Trump blocks US visa, Entrepreneurs and business people speak out

Entrepreneurs hoping to start new businesses in the US have spoken out against the Trump administration's moves to delay and possibly abandon a new US visa startup program. 

Due to start on July 17, the International Entrepreneur Visa Rule was spearheaded under President Obama and was designed to allow international entrepreneurs to secure funding from government grants and venture capital funding to run businesses in the US.

But its progress has been blocked by the Trump administration, who announced the new program would be delayed until at least March 18 while it is reviewed by the Department of Homeland Security, who are now considering abandoning it.

Sanwar Ali workpermit.com comments:

In most cases businessmen only have a limited number of options.   Probably L1A intra-company transfer Visa, E-2 Treaty Investor visa or EB5 immigrant investor.  Many people are unable to fit into these visa categories.   Another visa option for  businessmen would be very useful.   Some nationals such as Indians and Chinese cannot come under the E2 or E1 visa categories.  More business immigration leads to  more jobs and helps the US economy.
 

Other US visa options: E2 visa and L1 visa

In light of this news entrepreneurs may want to look into preexisting visa options, such as the E2 Treaty Investor, which some applicants may qualify for with an investment as small as $10,000. Applicants must be from one of several Treaty Investor Countries, the full list is on our E2 Treaty Investor page.

Alternatively the L1A Executive or Manager Visa allows those who have worked as executives and managers outside of the US for at least 1 year in the past 3 to enter the US for up to 7 years while establishing a new business, and can ultimately lead to a Green Card for permanent residence.

Speaking to the Guardian, travel blogger Andrew Halliday explains how the program's delay has damaged his plans to relocate to the US: “I’ve already spoken to a couple of investors … in principle we’d agreed to a $100,000 investment,” he said. “This has thrown [those plans] up in the air and puts everything on hold. There’s no point taking the money if I can’t move to the States. There are other ways of [doing that] but it becomes a lot more difficult and complicated.”

Business people urge Trump to keep new US visa program

A group of US investors and business people have written to Trump asking him to keep the new visa program, saying: “Immigrant entrepreneurs are a critical driver of increased economic activity, as they play an outsized role in new company creation in communities all across our country...

“Despite these contributions, the United States has pushed away many promising would-be immigrant entrepreneurs because we lack a dedicated “startup visa” that would help attract more of the world’s top entrepreneurs to create jobs in our communities.”

Trump's anti-immigrant stance

This move from Trump's aministration is the latest in a long line of anti-immigrant decisions. Workpermit.com reported last month how Trump's 'extreme vetting' could affect some H1B and L1 visa applicants.

Some applicants face having to fill out a new form – DS-5535 – which asks them to detail 5 years’ worth of social media accounts and email addresses. The form also requests 15 years of employment history and residencies, adding to the already long waiting time for these visas.

US still attractive option for visa investors

Despite these developments the US, with its large economy and ample business opportunities, remains very attractive to investors and business people looking to run a business on an E2 or L1 visa. Workpermit.com can handle the application process for these visas for you, giving you the best chance to branch out into the US market.

Workpermit.com can help with E1, E2, L1, H1B and B1 in lieu of H1B, B1 Business Visit Visas, E3 Visas and other types of US Visas

For more information, or to find out if you are eligible for a US work visa, contact WorkPermit.com on 0344 991 9222.