I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA

I'm Peter Roberts, immigration attorney who does work for YC and startups. AMA10 points by proberts 30 minutes ago | hide | past | favorite | 4 commentsI'll be here for the next 6 hours. As usual, there are lots of possible topics and I'll be guided by whatever you're interested in. Please remember that I can't provide legal advice on specific cases because I won't have access to all the facts. Please try to stick to a factual discussion in your questions and comments and I'll try to do the same in my answers!Previous threads we've done: https://news.ycombinator.com/submitted?id=proberts. help

What's the best path from zero to a fully legal status (visa first I imagine, but eventually citizenship) in the US for someone coming over from the Western Balkans (non-EU), with a bachelors degree in EE or CS and no prior work experience? Thanks for doing this. The options are limited: an H-1B for employment (which involves an annual lottery), an F-1 for schooling, or a J-1 for internship/training (which requires a "host" company/employer). Just to be clear, the H-1B is a nonimmigrant visa and the EB-3 is a green card category so they're no comparable. The costs will depend on the legal fees (which run anywhere from $2,500 to $5,000 with most lawyers charging something in between), the size of the company, and whether premium processing is used. For an H-1B, expect total costs of anywhere from about $5,000 to $10,000.