This is an All Ears English podcast episode 1689.
How to get the elusive startup visa to the United States with Tamina Watson.
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Where there's a will, there's a way.
If you are a company founder or if you have a big business idea, the US is still a great place to immigrate.
Today I interview Tamina from Tamina Talks Immigration Podcast about the many ways you can secure a visa to the US as an entrepreneur or a highly skilled employee.
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Hello, Tamina.
Welcome to All Ears English.
How are you today?
I'm well, Lindsay.
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm honored and grateful.
Yeah, I'm so excited.
When I found your website and I found you online I thought you would be a great match for our audience.
I think our audience is going to be really excited to meet you guys today on the show.
We have Tamina Watson from Watson Immigration Law and Tamina is based in Seattle, Washington.
Tamina, how did you get into immigration law?
Well, such a great question.
You know, I am originally from the UK.
I was born and raised there.
For a little while in my life, I did live in Bangladesh.
So I'd already had the immigrant experience, so to speak, living in different countries.
But I met the love of my life in Seattle when I was visiting and I had my own sleepless in Seattle moment.
Tell us about that.
You know, I was visiting the United States in 2002 and I was set up on a blind date with my husband.
Wow.
And then we had a long distance relationship for three years.
And then eventually we got married and I had to move here.
And that's where the story begins.
I was a lawyer, a barrister in the UK.
And I was very new.
A barrister is a trial attorney.
Until George Clooney married one.
Nobody knew really what a barrister does, but he did.
He did me a favor by marrying one and so i moved here and i had to figure out how to become a lawyer again, but just to move here.
Uh, similar to many of your audience members, i had to go through the immigration process of living in another country.
So when I went through the immigration process myself, my husband sponsored me.
I eventually got a green card, but I also simultaneously had to figure out how to become a lawyer again in a new country.
And long story short, I did take the bar exams and I started practicing immigration law in the US.
And I didn't actually want to practice immigration law as a trial attorney, a barrister in the UK.
I thought, maybe I needed to be a litigator.
But life has a funny way of making you do what you're supposed to do.
It really did.
You know, I realized immigration is my calling.
And the reason it is my calling is because it is a challenging area of law.
It is a very rewarding area of law because I see the direct impact on my clients from beginning to end.
Oh, for sure.
It's life-changing for them.
It impacts generations.
And I deal with the most important things in their lives, their livelihoods or their loved ones.
I love that.
Once they come to the US, you know, they can make their American dream come true.
And so that's how I fell into immigration.
I went into it kicking and screaming but have not looked back.
I love that.
You're right, it really does touch a deep place in your clients hearts right, this is so important.
It's where they're based, where they're living, what job opportunities they have And whether or not they can be with the loves of their lives.
Right.
That's the key.
That's what immigration is all about.
So I have kind of a because it sounds like you focus kind of on the area of founders law.
Right.
And so we're helping company CEOs or people with an idea be able to immigrate.
I want to ask you kind of a philosophical question here.
Tamina, because we know politics change over time, things change, economies change.
Would you say that the United States is still the place to go if you have an idea, a tech business idea or just a business idea in general?
What are your thoughts on that?
That is such a good question.
And it has come up so many times in the last four years, particularly.
And what I will first say is I have a podcast called Tamina Talks Immigration.
And my last series was about the startup visa.
And in that series I asked various thought leaders on this subject matter to speak on this very question.
And so, in addition to what I will say in just a moment, your listeners will find a lot of information and insights from thought leaders and experts on the subject.
Now, to come to the question itself, why is America still the place to be for startups?
The reason is it is relatively easy to set a company in the United States, whereas it is not the same for other countries.
It is true that if you work hard here, with the right strategy, you can actually make something of yourself and your company, which is still not true about other countries.
Okay.
In America, you also have the resources that you would not have elsewhere.
Number one resource, you have a consumer base that is all of America.
And if you can make it in America, chances are you'll make it somewhere else.
And with technology, the world is your oyster in terms of your reach.
Resources also means the guidance, the support and the funding.
Right.
Yes.
In the United States.
And Lindsay, in your local area, there are some renowned people who are in the startup space.
And I want to give a big shout out to a venture capitalist, a thought leader and a very insightful person.
His name is Brad Feld.
He is in Colorado and he wrote the foreword for my book, The Startup Visa.
So for your audience, The Startup Visa is also a book that came out in July.
It is on Amazon, Barnes and Nobles and anywhere else that you can get books.
I love it.
And so what happens is you need so many things when you have a startup.
You need the technology help, the guidance to grow, the funding to grow, the insights of how to reach your consumer base.
And America has the thought leaders on this subject matter.
And so why is America still the best place?
It's because the American dream still is true.
Despite what you hear in the news about politics, it is still the place to be.
And, by and large, while there is so much divisiveness going on, the American people as a whole are still great people.
Yes, yes.
It is so interesting because when you hear an immigrant speak and I will have a very interesting guest in the near future I met him at a conference.
Met this person at a conference recently.
And what was interesting is this person said while there are just so many things that you know make you think twice about america, there are also so many things that make you want to be here and nowhere else.
Yeah, i love that.
I love that for your listeners.
You know, it is important to know that you can.
You can have a startup here, and it doesn't mean you can't have it elsewhere too.
There is a strategy that is being harnessed by many different countries called the startup visa, called the startup program.
And, depending on which country you go to, they are rolling out the red carpet for people who are going to create innovation and create jobs.
Sure.
These countries, they want innovation.
Right.
So I love it.
But it sounds it's encouraging to me to know.
It sounds like it's really the whole thing.
It's the infrastructure.
The startup incubators are still here.
Right.
They are here.
They're alive and well.
The mentors, the investors, the capital, the actual money is here, and the community that you could sell to is definitely here.
So that is really good to know Tamina.
I mean, I love the world of startups and founders and the way they think.
I just love it.
And I know a lot of our listeners today might have a dream to start a company someday and possibly immigrate to the US or elsewhere.
So let's get into the next part of the interview here.
What would you say are the three things that our listeners should know if they're planning to seek this possibly elusive founder's visa to get into the US.
Because I'm guessing it's not an easy process to go through the paperwork.
Am I right?
Yes, absolutely.
You're absolutely right.
First of all, America does not have a founder's visa or a startup visa.
We do not have it.
But what we do have is the closest second best option when it comes to a startup visa.
It is called the International Entrepreneur Program.
This was created by President Obama through regulation.
It was taken away by the previous administration and then reinstated by President Biden in May of this year.
Okay, tell us about that.
I would direct people to again read my book.
There is an entire chapter on this subject matter and all the things they need to know.
But, in summary, if you have never been in the United States And you do not necessarily have a company outside the country,
You have set up something here and you've received funding.
One of the things that's very important for your listeners to know is American funders.
American venture capitalists, American angel investors have created funds around the world because they want to reach you.
And if you have funding from any one of these investors, you could possibly use that funding to come to the US.
And so the criteria is that you have to have a central role in this company, this new company that must have a visible location in the United States, with entity formation and so forth.
You must have at least 10 of the company.
Your company must have received at least 250000 in fundraising from either one venture capitalist or an angel or multiple.
You can add it up to 250 or it could be one 250 investment.
And you have to show that you will be creating jobs.
You will have rapid growth.
I will direct people to my website blog watsonimmigrationlawcom slash blog and sign up there to receive our updates.
But within that, you can type in keywords, startup visa, international entrepreneur.
And you will get a lot of information.
Got it.
I will also say that I am a contributor to Entrepreneur Magazine.
So follow me there.
I already have some articles on this particular subject matter.
And you will find this fountain of information that you can find if you just Google my name.
But that's what the... founders option is if they can't fit into some of the already existing visas.
So you asked about a top three.
And so what I will say if you already have a company somewhere in the world And you have worked for that company for at least one year out of the last three years,
And that business is active and operating.
You are an executive or a manager.
You could use that company to open a branch or a subsidiary in the US.
Got it.
And you can transfer.
It's called multinational transfer.
I'm just giving you the headline here.
It's very complicated and lots of it.
It's complicated.
But the headline will suffice for this conversation.
Now, if you are from a country that has a treaty with the United States, a treaty of commerce with the United States,
And India does not have one.
China does not have one.
But Pakistan does.
These countries and the citizens of these countries can come to the United States on what's called an E-2 visa.
You do not have to have had an established company in wherever you are from, but you can create something brand new and you can invest your own money.
And it has to be a rule of thumb is $100,000.
But we have done it for a little less.
I don't want to say how less.
I want people to walk away with $100,000 in mind.
You have to own at least 51% of your company to maintain the validity of this visa.
But you can use this visa category to get here and then seek funding.
These are the top things I will mention.
The other thing that I will add is the H-1B visa.
And what's that one?
The H-1B visa is for professionals, high skilled professionals who want to work in the U.S.
Typically, you must have an employer.
And, you know, I live in Seattle.
Microsoft is here.
Amazon is here.
You know, a lot of the tech Fortune 500 companies are here.
H-1B visas are the predominant visa that is used in this country for lawyers, engineers, doctors.
Okay.
Are researchers on that visa too, or is that a different visa?
Okay, scientists.
No, researchers.
Yes, scientists can do this.
Anybody who's a professional, who has a degree, at least a minimum of a bachelor's degree, and you have a job that utilizes the education and training you've received to get that degree.
Now, this can be self-employed too, but...
I'm again giving you the headline read my book, because all of these visas are explained a little bit more in depth than that.
And the problems that founders face when they look at these visas.
However, what I ask people to do is look at the problems I describe and make sure you strategize with those problems in mind, so your case is successful.
Exactly.
So H-1B, L-1 visa...
E2 visa and the International Entrepreneur Program.
Those are the top four visas I would ask people to look at.
All right.
Got it.
Thank you, Tamina.
It sounds like there are a lot of different paths that our listeners could take.
But the key, I want to leave our listeners.
Do you have a final thought here to me?
I mean, certainly guys, obviously you need to work with some kind of an immigration lawyer.
If you're going to do this, you can't do this by yourself.
I would imagine.
But do you have anything to leave our listeners with in terms of sort of a very high level philosophy when you are looking to immigrate, especially as a founder, as an idea person, right?
Because this idea person thinks in a slightly different way than other people.
Is there anything that they should keep in mind?
Where there's a will, there's a way.
I love that you love startups and your audience listeners are startups.
I have to think about this quite often because people ask me this question often.
Why is it that startups light me up?
It's because exactly what you said, they're thinking differently.
I find myself doing that too.
And for your listeners' benefit.
I was just recently named one of the top immigration lawyers for tech startups in the US by Business Insider.
I was very, very honored.
Congratulations.
Yes, I was very honored.
But what I realized is when I was starting my law firm in 2009, which is when I realized how many people wanted to start their own startups and did not have the ability.
I realized that I am an entrepreneur just like them.
My craft is my law firm, but every pain point that they go through and they probably go through more because they have to raise funds
I don't have to do it necessarily in that way, but it's the same trajectory in the initial steps we have to take.
And because I have worked with so many startups, I am now able to give them guidance.
And I just give guidance on immigration.
That's what my craft is.
But I know that person so well.
I am able to hold their hand tightly when all of this feels overwhelming to them.
I love it.
Guide them through it.
Yes.
So thank you so much for the opportunity to be able to share that.
Sure.
Of course.
I think you're right.
This special way of thinking is something we need to kind of nurture and help this person along right.
Save the idea, keep the idea intact and help this person get through the paperwork and the what can feel very hard at times.
So, all right, Tamina, could you let our listeners know where they could find you online?
We've already mentioned a couple of things.
You're booked, but is there one single place you'd like them to go now, just if they are ready to dive into knowing more about how to get this process started for themselves?
Sure.
I would say the easy way to connect is LinkedIn.
It's just a great place for professionals to connect.
So find me on LinkedIn and you can connect there.
But my website is how you can really connect with me.
My website is watsonimmigrationlaw.com, and we have a contact page.
But there's so much information you'll find if you just Google my name. on this particular issue.
I've been writing for over a decade on all of this and advocating for a visa for startup founders.
My book, the book that I just mentioned is the second edition, actually, that just came out in July.
But follow me on on Entrepreneur Magazine.
I have a bi-weekly column in a national legal magazine called Above the Law.
And of course, my podcast.
I think everybody listening should absolutely listen to the most recent season or series on my podcast, Tamina Talks Immigration.
Because there are VCs on that show.
There are policy think tanks on the show.
There are people who are from incubators and accelerators on the show.
People who have any type of connection to startups are brought together in one spot because you can hear their voices and understand why they think you're important.
Yes, I love it.
And I'm just going to end for our listeners with this idea where there's a will, there's a way.
If you have an idea and you have the energy, you want to bring something to life.
There is a way to get here and to start your company.
So good.
Thanks for coming on the show today, Tamina.
I really appreciate it.
It's been great meeting you.
Thank you so much, Lindsay.
It's my honor.
All right.
Take care.
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