Dear Sophie,
I was laid off and I’m on an H-1B. I have enough savings to survive for a while. What should I do if I have been let go from my job?
I am on an H-1B, have an approved I-140 and an I-797 that expires in March 2024.
If I have to leave the U.S., can my current I-797 be transferred to my next employer? Are there any issues I should be aware of?
— Upended & Unemployed
The seasons won’t change for another 43 days, but in San Francisco, it already feels like winter.
As an offshore weather system brings gusts and downpours, local employers like Twitter, Lyft, Stripe, Brex, Opendoor and Chime are laying off thousands of employees. This week, Meta will reportedly announce the first large-scale staff cuts in its history.
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For tech workers who are immigrants, this is an especially fraught time, as their ability to remain in the U.S. is conditional on their employment.
Most visa holders have a 60-day grace period after an unexpected layoff, but with thousands of skilled workers hitting the market at once, the clock is ticking.
We usually run Silicon Valley-based immigration attorney Sophie Alcorn’s column on Wednesday, but in light of current events, we ran it yesterday (without a paywall).
First order of business: If you’ve been impacted, don’t delay. Start looking now for a new position, and tell everyone in your network that you’re open to work.
“At a job interview, be direct about your need to transfer your H-1B to a new employer. If the company is not willing to sponsor you, move on,” advises Sophie.
“Ideally, you should accept a job offer no more than 45 days into your 60-day grace period unless you have applied for another fallback status because it can take several weeks to prepare and file the H-1B transfer.”
Brace yourself: More layoffs are coming. Update your resume, save as much money as you can and, most importantly — don’t panic.
Thanks for reading,
Walter Thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@yourprotagonist
Dear Sophie: How can I stay in the US if I’ve been laid off?
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