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0/ 71% of tech workers in Silicon Valley are foreign (!!). Yet, most founders don't know how to best prepare for the visa process. And the shifts in policy under the current administration are just confusing things further. Here is a short list of things to keep in mind (thread)
1/ Know the basic visa processes that your company will very likely have to be responsible for. H-1B, F-1 OPT/STEM OPT, and PERM/Adjustment of Status – these acronyms shouldn’t sound like gibberish to you.
2. Know that onboarding someone on a visa takes a lot of time and planning. You cannot expect instant onboarding, that is totally unrealistic and puts the company at risk of non-compliance and the potential employee in a place where they may violate their visa status.
3. Have an immigration policy that lays out what benefits the company will and will not support. Especially what you’re offering employees on green card support and family support, those are two of the biggest drivers in determining whether to join a company re: immigration.
4. Be careful w/ public job descriptions. USCIS will google your positions, and postings should match with what you’re submitting to the government. Work with an immigration lawyer to make it detailed and specific from the get-go before you use it to recruit H-1B workers.
5. Think about budgeting from the beginning. When you hire someone on a visa, you are committing to renewing the visa, processing the green card, and possibly supporting that individual’s family members. Understand full cost, so that you can budget for a few years down the line.
6. Take compliance seriously. Create I-9 records for all your employees (US citizens or not) and Public Access Files for your H-1B visa holders ....
... You never know if an employee will file a complaint that will bring inquiry from government agencies. In addition, unannounced onsite visits by the government to check on your compliance have risen dramatically.
7. Take what you submit to the government seriously. You can’t just change work sites, job titles, compensations, etc. for foreign employees at will. Some of these changes (even promotions) may require the filing of a visa amendment. Ignorance is not a defense to non-compliance.
8. Good luck!! (btw, I am not a lawyer, but I consulted two good immigration lawyers when putting this together :)
