Thirty-eight-year-old Amey first went to America to study at Carnegie Mellon University in 2006. Both he and his wife, who works at one of the world’s top biotech companies, are on the H-1B, a non-immigrant visa allowing foreigners to live and work in the US. One of Amey’s previous employers applied for his green card in 2011. Almost a decade later, a green card still eludes him.
“We’ve been waiting patiently for our green card since nine years now and it will likely take another 10-plus years till we get it,” says Amey, who like the other Indians in America whom we spoke to for this story asked that we publish only their first names to avoid drawing attention from US immigration services.
Over the last decade, Amey has worked at several technology startups. “I helped them launch award-winning products, hire teams, and raise millions of dollars in venture funding,” he says.