Living on the Edge – Story of an Iranian Student in US | Hacker News Reader

Living on the Edge – Story of an Iranian Student in US

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152 pointspmc21 comments

It looks like we went to the same college in the US and in fact, I remember seeing you around. Such a shame these draconian laws exist.

What'd you say if a chap you knew at school then turned up on the ISIS reports? This isn't a fantastic scenario isn't it?

Probably "Such a shame he decided to join ISIS." It doesn't have to be so either/or or black and white?

Somehow its becoming just that: 51/49 split everywhere

Same story here. I got admitted to Georgia Tech MSCS, and now I have to forget about it.

I think all immigrants and nonimmigrants in the US face some degree of this, though obviously the Iran and friends group is significantly worse off.

American citizens don't realize the restrictions placed on even "friendly" aliens (excluding LPRs for the most part):

(1) AR-11 form to file every time you move so the government can keep track of your address.

(2) You cannot perform any work in the US, paid or unpaid, that's not for your employer -- so even open source can be a grey area. Contracting is off the table.

(3) You can trade stocks but not "too much" (undefined quantity) because it then becomes active income and you're out of status.

(4) Every time you cross the border you're advised to bring your entire petition with you (H1B, TN) in case the guards decide to drag you into secondary. Further, TN status can be revoked at each border crossing. The one time I left my H1B petition at home I got dragged in, they spent about an hour validating my status; luckily the initial officer wrote my WAC number into my passport and they could look it up.

(5) TN only: 3 year visas, indefinitely renewable so long as you convince the border guard you won't renew them indefinitely. The mental gymnastics hurt my brain. Then there's the whole software engineer vs. computer systems analyst vs. programmer distinction that's apparently the most meaningful thing in the world. Much of your TN petition relies on the mood of the border guard. And that's if there's even going to be a NAFTA in a few weeks.

(6) You basically can't found here without a green card, and that takes the better part of a decade to obtain from start to finish, unless you're an Indian national in which case god help you. You can't even get a buddy to start the company and sponsor you unless you're Canadian and can TN your way in, because of the sheer quantity of recordkeeping, cost and 33% chance once a year in April of obtaining an H1B for an employee who can't start until the new USCIS fiscal year beginning October 1st.

(7) Out of status for 180-364 days? 3 year bar. Out of status longer? 10 year bar. Even if you marry someone, you can't adjust status from within the country so you get wanged with the bar on your way back in.

(8) H-1B: Last day of work? GTFO time. Officially, no grace period, it's back where you came from. Also? You simultaneously have to get an IRS form 1040-C Sailing Permit approved by your IRS field office before you go. Though many aliens who are fired/laid off obviously can't satisfy both requirements at once. Pick the one you want to piss off least.

Every US immigrant and nonimmigrant knows this stuff, ask one next time you see them, it's what we bond over ^_^

When I elected not to pursue a green card and left the US, it felt really good not to be under the thumb of the government. And this is 'easy mode' -- as a Canadian software engineer with 6 years of professional experience.

This x1000

Please try to be more substantive in your comments. The equivalent of "+1" or "me, too" doesn't add much to the conversation.

On (6) - I had a US LLC with bank account without even visiting US.

Yeah totally, but without a visa you can't work for it in the US ^_^ and you can't sponsor yourself for many types of visas including TNs or H1Bs because you aren't an employee if you have a controlling interest AFAIK, you need to pursue E2 or EB5 investor visas with 100-1000K investments.

I had a friend when I was in grad school who was from Iran, during the Iranian revolution. We had a lot of discussions on what was happening and why. He was still intent on getting his grad degree and going back home and teaching Chemistry. I lost track of him so I wonder what happened. Education is a great way to bring people together. Treating people like dirt is a great way to ruin everything.

In retrospect, Toronto might have been the better choice. He didn't mention Waterloo (Canada), but that would be up there, too.

What should the process be for foreigners in the US?

As an Iranian in the US, you are restricted.

What is it like for others in Iran?

I think it's important to note that the author explains exactly how he is restricted (and it applies mostly to the professional/tech world), and I don't think the experience would vary by person based on his examples. From the Iranians I know as well as other international students in general, what he has described is pretty common. Not Iranian myself though so haven't seen every detail up close and personal, and small sample size. I have never seen evidence or heard of experiences that suggest otherwise in the cases of his examples.

Is that the standard you hold the United States to?

Used to have an iranian neighbor, he had two really smart kids with a sweet mexican lady. Great people. I still support these temporary bans. And I would like to see more people complain about Obama admin sending iran 400 million cash secretly and then lying about it. Obama also gave or attempted to give 221 million to palestine in the last hours of his presidency. So many things wrong with that, frankly Obama admin simply couldn't be trusted for the safety of the U.S.

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