Tell Congress to Pass the Startup Visa Act

When it comes down to it, the history of "American" entrepreneurship is largely a history of immigrant entrepreneurship. So I'm hugely supportive of the fact that both Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Richard Lugar (R-IL) have gone ahead and introduced the Startup Visa Act, which a group of U.S. venture capitalists has rallied behind for months. The act would make it easier for foreign entrepreneurs to build their companies in the U.S. In the 21st century, Silicon Valley is no longer the only mecca of global innovation. That's a good thing for the world, as startup ecosystems can grow anywhere. But in order for the U.S. to be able to keep attracting innovators, we have to make welcoming them in a priority. Right now, international entrepreneurs don't have their own visa category, but the bill would change that. Specifically, the bill would modify the existing EB-5 category for foreign investors to create a new category for venture-backed entrepreneurs. An entrepreneur would qualify for the two-year visa if they raised $250,000 in venture capital, at least in part by accredited investors. If after two years, the entrepreneur had created five full-time jobs and raised an additional $1 million in funding, or achieved $1 million in revenue, he or she would automatically receive permanent legal resident status. The new EB-6 Startup Visas would draw from the pool of 10,000 available EB-5 foreign investor visas -- less than half of which were used last year. (You can read the letter Senators Kerry and Lugar sent to their colleagues looking for cosponsors here.) For me, this bill isn't a question of where people should build their companies. Instead, it's a question of the choice people need to make the best decisions.

Across the globe, it's important that entrepreneurs and innovators thrive, wherever they chose to. If international entrepreneurs can build their companies locally with laws that allows them to easily start businesses, protect intellectual property and serve customers without interference -- by corruption, bureaucracy, or lack of infrastructure -- I think that's awesome. But I sure as hell don't want an innovator's creativity to be stifled if those conditions don't exist. And if innovators chose to build their companies here, we should be sure that we're giving them every opportunity to thrive. The group of venture investors behind this initiative have been keeping track of all of the momentum at Startupvisa.com. Here are the ways they've asked people to support them:

Go to their campaign page and voice your support for Startup Visa

Write to your local newspapers, and let them know that you support the Startup Visa Bill

Call your senators, and let them know about why you support the Startup Visa legislation

Add the Startup Visa Widget to your blog or website

Follow the #startupvisa hash tag on Twitter and voice your support

Contribute to Startup Visa so that we can continue to spread the word!

Check it their site to learn more, or add your weight as well by signing Change.org's petition below!

Photo Credit: David Paul Ohmer