The Shift
After three years building immigration services for founders, we're walking away from that business model entirely.
Not because it wasn't profitable. Not because we couldn't grow it. But because the immigration consulting industry is fundamentally broken—and we refuse to participate in it anymore.
More importantly: We realized we were solving the wrong problem.
What We Built (And Why We're Killing It)
ANC Startup School started in June 2022 as a strategic advisory firm for international founders navigating complex geography decisions. Immigration was one piece of that puzzle.
Over three years, we:
- Advised 50+ founders on geographic mobility strategy
- Helped founders navigate US, UK, Canada, and UAE pathways
- Built a network of immigration attorneys across multiple jurisdictions
- Generated consistent revenue from immigration advisory services
By most measures, it worked. Founders paid us $10-50K for strategic counsel that included immigration planning.
But here's what we learned:
The Canada SUV program - which many of our early clients used - is effectively dead.
The wait time is now 35 years. Not a typo. Thirty-five years.
And yet, immigration consultants are still charging $20-50K for SUV applications. They know the program is dead. They charge anyway.
This is the industry we were adjacent to. And we want no part of it.
The Immigration Consulting Industry Is Morally Bankrupt
Let's be direct about what's happening:
1. Consultants sell false hope
Most immigration consultants are incentivized to file applications, not to tell you the truth. They get paid whether your application succeeds or not. So they file applications they know have low chances of success.
- Canada SUV with a 35-year wait? They'll take your $30K.
- O-1A with insufficient evidence? They'll file anyway.
- UK Innovator with a weak business plan? Sure, why not.
The money is in filing, not in outcomes.
2. The incentives are backwards
Immigration consultants make money by:
- Convincing you that you need their services (you probably don't)
- Making the process seem more complex than it is (it's not)
- Charging for execution, not strategy (forms, not frameworks)
- Selling specific pathways they have relationships with (not what's best for YOU)
Their business model depends on you being dependent on them.
3. Clients are often transactional
Here's the uncomfortable truth: Many of the clients who pay $50K for immigration consulting have family money. They're buying a stamp, not building a business.
They don't care about the process. They don't care about strategic thinking. They just want the visa.
And consultants are happy to take their money, knowing the business has no real foundation.
We watched this dynamic for three years. It made us increasingly uncomfortable.
4. Illegal behavior is rampant
We've seen:
- Consultants giving legal advice without proper licensing (unauthorized practice of law)
- Fake documents submitted in applications (forged letters, inflated revenue)
- Bribes paid to endorsing bodies (particularly in UK Innovator program)
- Misleading marketing about success rates and timelines
The industry is poorly regulated, and the bad actors know it.
Why ANC Was Different (But Still Not Right)
To be clear: ANC never operated as an immigration consultant.
We don't have RCIC licenses. We don't file visa applications. We don't charge for form-filling.
Our model was always:
- Strategic advisory (where should you build, when should you move, how should you structure)
- Network access (connecting founders with vetted immigration attorneys)
- Ongoing partnership (not transactional consulting)
We positioned ourselves as strategic advisors who understood mobility, not immigration consultants who sold visas.
But here's the problem: We were still adjacent to an industry we fundamentally disagreed with.
Founders would come to us asking about immigration. We'd explain the strategic context, help them think through options, connect them with attorneys.
But they'd still lump us in with "immigration consultants."
And that association was killing us - because the immigration consulting industry is toxic.
The Real Problem: Founders Think Visa-First
The deeper issue isn't just the immigration industry. It's how founders think about geography.
Most founders approach this backwards:
"I want to build a startup. That means I need to move to the US. How do I get an O-1A visa?"
This is wrong on multiple levels:
- You might not need to move at all
Many founders can build successful businesses from anywhere. Moving to the US costs 3-5x more and doesn't guarantee success. - Moving before PMF is often a mistake
73% of founders who moved before finding product-market fit failed (our data). They burned cash on relocation instead of building. - There are multiple pathways
US isn't the only option. UK, Canada, UAE, Portugal, Estonia - each has advantages depending on your situation. Most founders never consider alternatives. - The visa is a tool, not a goal
Your goal is business success. The visa is just one tool to get there. Sometimes it's the right tool. Often it's not.
The question shouldn't be: "How do I get a US visa?"
The question should be: "Where should I build for maximum business outcomes?"
This is founder mobility strategy. And it's completely different from immigration consulting.
Founder Mobility ≠ Immigration Consulting
Let's make this distinction clear:
| Immigration Consulting | Founder Mobility Strategy |
|---|---|
| Reactive (you already decided) | Proactive (helps you decide) |
| Visa-focused (execution) | Business-focused (outcomes) |
| Single pathway (US, UK, Canada) | Geography-agnostic (anywhere) |
| Transactional (get visa, done) | Ongoing (geography is part of strategy) |
| High-touch, low-scale | AI-powered, infinitely scalable |
| Time for money | Software + frameworks |
Immigration consulting: "Here's how to get an O-1A visa."
Founder mobility strategy:
Should you even want an O-1A visa right now? Let's look at your business situation, customer location, funding strategy, burn rate, and alternative pathways.
Maybe you should stay home for 12 months, build to $50K MRR, THEN move.
Or maybe UK makes more sense. Or maybe UAE for tax optimization. Let's figure out what's optimal for YOUR business."
This is the work we actually want to do.
What We're Building Instead
ANC is evolving in two directions:
1. SimpleDirect (Self-Serve Tools)
A founder mobility platform that helps you make strategic geography decisions:
WHERE Tools:
- Mobility AI: "Where should I live/build given my situation?"
- Entity AI: "Where should I incorporate?"
- Banking AI: "Where should I bank?"
- Tax AI: "How do I optimize taxes legally across jurisdictions?"
HOW Tools:
- Finance AI: "What's my runway? Am I spending too fast?"
- Ops AI: "What should I systematize? Where am I wasting time?"
- Hiring AI: "Should I hire? Contractor or employee? From where?"
WHAT Tools:
- Roadmap AI: "What should I build next given my business goals?"
- Pricing AI: "Am I leaving money on the table?"
- PMF AI: "Do I actually have product-market fit, or am I deluding myself?"
The model:
- $97/month for full access
- AI-powered (adapts to YOUR situation)
- Geography-agnostic (covers US, UK, Canada, UAE, Portugal, wherever)
- Self-serve (you control the process)
When you're ready to execute on immigration, SimpleDirect connects you with vetted immigration attorneys (not consultants). You pay the lawyer $3-5K to file paperwork. You handle everything else yourself.
No $50K consultant needed.
2. ANC (Strategic Partnerships)
For founders who want deeper strategic partnership, ANC operates as:
Founder Sprint (8-12 weeks, $10-20K)
- Pre-PMF founders who need strategic clarity
- We help you find PMF faster
- Geography strategy is ONE component, not the entire engagement
Strategic Partnership (3-6 months, $25-50K)
- Early traction founders ($10K-100K MRR)
- We help you scale efficiently
- Includes mobility strategy, but focused on business outcomes
Executive Advisory (6-12 months, $5-10K/month)
- Established founders ($100K+ MRR)
- Ongoing strategic counsel across all dimensions
- Geography is part of holistic business strategy
All three lead to ANC Ventures: We invest $10-50K + take 5-15% equity, hold forever.
The positioning shift:
❌ "ANC helps founders with immigration complexity"
✅ "ANC is an ecosystem for non-standard founders who don't raise VC"
Geography is part of it. But it's not the whole thing.
The Democratization Thesis
Here's what we believe:
Founder mobility strategy should be accessible to everyone, not locked behind $50K consultants.
Right now, if you're a founder thinking about geography, your options are:
- Hire an immigration consultant ($10-50K) who will push you toward whatever pathway they specialize in
- Hire an immigration attorney ($15-25K) who will execute but not strategize
- Figure it out yourself via Reddit/Twitter (information overload, no personalization)
None of these options are good.
What should exist:
A platform that:
- Helps you think strategically about geography (not just execute on visa)
- Adapts to YOUR specific situation (not generic advice)
- Covers ALL pathways (US, UK, Canada, UAE, wherever—portfolio approach)
- Empowers you to DIY 90% of the work (consultants are middlemen extracting value)
- Connects you with attorneys only when needed (for execution, not strategy)
This is SimpleDirect.
Why This Compounds
The immigration consulting model doesn't compound:
- Revenue tied to number of clients you can handle (time for money)
- Each client needs custom work (doesn't scale)
- Clients leave after visa is issued (no retention)
- No network effects (each engagement is independent)
The SimpleDirect model compounds:
- Software scales infinitely (same tool serves thousands)
- AI gets smarter with every user (data moat)
- Members connect with each other (network effects)
- Retention is high (geography strategy is ongoing, not one-time)
And it feeds into ANC:
- SimpleDirect users become ANC partnership candidates
- ANC partnerships become ANC Ventures equity positions
- Equity portfolio compounds over 30+ years
This is the Berkshire Hathaway model applied to founder services:
- Own businesses forever
- Let advantages compound
- Never optimize for short-term extraction
Immigration consulting is short-term extraction. SimpleDirect + ANC is long-term compounding.
What Happens If We're Wrong
The immigration consulting industry will say we're naive:
- "Founders can't handle this themselves"
- "Immigration law is too complex"
- "You need experts" (translation: you need us)
Maybe they're right. Maybe founders need hand-holding.
But we don't think so.
Founders are smart.
They can figure this out if given the right frameworks, tools, and honest guidance.
Worst case: SimpleDirect helps a few hundred founders save $50K and make better decisions. ANC partnerships still work. We're fine.
Best case: We help thousands of founders democratize access to founder mobility strategy. We kill the immigration consulting industry in its current form. Geography becomes a strategic choice, not a $50K barrier.
We're betting on the best case.
The Honest Truth
Walking away from a profitable business line is uncomfortable.
But staying in an industry we fundamentally disagreed with was worse.
We watched families lose life savings on SUV applications with 35-year wait times.
We watched consultants lie to founders about visa chances.
We watched the incentives corrupt the entire system.
And we realized: We don't want to be associated with this anymore.
Immigration consulting can keep extracting value from desperate founders. We're out.
We're building something better.
What This Means for You
If you're a founder thinking about geographic mobility:
1. Stop thinking visa-first. Think business-first.
Don't ask "Can I get an O-1A?" Ask "Should I even want an O-1A right now given my business stage, customer location, funding strategy, and burn rate?"
2. Don't hire an immigration consultant.
They're incentivized to file applications, not to help you succeed. Use tools like SimpleDirect for strategy. Hire an immigration attorney ($3-5K) only when you're ready to execute.
3. Build a portfolio of options.
Don't bet everything on one pathway. US falls through? Have UK as backup. UK doesn't work? Consider Canada or UAE. Portfolio approach > single dependency.
4. Geography is strategy, not destiny.
Where you build matters. But it's YOUR choice based on YOUR business. Not a default assumption that "startups = Silicon Valley."
What's Next
SimpleDirect launches in Q1 2026.
Early access: SimpleDirect.com (join waitlist)
ANC partnerships are open.
If you're a non-standard founder (not raising VC, building something real, thinking long-term), and you want strategic partnership beyond just tools, let's talk: ANC.to/apply
The immigration consulting industry won't like this.
Good. They shouldn't exist in their current form.
Let's democratize founder mobility.
Let's make geography a strategic choice, not a $50K barrier.
Let's build something that compounds.
—
ANC Team
December 2025
