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Happy Thursday. ✨

Soundarya here, from Unshackled. :)

Sorry for the delay in sending this week's newsletter. I was flying from the US to India over the past 30 hours. I'm back in India again for a while to attend an annual conference as well as work on an Unshackled event over here.

Before we jump in, I want to welcome 60 new subscribers to our newsletter since last week. Welcome, everyone. Right now, we're 7,660 members strong! 🙏

You're receiving this email as part of the Unshackled weekly newsletter. Immigration is a complex world. So every Wednesday, I try to simplify that by sharing top stories and relevant resources that matter to you. I also sprinkle it with updates on what's happening with the Unshackled book & community. If you find value in reading it, forward this to a lucky friend. If this was forwarded to you, get your own here! Read all the past editions here. 💃

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This week's TL;DR

• Good news for international students from Californian universities.
• ​I interviewed an O-1A & EB-1A recipient who's been on six visas.
• ​Free Webinar on EB-1, especially for scientists and researchers.

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📌 UNfold: Top stories
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​California Launches $2M Fund To Retain Foreign-born Founders​

This news made me smile so much! California's governor has set aside $2M to launch a "Global Entrepreneur-in-Residence" program at the University of California (U.C.) to attract and retain international tech talent. What does this mean? Let's say you want to start a business out of college. U.C. will hire you on a cap-exempt H-1B, and let you work on your idea, while also giving you a chance to mentor students at the university. The application is not launched yet -- I'll notify you when they do.

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​United States Completes Second Lottery Round for H-1B Visa​

USCIS has officially completed the second lottery round for the fiscal year ending in September 2024. I got a WhatsApp message from at least 3 friends who got their H-1B picked in the second round. If you got selected too, congratulations! Ensure to file your application within the next 90 days.

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​Heading To Europe In 2024? You’ll Need This New Travel Visa​

Starting in 2024, 1.4 billion people, including Americans, will need visas to enter the Schengen area of Europe. The new visa is for short-term stays of 90 days or less and costs €7. It's free for individuals under 18 or over 70.

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🎁 UNlock: Relevant resources

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​Interview with Spandana G: Overcoming EB-1 Denial, Being On 6 Visas & Becoming A Founder​

Enjoy this video where I interview Spandana G, a badass immigrant founder from India. Spandana has been on six visas so far (!). She has a fantastic story of overcoming her EB-1 denial and obtaining both the O-1 and EB-1 visa within a few years. This was conducted within the Unshackled community. If you'd like to join our community, you can do so using this private link set up for those who purchased the book!

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​A Comprehensive Guide to the High Potential Individual Visa (HPI) in the UK​

The HPI is a visa that was announced by the UK last year to encourage high-skilled workers (like you!) to move over there. If you graduated from one of the 20 universities on their list within the past 5 years, you're probably eligible to get it. The best part? You don't need a job to get the visa, and you can apply for a PR on it. Check out this article by Deel that expands on this in depth. ​
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🪄 UNveil: A (free) app to track your visa applications
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I used Lawfully for the first time in 2021 to track the result of an H-1B visa application. As far as I know, they're the only mobile app that let you track visa applications in a few simple steps. With over 1M immigrants using their app, they're also the most popular option out there. If you're currently waiting for a result of a visa application -- or plan to apply for one soon -- go ahead and download their free app!

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Download Lawfully Case Tracker: App StoreDownload Lawfully Case Tracker: Google Play

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👉 Want to sponsor an upcoming newsletter? Just hit reply to start a conversation.

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💫 UNcover: Picks from the internet

• ​Free Webinar: Unlocking the Green Card Code: A Scientist's Journey from EB2 to EB1 [05 Aug 2023 09:00 AM PT]
• The green card backlog barely changed in July. Still standing at 351,821 cases.
• Raising money for your company? Check out this collection of 300+ female angel investors from Europe.

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Hope you enjoyed this week's newsletter.

Now that the book launch is over, I'll share some exciting updates on what's next for Unshackled next week. Lots to come.

Until next week, stay awesome.

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Yours truly,

Soundarya 💚

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