USA Residency for Founders

The two key routes available for ‘eXtrepreneurs’ (a term coined by D Globalist to mean foreign founders) are the L1A Visa and International Entrepreneur Rule Parole. “While the L-1A Visa is relevant for companies looking at expansion with their own capital, the lER Parole is a lesser-known category suitable for companies that could raise funds from investors in the States” says Divesh Sharma, Founder & CEO, D Globalist, a Global Business Mobility Accelerator.

The key eligibility for the USA L-1A Visa includes an existing company in the USA which can also be newly formed, which is related to the entity in the home country as a parent, branch, subsidiary or affiliate company. The residency permit under this program is given for one year for a new office and for three years for an existing office. Further, the same could be renewed for two years each for up to seven years in total.

In terms of converting the L-1A into a permanent Green Card through EB-1C, the USA government evaluates whether any progress has been made by the company and the ability of the company to pay adequate salary to the EB-1C applicant.

The second unheralded option for founders is the IER Parole which could be given to the founders who have raised at least USD 250,000 from a US Venture Capital/Angel Investor/Accelerator with a successful track record. The Parole is given for thirty months and could further be renewed for another thirty months subject to additional funding of USD 500,000 or creation of at least five full time jobs. Alternatively, during the renewal, the founders can prove that they have partially met the given two criteria and have made significant benefit to the United States. Notably, the pathway to Permanent Green card from Parole is still the EB-1 category discussed along with the L-1 program above.

Divesh Sharma of D Globalist further comments, “With the striving competition in the US, foreign entrepreneurs very often possess an edge over bringing new technologies at a competitive price.  As the demand for their products grows, they look at creating a permanent office and transfer one of the key personnel to lead the business operations. This journey from zero to one, is always a stepping stone for them to enter the global arena”.