1. Visa and Permanent Residence Options Visa and Permanent Residence Options for the Entrepreneurial Student Suzanne Seltzer, Esq. Kate Kalmykov, Esq. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Philadelphia New York 1800 JFK Blvd., 17 th Floor317 Madison Ave., Suite 1518 Philadelphia, PA 19103 New York, NY 10017 215.825.8600 212.796.8840 www.klaskolaw.com

2. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP 2009-2010 Issues ■ Fewer job offers ■ H-1B quota ■ Effect of TARP requirements on H-1Bs ■ Impact of layoffs ■ Increased opportunities for investors and entrepreneurs

3. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Basic requirements Procedure and processing times Specialty occupation issues Part-time or full-time Length of approval Extensions Portability Travel

4. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Quota What is it and what does it mean? Who is not subject to the quota?  Universities  Nonprofit institutions affiliated with universities  Employed “at” university  Nonprofit or government research organization  Previous H-1B under cap  Concurrent employment Strategies and timing

5. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP The H-1B and TARP Recipients Under the Employ American Workers Act:  Banks and other companies that receive TARP funds or credit directly from the Federal Reserve System must make "H-1B Dependent Employer" attestations on the Labor Condition Applications  Additional attestations required on the USCIS portion of the application

6. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP The H-1B and TARP Recipients H-1B employers must attest that:  They took good faith steps to recruit U.S. workers  No U.S. worker was displaced by the H-1B worker either at the employer's worksite or at any outside worksite where the employer has placed an H-1B worker.

7. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP The H-1B and TARP Recipients  Does not apply to H-1B extensions  2 year program, ending on February 16, 2011  Does not apply to Change of Status if employee is already working with employer  No clear guidance on whether it applies to employers who have repaid TARP funds  List of TARP recipients is available at: http://www.financialstability.gov/latest/reportsanddocs. html  (Note: This Web site lists recipients of TARP funding, but not recipients of direct Federal Reserve credit, so it is not all-inclusive).

8. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP TARP and Student Issues TARP provisions apply only to H-1B employees:  Students working on OPT not affected  Other Nonimmigrant visa categories not affected

9. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Issues for Start-Up Business  Must establish company with employer tax I.D. number  Company can be 100% owned by H-1B employee  Must be W-2 employee  Company separate entity from owner/employee

10. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Issues for Start-Up Business Company must prove  Financial ability to pay salary  Profits and/or capitalization  Real job to be done by H-1B  Place of business (cont’d)

11. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Issues for Start-Up Business Importance of business plan/financial projections Other employees helpful – not required (but currently an uphill battle) Prevailing Wage  CEO vs. function-descriptive position (cont’d)

12. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP H-1B Issues for Start-Up Business H-1B Quota  Past years- lottery  2009- visas still available  What it means for you  Employment during “cap gap” (cont’d)

13. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E) Visas ■ Must be national of treaty country  http://www.travel.state.gov./visa http://www.travel.state.gov./visa ■ Company must be owned at least 50% by treaty country nationals

14. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP (cont’d) Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E) Visas  Visa for 1 to 5 years  Each entry limited to two years  Visa and entry can be extended indefinitely  No quota  Spouse can work

15. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP ■Treaty traders (E-1)  “Substantial” import or export  Majority between U.S. and treaty country  Can be manager, supervisor or “essential skill” employee (cont’d) Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E) Visas

16. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP ■ Treaty investors (E-2)  “Substantial” investment  No exact amount  Varies depending upon type of investment  Business plan and financial projections critical (cont’d) Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E) Visas

17. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E) Visas ■ Treaty investors (E-2)- cont.  Relevant issues  Amount of investment  Number of employees  Needs of business  Likely profitability and growth potential

18. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP ■ Visa applicant can be  Investor or  Manager, supervisor or essential employee (cont’d) Other Nonimmigrant (Temporary) Options Treaty (E)

19. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Intracompany Transferee (L-1) Visas ■National of any country ■No quota ■Length of visa  Start up 1 year  Established business 3 years  Maximum length 7 years for L-1A or 5 years for L-1B

20. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Intracompany Transferee (L-1) Visas ■Spouse can work ■Must be “international” business  Business outside U.S. with at least 50% common ownership  Must be employed by that business one year ■Type of employment (in U.S. and overseas companies)  Manager or executive  “Specialized knowledge” employee (cont’d)

21. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Intracompany Transferee (L-1) Visas (cont’d) Start-up issues  Place of business  Employees  Capitalization  Need for “manager”  Business plan and financial projections

22. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Extraordinary Ability (O-1) Visas ■National or international renown ■“One of a few at the top of his peers” ■Must be employer or agent  Can own company ■Length of visa  3 years  1 year extensions  Can extend indefinitely

23. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Termination of Employment Upon termination, non-immigrant employee loses legal status. May be required to leave the U.S. unless the employee finds a new employer willing to file a new petition on their behalf on a timely basis, or is able to obtain a different nonimmigrant status.  No grace period  Certain employees (H-1B, O-1) terminated before the end of their period of authorized stay are entitled to “reasonable costs” of return transportation to last country of residence

24. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Family Employment Investment Asylum Lottery

25. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Quotas Per country of birth, per preference category, per fiscal year Filing date is “priority date” Job requirements and not your credentials determine the preference category

26. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Residency Quotas, Where Are We Now? Visa Bulletin for December 2009 All Chargeability Areas Except Those Listed CHINA- mainland born INDIAMEXICO PHILIPP- INES Employment Based 1stCCCCC 2ndC22MAR0522JAN05 CC 3rd01JUN0222FEB0215APR0101MAY0201JUN02 Other Workers 01JUN01 15APR0101JUN01 4thCCCCC

27. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Quotas EB-1 (extraordinary ability, outstanding researcher or professor multinat’l manager)  No quota wait EB-2  National Interest Waiver  Labor certification requiring Advanced degree + Exceptional ability  No quota wait, except China and India EB-3  Labor certification requiring BA or 2 yrs experience  Long quota wait for all countries (cont’d)

28. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment Employer-sponsored or self-sponsored Labor certification or extraordinary/national interest/exceptional Multiple petitions

29. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment Self-Sponsored  Extraordinary Ability EB-1 Extensive documentation required Reference letters critical (cont’d)

30. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment Extraordinary Ability/EB-1 (I-140, filing fee $475)  “One of a Few at the Top”  Factors Considered in Initial Evaluation Publications Material/ Press About the Work Conference Presentations Judge of the Work of Others High Salary References from Independent Experts Documenting Regulatory Criteria  Preparation/Processing Times

31. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment  National Interest Waiver EB-2 Standard  Exceptional ability or advanced degree  National priority  National impact (cont’d)

32. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment National Interest Waiver/EB-2 (I-140, filing fee $475)  Three Prong Test Field is of Substantial Intrinsic Merit National Impact of Your Contributions You Are “Substantially Better” Than Your Peers  Extensive documentation required  Reference letters critical

33. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment Employer-Sponsored  Outstanding Researcher or Professor EB-1 “Permanent position” Similar to extraordinary ability  Multinational Manager EB-1 Same as L-1A except must be manager or executive overseas (cont’d)

34. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment  Labor Certification Application (PERM) EB-2 or EB-3 Employer must:  Pay attorney fees and advertising costs  Define “minimum requirements”  Engage in required recruitment (approximately 4-5 months)  Interview U.S. worker applicants  Prove unavailability of qualified, interested, and available U.S. worker  Pay prevailing wage  Not available to owner of business (cont’d)

35. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Termination of Employment Implications depend on where you are in the permanent residency process Certain cases can “port” to a new employer

36. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) http://www.eb5immigration.com http://www.eb5immigration.com No quota delay Amount of investment  $1,000,000 or  $500,000 in “targeted employment area”

37. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Type of investment  Generally cash  “At risk”  Cannot use debt with investment enterprise as collateral (cont’d)

38. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Type of business  Active business  New business or expansion of existing business  40% increase in net worth or number of employees (cont’d)

39. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Employment creation  10 new or 10 additional full-time jobs  U.S. citizens or permanent residents  Saving 10 jobs in “troubled business” (cont’d)

40. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Lawful source of funds  Extensive documentation required  Can be gift Must prove giftor's source of funds (cont’d)

41. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Nature of investor’s relationship to business  Do not have to be employee (but can)  Do not have to be owner (but can)  Cannot be purely passive  Limited partner ok (cont’d)

42. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Investment (EB-5) Two possibilities  Individual investment  See above  Regional center investment  Approximately 30 USCIS – approved regional centers  $500,000 investment  Indirect employment creation ok (cont’d)

43. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Permanent Resident Status Employment I-485 (Application for Adjustment of Status to Permanent Resident)  Cannot file until quota is current  Importance of filing Can file for spouse and child Can get Employment Authorization Document (EAD) (cont’d)

44. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP Questions ?

45. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP For Further Information Suzanne Seltzer, Esq. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP sseltzer@klaskolaw.com Kate Kalmykov, Esq. Klasko, Rulon, Stock & Seltzer, LLP kkalmykov@klaskolaw.com 212-796-8840 (New York) www.klaskolaw.com