When I first heard about the startup visa act back in 2010, I was certain that the bill would be approved by congress with great alacrity. For me it was a no brainer, it meant more American jobs, more taxes for the US government etc. I was incredibly surprised when congress just let the bill expire twice without necessarily giving it any serious consideration.

Just to lay a foundation for anyone reading this, the proposed legislation would provide visas to foreign born entrepreneurs under the following conditions:

Entrepreneurs living outside the U.S — If a U.S investor agrees to financially sponsor their entrepreneurial venture with a minimum investment of $100,000. Two years later, the startup must have created five new American jobs and either have raised over $500,000 in financing or be generating more than $500,000 in yearly revenue. Workers on an H-1B visa, or graduates from U.S. universities in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, or computer science— If they have an annual income of at least $30,000 or assets of at least $60,000 and have had a U.S. investor commit investment of at least $20,000 in their venture. Two years later, the startup must have created three new American jobs and either have raised over $100,000 in financing or be generating more than $100,000 in yearly revenue. Foreign entrepreneurs whose business has generated at least $100,000 in sales from the U.S — Two years later, the startup must have created three new American jobs and either have raised over $100,000 in financing or be generating more than $100,000 in yearly revenue.

All 3 categorizations have clear stipulations that a number of American jobs must be created within a clearly defined timeframe. The additional requirement that the entrepreneur either raises a predefined amount of financing from accredited American investors or generates revenues above a certain minimum threshold within the stipulated timeframe helps filter out quack companies and ultimately curbs an obvious concern that many illegal immigrant might move to register companies that do not add any value to the American economy and subsequently apply for the startup visa.

A recent 43 page report from the Partnership for a New American Economy outlined the contributions that immigrant entrepreneurs have made to the American economy over the last century. I have extracted the key points made in the report below.