I’ve got a major announcement this week:

• Early pass for launch event closing this Saturday: As part of Unshackled’s book launch, we’re hosting the biggest event in the country to bring together high-skilled immigrants, talent visa holders (O1/EB1), journalists, founders, & VCs. It’s happening on July 22nd in Silicon Valley, CA. The event is invite-only. But, you get first dibs on early passes as a newsletter member. Want to join the party? Get your early pass at $99 by this Saturday after which the price will increase.Get Unshackled

Immigration is a complex world. So every Wednesday, I try to simplify that by sharing top stories, curated resources, & fun tweets from the internet that matter to you. I also sprinkle it with updates on my upcoming book Unshackled, at the end. If you want to get this straight to your email inbox, come sign up! You can read all past editions here. 💃 

This week's TL;DR

• [Free webinar] Apply & get your Candian PR in less than 2 years​
• Happy National Immigrant Heritage Month 🎉
• [Free webinar] A comprehensive look at the O-1A visa [June 7, 10:00 AM PST]

📌 Stories you should know about

​Happy National Immigrant Heritage Month 🎉​In 2014, the US Congress declared the month of June to be “National Immigrant Heritage Month.” It was introduced to honor and celebrate the millions of immigrants who, together, have shaped America to be what it is today. Here’s how the US is celebrating: Colorado is dedicating weekends to arts and performances by immigrants. The Queens Night Market in NY is hosting ‘This Is NY: Celebrating Our Immigrant Heritage and Communities,‘ a month long event that celebrates immigrants running through the month of June including cultural dance events. The event coincides with Immigrant Heritage Month spotlighting immigrant history, communities and their contributions to the city.​​Indians continue to top USCIS H-1B charts with 320,000 visas issued​Out of 441,000 H-1B visa applications issued by the USCIS in 2022, a whopping 320,000, or 72.6% went to individuals born in India. In comparison, China had a much lower allotment rate of 55,038 applications (12.5% of the total). The country in third place — Canada — had a mere 1% of the allocation. Indians have been topping the H-1B charts for a while now, and it seems like that trend is here to stay! Note: the number 441,000 includes both initial petitions as well as renewals.​​USCIS’ new HART service center set to reduce immigration backlogs​The USCIS is opening a new virtual Service Center to clear up some of the worst existing backlogs. Titled HART, this virtual center is meant to process petitions from victims of domestic violence, asylum refugees, and those who apply for green card waivers after accruing unlawful presence. While these applications take between one to five years to process, the HART service center aims to reduce this time significantly. This is a historic move to clear up backlogs and is a cause for celebration!

🎁 Resources curated for you

[Free webinar] Apply & get your Candian PR in less than 2 years [June 16, 12:00 AM PST]​Have you been thinking about Canada as an option? Join this webinar to hear from two Canadian immigrants who share their first-hand experiences of moving from the US to Canada, and obtaining their PR in under 2 years. Canadian immigration lawyer Tara Lee will also be part of this session to guide you through the PR process!​​[Free webinar] A comprehensive look at the O-1A visa [June 7, 10:00 AM PST]​Join immigration attorney Fiona McEntee to get an in-depth look at the process of getting an O-1A visa. If you're someone who is passionate about art, breaking new ground in business, or making a mark in your field, this webinar is just what you need! It's designed to equip you with the necessary tools and insights to help you chase your dreams in the United States.​​An extensive guide to the L-1 visa​The L-1 is an intracompany transfer visa used by immigrants who moved to the US through their company. To get the L-1, you need to either hold an executive/managerial role (L-1A) or have specialized knowledge (L-1B). If you’re thinking of moving to the US through your company, check out this comprehensive guide that walks you through the steps!​💡 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.​

🪄 Unshackled's picks for the week

• ​Transform messy notes into clear text with Audiopen: Want a tool that effortlessly transforms messy voice notes into clear reworded text? Audiopen is your ally! It's an AI-powered web app that acts like your personal assistant, summarizing and transcribing your spoken words.
• ​Give 360 Wall Street a read: Feel like dipping your toes into trading and investing? Enter 360 Wall Street! It's a one-stop shop newsletter for any information regarding stock trading covering a host of topics from A to Z.
• ​Set up your productivity workspace on Notion: I’ve been singing praises for Notion for more than 4 years now. If you want an all-in-one workspace for everything from to-do lists to product roadmaps to mentor directories, then Notion is your pal! Check it out.

​*These are affiliate links that give me a small reward when you use them. Thank you in advance. :)

📕 What's the latest on Unshackled?

Organizing the launch event and building the community has taken over my life.For the launch, I’ve been sending out a ton of emails to potential VIPs who can join us and make the evening memorable for everyone (I’ll be dropping some big names next week 😉).The last big event I organized was all the way back in 2016: a 1000-member dance event called “Ethnic Night” at my undergrad university. But even that pales in comparison to the care and dedication given to this launch.Personally, what I’m most excited about is in knowing how many of my friends and loved ones will be at the launch. Until I was working at Salesforce, I always separated my work life from my personal life. I rarely, if ever, talked about what I did at work with my friends. But since Unshackled came into my life, that line has disappeared. Now, almost everyone I care about has played a part in shaping the book, community, and launch event into what it is. 💚What’s more, I’ll get to meet some of you finally at this event. If you’re in Silicon Valley (or can travel there), be sure to get the early passes before they close this Saturday (June 10th). Use the access code “GETUNSHACKLED” to unlock and purchase at the discounted price of $99 (ends this Saturday).Hey, by the way, if you haven't yet, be the 921st person to pre-order the book below. 👇

Get Unshackled

And, if you enjoyed reading this email, forward it to one friend. It helps a lot -- plus, now you get rewarded for it!Until next week, stay awesome.​​Yours truly,Soundarya 💚

👀 Fun corners of the internet

[caption id="attachment_1279" align="aligncenter" width="500"]

Caption: Homer knows what’s up 😏 Source: Shriram[/caption]