The H-1B visa has undergone a fundamental shift for startup founders. As of January 17, 2025, new USCIS regulations allow founding engineers to self-sponsor through their own companies—even with 50% or greater ownership—eliminating the employer-employee relationship barrier that previously blocked entrepreneurs from filing petitions through their startups. For founding engineers ready to build in the U.S., Alma's Startup Immigration Plan offers streamlined legal support with guaranteed 2-week document turnaround and industry-leading approval rates.
The H-1B visa allows foreign nationals with bachelor's degrees or higher to work in "specialty occupations" requiring specialized knowledge. For founding engineers, this creates a pathway to legally build and operate U.S. startups while maintaining legal status for up to six years (initially three years, extendable).
The critical change came with the H-1B Modernization Final Rule, which officially sanctioned self-sponsorship for beneficiary-owners. Previously, USCIS required proof that an independent entity controlled the H-1B worker's employment. This effectively blocked founders who owned their companies.
Under the new framework, founding engineers must still meet core H-1B eligibility criteria:
The biggest pitfall for founders is describing their role too broadly. USCIS will deny petitions where the position looks like general business management rather than technical work.
Strong specialty occupation examples for founding engineers:
Weak descriptions that trigger RFEs (Requests for Evidence):
Your job description should show 50%+ of your time spent on duties requiring your specific degree. The remaining time can include management, fundraising, and strategic work.
The H-1B process follows a strict annual timeline, with 85,000 visas available each fiscal year (65,000 general cap plus 20,000 for U.S. master's degree holders).
The application sequence spans roughly seven months:
Proving business viability represents the core challenge for founding engineers. USCIS wants evidence your company can afford the prevailing wage from day one and has legitimate operations.
Essential documentation includes:
RFEs are common for beneficiary-owner petitions. Typical RFE topics include proof of business operations, evidence the beneficiary will perform specialty work, and financial ability to pay prevailing wage.
You have 30-87 days to respond. Working with experienced immigration attorneys significantly improves your chances of overcoming RFE challenges—Alma includes one free refile for Growth and Enterprise clients if the initial petition is denied.
Understanding the full cost picture helps you budget appropriately and avoid surprises.
Alma's transparent pricing includes H-1B Cap petitions at $3,500 with administrative charges, platform access, and up to three attorney consultations included—significantly lower than traditional firms while delivering superior technology integration, real-time case tracking, and guaranteed turnaround times.
The largest ongoing cost is the prevailing wage obligation. For software developers in major tech metros (based on DOL 2025-2026 data):
Budget for 6-12 months of salary runway before filing. Having investor funding ($250K+ seed round) or existing revenue ($10K+/month) dramatically strengthens your petition.
USCIS evaluates specialty occupation claims based on whether the position normally requires a bachelor's degree in a specific field. For founding engineers, this means demonstrating:
Strong documentation includes technical specifications you've written, code repositories, patent applications, and product architecture documents showing hands-on engineering work.
The January 2025 rule change clarified that 100% ownership doesn't automatically disqualify a founder from H-1B sponsorship. However, you still need to demonstrate your company exercises control over your employment.
Key elements to document:
Board oversight is not required for beneficiary-owner cases under the new rule, but having documented governance structures strengthens your petition.
The H-1B lottery creates uncertainty—approximately 74% of applicants don't get selected in the first round of any given year (though overall selection rates reach ~71% after second-round selections). Having alternative pathways ensures you can continue building regardless of lottery outcomes.
The O-1A visa requires demonstrating extraordinary ability through sustained national or international acclaim. Unlike H-1B, there's no lottery—you can file anytime.
O-1A works best for founding engineers with:
Alternative visa pathways offer founding engineers flexibility when H-1B timing or odds don't align with business needs.
E-2 Treaty Investor: Available to citizens of treaty countries (UK, Canada, Germany, Japan—not India or China) who invest substantial capital ($100K+ typically). Spouse receives work authorization.
L-1A New Office: For founders with existing foreign companies operating at least one year who want to open U.S. operations. Initial one-year validity for new offices.
Long-term planning matters. Beneficiary-owners pursuing green cards typically use self-petition categories that don't require employer sponsorship or PERM labor certification.
The EB-2 National Interest Waiver allows self-petitioning without employer sponsorship—ideal for founders. You must demonstrate your work has substantial merit and national importance, and that waiving the job offer requirement benefits the United States.
Founding engineers with successful startups often build strong NIW cases based on job creation, technological innovation, and economic contributions. While PERM-based categories remain legally available, NIW and EB-1A pathways eliminate the practical challenges of labor market testing when you own the petitioning company.
The EB-1A extraordinary ability green card shares evidentiary criteria with the O-1A visa. Building your H-1B startup creates documentation opportunities:
Alma offers EB-1A petitions at $10,000, or $7,000 if you already hold an approved O-1—combining attorney-led strategy with technology-enabled efficiency that traditional firms can't match.
Self-sponsorship adds complexity that makes professional guidance valuable. The stakes are high—a denied petition means lost investment and potentially needing to leave the country.
Generic immigration attorneys often lack experience with beneficiary-owner cases. Specialists understand:
Alma combines attorney expertise with technology to streamline complex immigration processes. The platform provides real-time case tracking, proactive deadline alerts, and audit-ready documentation—critical for maintaining compliance during your 18-month validity periods.
Modern immigration platforms reduce errors and accelerate preparation:
For founding engineers managing visa compliance while building products, these efficiency gains compound. Get started with Alma to see how attorney-led, tech-enabled immigration services can simplify your path to U.S. work authorization.
No. If you're currently on F-1 OPT, you can prepare your business (form the company, raise funds, develop strategy) but cannot perform work for the startup until your H-1B status activates on October 1. If you're transferring from another H-1B employer, you cannot start work for your new company until the new petition is approved. Violating these restrictions jeopardizes both your current status and pending petition.
You must pay yourself the prevailing wage throughout your H-1B status period. If your company cannot make payroll, you're in violation of H-1B requirements and must either find new sponsorship within the up to 60-day grace period (discretionary, cannot extend beyond I-94 expiration) or depart the United States. This is why immigration attorneys recommend maintaining 6-12 months of salary runway before filing. Some founders mitigate this risk through concurrent H-1B employment—maintaining a part-time H-1B at another company while building their startup.
Yes, your U.S. company can hire employees before your H-1B approval, and doing so actually strengthens your petition. Having other engineers on staff demonstrates business legitimacy and operational activity. The key requirement is that your company must be able to pay both their salaries and your prevailing wage. Some founders strategically hire 1-2 team members before filing to show USCIS the company has real employees beyond just the beneficiary-owner.
USCIS Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) officers occasionally visit H-1B worksites to verify petition accuracy. For founding engineers, this means your physical office should match petition descriptions. Have your employment agreement, organizational documents, and business materials accessible. If you use a co-working space, ensure you have a dedicated desk or office (not just hot-desking) with some company signage. Site visits finding discrepancies between petition claims and reality can result in petition revocation.
Beneficiary-owner H-1B petitions receive 18-month initial validity instead of the standard three years. This means you'll file renewals more frequently—every 18 months rather than every three years—adding administrative burden and legal costs. However, this doesn't directly affect green card processing. You can file EB-1A or EB-2 NIW petitions while on H-1B status, and if your I-140 is approved, you may qualify for H-1B extensions beyond the normal six-year maximum while your green card application remains pending.
