USCIS Provides Guidance on Program for International Entrepreneurs

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On March 10, 2023, USCIS issued comprehensive guidance on the parole program for international entrepreneurs. To enhance entrepreneurship, innovation and job creation in the United States, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published the International Entrepreneur Rule on Jan. 17, 2017.

This rule provides a framework for DHS to use its parole authority to grant a period of authorized stay, on a case-by-case basis, to noncitizen entrepreneurs who possess a substantial ownership interest in a start-up entity and who can demonstrate that their stay in the United States would provide a significant public benefit through that start-up entity’s potential for rapid business growth and job creation.

The published guidance in the Policy Manual includes information about:

  • The criteria for consideration for the applicant, the start-up entity, and the qualified investment or government award or grant;

  • Evidence and documentation;

  • The discretionary nature of the entrepreneur parole adjudication;

  • Conditions on parole and bases for termination;

  • The criteria for consideration for an additional parole period; and

  • Options available to the entrepreneur’s family to join the entrepreneur as parolees and, if eligible, to obtain employment authorization.

Although an individual who is paroled into the United States has not been admitted into the United States for purposes of immigration law, parolees may enter and remain in the United States and may be authorized to work.

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