Updates to International Entrepreneur Parole Oct 2024
Heidi J Meyers
Immigration, Federal Litigation and Economic Sanctions Attorney at Law Office of Heidi J Meyers
USCIS has increased the dollar amounts for start-ups' investment, government awards, and showing by qualified investors, as well as clarified the procedure for being paroled into the US, with updates to the policy manual for its International Entrepreneur Parole Program October 2024.
?The start-up must have been formed within the past five years prior to filing and must be doing business.?As of October 1, 2024, applicants must show higher amounts of capital investment or government grants in their start-up:?
1)???Capital investment of $311,071 or more, from U.S. investors (such as venture capital firms, angel investors, or start-up accelerators) with established records of successful investments; or
?2)???Awards or grants of $124,429 or more, from federal, state or local governments; or
3)???You partially meet the above requirements and can show additional reliable and compelling evidence of the start-up’s significant potential for rapid growth and job creation.
As of October 1, 2024, the qualified investors must prove their track record and show higher amounts invested in prior start-ups, of at least $746,571 and that as a result of their investment, the start-up generated revenues of at least $622,142 with an average yearly growth of at least 20% per year.
USCIS has also updated instructions for applicants whose cases are conditionally approved. If the applicant is inside the US, USCIS will schedule them for biometrics. They must depart and apply at a POE (Port of Entry) with CBP to be paroled into the US.
Those applicants outside the US will have to first make an appointment with a US Embassy or Consulate to obtain permission to travel, which is stamped into the passport and looks like a visa, but technically is not a visa, before applying with CBP to be paroled into the US. USCIS will coordinate with Dept of State to arrange for biometrics appointments. There are no specifics on how this will be accomplished.
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Canadian citizens will not need an interview with a US Embassy or Consulate and will not need the “boarding foil” or non-visa visa (labeled a visa, and looks like a visa but not a visa for parolees).? Canadians skip the process with DOS, but will still need biometrics, and then can present themselves to CBP to be paroled into the US.
What are the chances of CBP granting parole after a conditional approval by USCIS? USCIS states: “so long as circumstances do not meaningfully change after USCIS conditionally approves Form I-941, and DHS does not discover material information that was previously unavailable, CBP’s discretion to parole the individual at a port of entry will likely be exercised favorably.”
If you are paroled into the US with International Entrepreneur Parole, you are work-authorized incident to status and do not have to apply for a separate work permit.
As I discussed in my previous article, the International Entrepreneur Parole program has largely been a grave disappointment with long processing delays, only a handful of approvals and onerous requirements, particularly those imposed on the “qualified investors”. See, https://www.dhirubhai.net/pulse/international-entrepreneur-parole-rule-great-2024-heidi-j-meyers-wv9le/.
?Copyright 2024 ? Heidi J Meyers all rights reserved.? This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant as legal advice.
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Immigration Attorney
1 个月"The International Entrepreneur Parole program has been a grave disappointment with long processing delays, only a handful of approvals and onerous requirements, particularly those imposed on the “qualified investors”. Agree 100%- I think we just get rid of it as it's too complex for both attorneys and the service to navigate. In most cases an O-1 works just as well.