If you got money, you got Visa!

New Potential Policy? If you got money, you got Visa!

Just last month, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (known as USCIS) proposed a new rule, which would allow certain international entrepreneurs to be considered for parole (temporary permission to be in the United States) so that they may start or scale their businesses in the United States of America.

But please keep in mind that it is JUST A PROPOSED RULE, not the law yet.  The way it works is that once the notice of proposed rulemaking is published in the Federal Register, the public will have 45 days from the date of publication to comment. Anybody can submit comment and you should follow the instructions in the notice to do so.

The federal government says that the idea behind this proposed rule is to create jobs, attract investment and generate revenue in the United States of America.

The proposed rule would allow the Department of Homeland Security (known as DHS) to use its existing discretionary statutory parole authority for entrepreneurs of startup entities whose stay in the United States would provide a significant public benefit through the substantial and demonstrated potential for rapid business growth and job creation.

Requirements?

Under this proposed rule, DHS may parole, on a case-by-case basis, eligible entrepreneurs of startup enterprises:

• Who have a significant ownership interest in the startup (at least 15 %) and have an active and central role to its operations;
• Whose startup was formed in the United States within the past three years; and
• Whose startup has substantial and demonstrated potential for rapid business growth and job creation, as evidenced by:
• Receiving significant investment of capital (at least $345,000) from certain qualified U.S. investors with established records of successful investments;
• Receiving significant awards or grants (at least $100,000) from certain federal, state or local government entities; or
• Partially satisfying one or both of the above criteria in addition to having other reliable and compelling evidence of the startup entity’s substantial potential for rapid growth and job creation.

Under the proposed rule, entrepreneurs may be granted an initial stay of up to two years to oversee and grow their startup entity in the United States. A subsequent request for re-parole (for up to three additional years) would be considered only if the entrepreneur and the startup entity continue to provide a significant public benefit as evidenced by substantial increases in capital investment, revenue or job creation. 

The notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register invites public comment for 45 days, after which USCIS will address the comments received.  The proposed rule does not take effect with the publication of the notice of proposed rulemaking.  It will take effect on the date indicated in the final rule when a final rule is published in the Federal Register.

You can read the full proposed rule at:

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Articles/FR_2016-20663_793250_OFR.pdf

You should remember that this article is not intended to provide you with legal advice; it is intended only to provide guidance about immigration.  Furthermore, the article is not intended to explain or identify all potential issues that may arise in connection with business visas, investors’ visas or other immigration cases.  Each case is fact-specific and therefore similar cases may have different outcomes.

I represent individuals in immigration cases.  If you have any questions or concerns about an immigration case or potential case, you can call me at (315) 422-5673, send me a fax at (315) 466-5673, or e-mail me at joseperez@joseperezyourlawyer.com. The Law Office of Jose Perez is located at 120 East Washington Street, Suite 925, Syracuse, New York 13202. Now with offices in Buffalo and Rochester!!! Please look for my next article in the October edition.