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Hi [FORMATTED_FIRST_NAME GOES HERE],

Happy Wednesday ✨

Soundarya here, from Unshackled. :)

EXCITING NEWS: After weeks of behind-the-scenes work, I'm launching a free, 5-day email course on "Intro to Talent Visas in America." While everyone knows about the H-1B, 9/10 don't know what a talent visa is, or don't fully understand what it takes to qualify for them.

If you're in any of the following situations...

• You want to start a company of your own someday
• You only have 1 or 2 attempts left in the H-1B lottery
• You want to self-petition your green card
• You have a PhD/postdoc and want to avoid the H-1B lottery

...then the course was made for you. Just click the link below and start it today!

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Before we jump in, I want to thank our sponsors scale.jobs and F1 Hire who made this newsletter free for all. And, I'm delighted to welcome 224 new subscribers to our newsletter since last week. We're 10,710 members strong now! 🙏

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This week's TL;DR

• New bill to help immigrants: good news and bad news.​
• [Paid masterclass] Wanna become an expert peer-reviewer?​
• Watch the story of how a UX designer got her EB-1A.

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📌 UNfold: Top stories

​New US Immigration Policy Grants Work Authorization to Families of H-1B Visa Holders​

A recent bipartisan agreement, supported by the White House, introduces a groundbreaking US immigration policy. Notably, it grants automatic work authorization to about 100,000 H-4 visa holders, spouses, and children of certain H-1B visa holders. Additionally, it addresses challenges faced by 250,000 aged-out children of H-1B visa holders, providing protection and a clear path forward. The agreement aims to simplify the Green Card process, increase annual green card numbers, and emphasize fairness, security, and inclusivity in the immigration system.

But, before you rejoice too soon...

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​US Indian Diaspora's Optimism Dims as National Security Agreement Hits Roadblocks​

Another news outlet reported that the $118.28 billion National Security Agreement, the same one that is claimed to be revolutionary, is reportedly facing significant challenges and has been labeled "dead on arrival." The bipartisan deal, initially seen as a positive development for H-1B visa holders and the Indian diaspora, is now facing more skepticism from experts. The bill's passage seems unlikely, as experts are citing concerns about its effectiveness in addressing border issues. The fate of the agreement, crucial for the Indian diaspora's aspirations, remains uncertain.

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​Bad luck in the skilled-worker H-1B lottery pushes workers from Silicon Valley and other U.S. regions to Canada​

Skilled immigrants facing repeated rejections in the H-1B visa lottery are turning to Canada for employment. Canada has capitalized well on US immigration's downfalls by creating open work permits, having a points-based system, and enabling remote work for US-based employers. The move to Canada also offers benefits such as universal healthcare, safety, and a welcoming environment, prompting more skilled immigrants to build their lives up North.

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🎁 UNlock: Relevant resources

[HAPPENING TOMORROW] Paid Masterclass: Peer-reviewing a computer science research paper by EB-1A recipient [Feb 8, 2024, 6.30 PST]​

Want to become a master of peer-reviewing a research paper? Here's a masterclass for you! Meet Siddharth Krishnan, a faculty member at UNC Charlotte, specializing in applied artificial intelligence and machine learning. He got his EB-1A in 2020 and has since helped a lot of researchers start their peer-reviewing journey. You don't wanna miss this! (This masterclass is being conducted within the Unshackled online community & is free for members).

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​​[Extraordinary Visa Library] Pavithra Ramamurthy - EB1A - Lead Product Designer at Salesforce ​

Welcome to the next edition of the Extraordinary Visa Library -- a joint initiative between Unshackled and Schmidt Futures! In this edition, we have Pavithra Ramamurthy. Pavithra migrated to the United States from India to pursue her master’s in Human-Computer Interaction at Indiana University. She got an internship offer from Salesforce as a product designer, which she then transitioned into a full-time position. After steady growth and working on impactful projects, Pavithra decided to apply for the EB-1A in February 2023. Within 4 months, she got her EB-1A approved without an RFE. She currently works as a lead product designer at Salesforce. Learn about her story in depth! (This was originally published within the Unshackled online community.)

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​​[Book for Founders] Ask Sophie™: The Founder’s Guide to Visas & Green Cards​

In "Ask Sophie: The Founder’s Guide to Visas & Green Cards," Sophie Alcorn, CEO of Alcorn Immigration Law, offers a roadmap for your immigration journey. Covering visa options from F-1 to O-1A, family reunification, and global talent recruitment, Sophie covers all of your options to thrive in the U.S. A Stanford and Washington University alumna, she leads the award-winning Alcorn Immigration Law and is a TechCrunch Verified Expert Lawyer.

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🪄 UNveil: This week’s sponsor

​Don't waste YOUR time applying for jobs: So... applying to jobs can get really repetitive and boring. You're copying and pasting the same information into every application while listening to The Office in the background. But, what if you can outsource all this repetitive, boring work to an AI and only focus on higher-level tasks? Enter Scale.jobs. The founder gave me a personal demo of the tool, and it's pretty awesome. Save your time in applying to jobs by using Scale.jobs!​

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​Do you want to filter jobs that offer visa sponsorship? Enter F1Hire. An easy-to-install Chrome extension that will filter jobs that offer sponsorship in one click. It doesn't stop there. It also gives you data on salaries, E-verify history, matches the job's skills with your resume, and works with LinkedIn, Indeed, Handshake, Glassdoor, & Google Jobs. As a fun perk, use this link to get one-month free access to premium features!​

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👉 Want to put yourself in front of 10,500+ high-skilled immigrants? Just hit reply to start a conversation.

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🥳 UNshackled: What's happening in the community?

I’m super proud that our little community has now grown to 338 ambitious talent visa aspirants. Our goal is (and has always been) to bring the right people together — lawyers, past recipients, experts — who can help you get your talent visa.

The past week (and really month) has been a lot of under-the-iceberg work. We've been thinking about how to revamp our onboarding, set up events with experts for the next 3 months, get more immigration lawyers into our community, and foster engagement between our members.

You'll see the results of this in the coming weeks.

Besides the above, here's what's been brewin' in our community the past few weeks:

• ​How does one become a first-time reviewer?​ was one of the questions asked by an EB-2 NIW recipient within the community.
• "What counts as original contribution besides patents or cited research?" was another one of the discussion threads within our community last week.
• ​We've kicked off something called the "Unshackled Biweekly Lounge" This is a safe space for members to show up every other week and help each other with their immigration goals, or otherwise. The next one is happening in a week!
• ​Paid Masterclass: Peer-reviewing a computer science research paper: Meet Siddharth Krishnan, a faculty member at UNC Charlotte and an EB-1A recipient. He'll teach you all about how to start peer-reviewing! This masterclass is being conducted within the Unshackled online community & is free for members.
• [Coming soon] O-1A self-assessment tool: I’m collaborating with the Schmidt Futures organization to build a tool that will give you a personalized roadmap for your O-1 journey. This will be free for all.

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Whenever you're ready to join the community, use this link to join the community as an Annual member. Once you join, get access to top lawyers, past O-1/EB-1 recipients, monthly workshops, & mainly a strategic roadmap to reach your goal.

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Until next week, stay wonderful.

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Yours truly,

Soundarya 💚

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💡 None of the information shared in this newsletter is meant to be legal advice. If you're looking for legal advice, speak to a lawyer, or hit reply and let me know so I can connect you with one.

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💫 UNcover: Picks from the internet

• The H-1B Visa Lottery Isn't Fair. New Reform Hopes to Give Employers Equal Access to Foreign Talent.​
• Can you return after a permanent deportation? Read this thread on Reddit.​

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