are for those of us who are non-US citizens.

If the market is as crazy as everyone seems to be saying lately, why aren't more US startups looking to hire people from abroad?

Is it impossible for a startup to sponsor an employment visa?

For those of you who are not native US citizens but are currently working in the US, how did you get there?

What is a realistic way for a skilled software developer to come to the US?

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I am also interested on more information on this matter. I see some companies specify in the job post that they are willing to help you relocate but haven't heard much talk about this.

I know this process is not really cheap (+20k) for the company and surely not a walk in the park but would it be more appealing for the company if the job applicant would agree to pay all the expenses related? Possibly this way it will (I think) be treated as any other local applicant.

Are there any other road blocks beside the costs involved? How long would the process take (without the interview)?

I am not an expert in the matter but here is what I have learnt/heard about it:

- There are costs involved in the whole process, I usually hear 15K-20K (could be more)

- Committing ~20K upfront for an employee who you don't know much about involves risk. Hiring & firing becomes complicated and involves attorneys.

- Depending on what country the employee is in, there are different quotas for visas and they fill up very quickly. I know this is the case for India, not sure about other countries.

- Another potential problem I can think of is what percent of your workforce is non-US. I believe there are laws around that too.

All this being said, I have thought about this and a few of my founder friends. Most of the H1B hires I have seen is students who come to US for MS and get the visas. I don't know anyone who was hired from their native country and relocated to US. There might be some cases though.

Yes, the risks are high for the employer especially if it comes to such high fees, so I assume by letting the employee to make the pay, there won't be any (high) risks. Of course this might not be possible for everyone but would be good to have it as an option.

Will just assume that getting the Visa won't be a problem. At least in my country not.

Hopefully will have the _pleasure_ to try the system soon.

The most common way is to come to the US to study first, say for a Master's degree, and then look for a job while still in the US, before graduation.

Other than that, you have to look for a company that would hire you from overseas and sponsor an H-1B visa. The company has to prove that it couldn't find any qualified Americans to do the job.

This might be difficult, especially if a face-to-face interview is required, which it is in most cases. Then, to come for a face-to-face interview to the US, you legally must not have an intention to stay and work in the US, since you're coming as a "visitor/tourist". It's a Catch-22 situation.

The company has to prove that it couldn't find any qualified Americans to do the job.

Can you please link to an official document that states this? Because i thought the only relevant clause was not paying the Visa holder less than what an American would get. In other words, the Visa sponsor must pay market rates.

Edits: Sorry, bad connection.

Sorry, I gave wrong information. For H-1B, the company doesn't have to prove this. I confused it with an employer-sponsored green-card application process.

If you're a dev that is good enough to work for a solid startup then you have the (technical) skills to found a startup yourself. Don't have any ideas? I'm sure there are entrepreneurial people in your country who look for technical co-founders.

Personally, I think that a good compromise is for foreign devs to become technical co-founders with others who are based in SV.

The issue is that all the devs here have a great job market to pick from - and there are a ton of startups looking for technical folks who cant compete with BigCo for devs.

Further, there is so much energy (money, interest, thought, etc) flowing in the startup space right now. Get into/form a company here - build an MVP, get funding, sponsor your own visa or at least regular visits (trust me, the living costs are really high here).

I know I am looking to connect with people.

This is nearly impossible with current US immigration laws. You can be a founder of the company (i.e. an investor), but you cannot legally work for the company, or you violate your visitor immigration status.

Not convinced that's true, what's the reasoning that your own company can't sponsor your visa ?

http://www.quora.com/Can-a-H1B-holder-work-for-a-startup-as-...

That would only seem to apply in the case where you own the majority of the company, so it wouldn't seem to apply to cases where >2 co-founders or 2 co-founders + investors exist.

Can the company license the code from you for a monthly license fee (Annual license fee + support and maintenance (e.g. beenfits) / into monthly mapyments)

I suppose it can, but the code would have to be written prior to that and/or outside the US. The bottom line is that you can't work for money in the US, whether for yourself or somebody else, if you don't have a proper work visa. And you can't get a proper work visa, unless a company sponsors it for you. And you can't sponsor your own work visa.

Of course the code was written prior, it says so right there in the comments

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