[refurb]

You are right, it's not an easy life, but keep in mind there are an estimate 12 million illegal immigrants in the US at this point. I would assume most of them are working cash-only jobs or have fake documents that nobody checks.

Could you live in the US illegally and be working at a Fortune 500 company? Probably not. Could you come to the US and work at a mom and pop grocery store? Probably.

And the USCIS has a minuscule enforcement arm. They prioritize criminals for deportation. If you're a law abiding immigrant (excluding the immigration violation), you are very low priority for deportation.

[eshvk]

> Could you live in the US illegally and be working at a Fortune 500 company? Probably not. Could you come to the US and work at a mom and pop grocery store? Probably.

I would think that this in itself coupled with the high time investment costs of applying for such a startup visa (business plan, prototype etc) would self-select a section of the population who will either succeed or self deport (instead of screwing up their career and future potential by living illegally).