“The positive impact that immigrant entrepreneurs and engineers have had on our economy is profound. They establish one-quarter of U.S. technology startup companies and the jobs that come with this growth. They are critical for U.S. competitiveness in the global economy.”

Statement to TechNet from John Doerr of the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers

For the past two decades, we have been advising employers on how to best retain the global talent. We work closely with our clients to design immigration strategies that overcome the obstacles typically faced by small-businesses immigration petitioners. Below are the four most commonly utilize work visa options:

• H1B Work Visa

  This is the standard professional work visa. The biggest issue is the H1B cap: there’s only 65,000 issued a year, plus another 20,000 for those with Masters degrees or higher from a U.S. University). You can only apply from April 1st and if granted the employee can only begin work on October 1st of that year. In recent years, applications filed in the first few days of April exceeded the maximum cap, resulting in a computerized lottery conducted by USCIS.

• O1 Work Visa

  This category is for high achievers. If you can prove extraordinary ability in the arts, sciences, education, business, or athletics, then this category may be a good alternative to bypassing the dreaded H1B lottery.

• L1 Work Visa

  This category is designed for international companies to transfer executives, managers, and other personnel to U.S. Through our comprehensive guidance and strategic partners, our clients receive expert legal counsel during the corporate entity formation, business start up and immigration processes.

• E2 Visa

  E2 is meant for entrepreneurs setting up a new business in the U.S. and investing a significant amount of money. However, the applicant has to be from one of the countries the US has a treaty with. The amount of money needed to invest will vary according to the nature of the business.

There are two main “company sponsored” green card options:

• PERM labor certification

• EB1B Outstanding Researcher