H1B Layoff, want to start own

A

Arun Mehta

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I and my two friends were laid off today. Two of us are on H1 and the third is on GC. We want to start a new company of our own. How do we do that?

1. Can we start a company among ourselves and be H1 holders of the same company?

2. To sponsor H1 visas, does a company have any statutory requirements? Our company size is going to be 3 employees of which 2 will be on H1 at the start. Will this matter?

3. Will the above scenario matter for GC processing?

Thanks
 
new co.

many on this board must have had a similar thought.

Anyway, with ref. to q.3 (the effect on GC)

1. Can we start a company among ourselves and be H1 holders of the same company?

- \'oursleves\'? if you are going to be the owner, it will be real complicated to prove that the co. is not just for the benefit of taking advantage of GC. if your GC holder partner starts it , and applies for the H-1, fine. but when the time comes for the GC, and financial statements, again, it will not be impossible but rather more risky.

2. To sponsor H1 visas, does a company have any statutory requirements? Our company size is going to be 3 employees of which 2 will be on H1 at the start. Will this matter?

- as such not, but INS may ask for more details about the co., and how they are going to pay the H-1Bs before approving H-1B applications.
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INS frequently asks for information regarding new companies

Although a showing of ability to pay the offered wage is not a requirement for an H-1 filing, it does go to the existence of a valid job offer and compliance with the LCA. INS frequently asks for tax returns, payroll records, insurance certificates, mortgage/lease documents, photographs of the premises, and other documents to show corporate existence and viability. Since a new corporation would have none of those things, the corporation would have to show existing contracts and explain why there is work available for these new employees. It\'s possible but it won\'t be easy.

Jim
 
No Title

1. Can we start a company among ourselves and be H1 holders of the same company?
Yes you can all form a company. you both(h1\'s) can be share holders but cannot be a paid director. So you friend who has GC can be Director. Your company can sponsor your H1\'s. But you cannot sponsor your Green card because beneficiary cannot be in a position which can influence the hiring of a person in a company which sponsors a GC.
Another option would be for your GC friend to start a company and hire you both. That way even your GC can be sponsored.

2. To sponsor H1 visas, does a company have any statutory requirements? Our company size is going to be 3 employees of which 2 will be on H1 at the start. Will this matter?

company size does not matter. I know cases like this(2-3 employees).But you may have to prove your
company\'s capability to pay the employees. From what I heard even a Bank OD facility for about $200K could be good enough. Better to send email to Rajiv Khanna. He had given me a lot of details about this once. Better consult a lawyer he can guide you. But yes its possible if you have money.

3. Will the above scenario matter for GC processing?
As I said earlier if you are a director in a company then you cannot sponsor your GC through that company. It will be a fraud.
 
See http://www.usvisanews.com/faq-h1bstatus.html#h1bstatus-g

GCWAITER,

You said "company size does not matter. I know cases like this(2-3 employees).But you may have to prove your company\'s capability to pay the employees. From what I heard even a Bank OD facility for about $200K could be good enough." Wait a minute. Your statements are exactly opposite. Which way is it? Does size matter or not? In my experience, corporate size definitely matters and that is also echoed in the website that I referenced in the title above.

Jim
 
size matters..

Hi Jim,
 I am pasting info found in the url that you mentioned

***start paste******
      Just exactly how big and established did a company need to be since the law and regulations did not set minimums?"

The answer has never been, to date, provided by INS, but the responses on adjudications over the years have centered around a central issue: the company\'s ability to pay the wage. The cases which were approved most quickly were those with either the most employees (establishing a history of paying wages) or megastartups, with skyrocketing growth from day one.
****end paste******

From this article itself there is no set rules defining the size of the company(I mean no of employees) for approval of h1 petitions. What I said is 3 employees is OK. Size does matter. If H1 is going from Microsft or IBM, INS would\'nt want to see a pay or profit history. But smaller companies can get thier cases approved by providing proof of available funds, a good project plan/report,few orders/intent letters from bigger corporations and if possible previous year tax return to show profit.What INS would be mainly looking at is the companies capability to pay the H1 worker.
 
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