Question about taking alternative Visa pathways

[Boiler 46,281]

An EB1 without sponsorship will be very difficult to pull off..!! Typically you need to show that you are renowned person who earns extraordinary salary etc..or have Nobel Prize or Emmy Awards or something like that.. bottom line extraordinary ability. You can find more information below:

http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/permanent-workers/employment-based-immigration-first-preference-eb-1

The only EB visa where you can self sponsor is EB2 has National Interest Waiver Category which is self sponsored but may not apply in your case.

http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/permanent-workers/employment-based-immigration-second-preference-eb-2

The last one is investment based EB5 category which needs $500K investment and may apply for you:

http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/permanent-workers/employment-based-immigration-fifth-preference-eb-5/eb-5-immigrant-investor

He is not self sponsoring.

[calvm 10]

Yeah - His company has 10+2 employee so sponsoring an EB1,2, or 3 visa or L1 will be an uphill task...!!

[fcacciola 0]

Hi,

I've been reading a lot, specially on EB1(a), including the analysis of a sample set of denied cases, so I am aware now of how long the shot is. Still, I never stop short of trying, so I will petition for it nonetheless.

Having said that, I will provide below much more detail, as maybe there are better (or additional) pathways to consider. This is a little long, but I need to explain all the following details to put the questions that will follow into context.

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In 1990 I started working professionally as a programmer, and during the 13 years that followed, I specialized and became a recognized expert on certain areas within my field (and by self learning at that). By 2003, I held international reputation as a leading expert on a couple of areas, so one day I recieved a request from US company "A" to program a specialized software component. The request came to me for being one of the few people worldwide with the expertise to do that, as researched by the lead developer at "A" which tried it first himself (and who was not an expert but significantly knowldegable on the subject). A few subsequent projects followed until I offered to company "A" my permanent services as a software engineer with expertise in such areas, remotely from Argentina.

However, instead of offering myself as an off-shore remote engineer, I funded sole-propietorship company "B" and offered the services of my company instead (which only employeed myself at the time). While I mantained a B2B relationship with "A", my actual operational duties (i.e. the service provided) was software engineering exactly as if I where a remote employee of "A". I only offered part-time work for "A" because I wanted "B" to grow independently.

Some years down road I meet another exceptional engineer, whom I knew because of his track record on the field, and who knew me because of mine, and he joined my company "B".

With time I mentored him onto the areas of expertise for which I funded "B" and over the years, I had several clients for short and mid sized projects, with me and my employee working on it. All while at the same time I kept my half-time commitment with "A". Eventually, I offered to "A" the services of my employee, so he became another remote engineer, operationally speaking, on the team within "A". Down the road, I hired more engineers some of which worked on projects for my company "B" and some I offered to "A" as additional remote engineers.

Today, it has been almost 12 years that my company "B" provides engineers, me included and now full time, to company "A". And given the nature of my area of expertise, my engineers and me ended up in charge of the core technology (which we call "the engine") on top of which the entire product line of "A" stands (in realiy, "A" is really big company with several software teams, so this refers to the product line of a certain group within "A")

This company "B" of mine which I funded in 2003 now focuses entirely on being a provider to "A". However, because of the very reputation that allowed me to fund "B" in the first place, and for which I had several other clients, I kept and keep recieving requests from all over the world (locally as well), so very recently I merged with local company "C". This is owned by a former coworker, felow engineer and friend from the 90's when I worked as an employee for a local company here. It is "C" the local company I refered to in my first post.

In the merge, I brought the *local* bussines of my company "B" into "C", and while I did say in the initial post that I "own a local company", in reality I am an employee executive manager of "C", not a partner.

With the principal owner of "C", we funded together company "D", the Florida LLC I mentioned in my first post. In "D", I brought the international bussines of my company "B". More precisely, the services to "A" that started it all.

One important fact is that besides all the companies involved, when it comes to day to day duties, I still perform, full-time, software engineering tasks for "A" just as I've been doing since 2003. So for "A", I am a remote member of their software team, only that with a special commercial arrangement (wich includes having other remote members of the software team under my wing)

Another important fact is that, when I merged with local "C" and funded US-based "D", I formally closed "B", and one significant consequence is that "B" paid taxes here in Argentina but "D" pays taxes in the US. So effectively, I am paying US taxes even though I do not live there. And it is non-trivial money since D now conducts all the international bussiness of my former "B" (services to "A") , and considering that, backed-up by my expertise and critical standing within "A", my hourly-rates are above USA standards. Considering that I live in Argentina, that translates, locally, into top executive level wages, way above even that of a CIO, spite of the fact that my duites are that of a software engineer (I'm taking into account here the profit I make from the engineers working under my wing in addition to my own hourly rates)

NOTE: techincally, D just started so I am billing "A" and will pay taxes in 2015.

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Keep in mind that in these details I am leaving out all the items that justify my claim for exceptional ability (publications, etc)

I naturally discussed my inmigration intent with "A", since like I said, from their POV, I am a remote worker with a special commercial arrangement (which is possible because of my highly critical contribution to their bussines). An H1B visa makes sense for them, naturally, but I deined that path because it would make me an ordinary employee. I managed to function as such but with a B2B relationship for 12 years and I won't give that up now.

Knowing my intent to petition EB1(a) and L1a, they offered whatever I need in terms of letters of recomendation, permision to fully disclose our commercial arrangement, etc...

But, given what "calvm" said about sponsorship, should I ask "A" to do something else? perhaps having them file the petition on my behalf? would that ruin my "independence"?

Would there be alternative paths that involve "A" but which do not result in myself tied as a depedent worker for A?

Lastly: I merged with "C" (the local company affiliated with "D", the LLC), just now, I will have to wait for a year before I can file for an L1a. That is the reason I expored other options and found EB1(a), which I can petition right away.

TIA

[Boiler 46,281]

In summary

You are good at, and make good money doing IT and need a US Immigration Layer that is good at and makes good money doing Immigration Law.

As you mentioned there are several different routes that can be considered, some you like more than others, some which may be more practical than others.

[fcacciola 0]

Makes sense

Then... my LLC partner had already consulted with an inmigration lawer, but I personally don't know her so let's say that I want to do my own research into hiring one.

In view of my concrete case as exposed so far, can you recommend one?

TIA

[Boiler 46,281]

http://www.jfonglaw.com/

He seems to have a good rep.

[fcacciola 0]

Thank you