Nika Mühl not traveling with team for preseason Canada game later today.

[Dugway]

From some universities website:

“How long can international students stay in the USA after graduation?

Students holding F visas must leave the US within 60 days of the program end date specified on Form I-20, according to US immigration law. On the other hand, students with J and M visas must depart the United States within 30 days of the program end date specified on their Form I-20. However, if you want to stay longer in the United States, you can apply for a visa extension on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website.

After graduation, F-1 visa holders are eligible for up to 12 months of optional practical training (OPT). That means you’ll be able to work for a year after finishing your studies. It is a temporary employment permit that allows students to obtain helpful experience in the relevant field of study.

On the other hand, after finishing their course of study, students with an M1 visa may only work in temporary positions for practical training. The job must be recommended for practical training and must be relevant to the course of study. It also can’t be training that they can get in their home nation.

Academic Training (AT) in a field similar to or related to their curriculum is available to J-1 students for up to 18 months following graduation. In addition, J-1 students with a Ph.D. can apply for an extra 18 months of AT in their field of study.”

 

[Dugway]

I wonder if she flew to Connecticut for her graduation ceremonies?

Connecticut is not leaving the United States. Nika is in the country now, the problem would be leaving and then trying to get back.

 

[Dugway]

This is only a temporary problem. The NHL and pro hockey leagues have been using foreign players in U.S. and Canada for years. Same with other men's pro sports. It won't be a problem as soon as the WNBA expands to Canada which seems to be on the front burner in the W's exec office and well overdue. Toronto for one seems to be an obvious place for the W and expect we will hear something along those lines sometime in the not too distant future.

This is exactly correct, she is in temporary limbo, likely already made application to change her visa and/or extended it. However, the that takes weeks to get through the process.

 

[hoopsnloops32]

Ezi also had visa issues and last year Dorka was able to play in the Canada game that was in the same time frame. Seems like Seattle screwed up.

 

[ctkaiser]

He may or may not be a dope but his analysis is pretty solid. How it will turn out, who knows.

I would hope a professional sports team would have competent staff to address the need for a proper work visa.

 

[cancontent]

I would hope a professional sports team would have competent staff to address the need for a proper work visa.

Could it not also be the responsibility of Nika's agent and management team? While I get teams should have some accountability, it doesn't seem fair to not look at the agent on this.

 

[hoopsdiva]

Could it not also be the responsibility of Nika's agent and management team? While I get teams should have some accountability, it doesn't seem fair to not look at the agent on this.

I believe it's the responsibility of the prospective employer to set the appropriate applications in motion.

 

[BRS24]

Per the Storm Chasers' blog article:

If you missed the news, Nika was unable to travel with the team due to having Visa issues. As a non-US citizen, she was not able to easily get into the country of Canada. Because the Croatian was here playing basketball on a student Visa and is no longer a student, she had to be left behind. If you know anything about Government paperwork and approval it takes a long time to get these things approved. This wasn’t the Storm or the WNBA dropping the ball, more of just an unfortunate occurrence.​

 

[RedStickHusky]

She was still a student on a student visa. I know, it makes no sense, but that's the way visa's crumble.

She wasn't getting paid to go to Toronto for a college game. It's the "work trip" that's problematic.

 

[David54]

You are right on. Don't pay any attention to that guy. He has been making outlandish analyses with little if any information in order to basically rile up fans and generate hits for his blog or whatever it is he has. I don't open the thing he puts on YouTube and just ignore anything he has to say. The Boneyard has better, more relevant info especially from HuskyNan and many very knowledgeable W/M BB BY'ers.

He may be right he may be wrong but I didn’t see anything outlandish in his analysis.

 

[Skeets]

From some universities website:

“How long can international students stay in the USA after graduation?

Students holding F visas must leave the US within 60 days of the program end date specified on Form I-20, according to US immigration law. On the other hand, students with J and M visas must depart the United States within 30 days of the program end date specified on their Form I-20. However, if you want to stay longer in the United States, you can apply for a visa extension on the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) website.

After graduation, F-1 visa holders are eligible for up to 12 months of optional practical training (OPT). That means you’ll be able to work for a year after finishing your studies. It is a temporary employment permit that allows students to obtain helpful experience in the relevant field of study.

On the other hand, after finishing their course of study, students with an M1 visa may only work in temporary positions for practical training. The job must be recommended for practical training and must be relevant to the course of study. It also can’t be training that they can get in their home nation.

Academic Training (AT) in a field similar to or related to their curriculum is available to J-1 students for up to 18 months following graduation. In addition, J-1 students with a Ph.D. can apply for an extra 18 months of AT in their field of study.”

Hmmm, wouldn't WNBA preseason be "optional practical training". If it is not, then I don't know what the preseason is...

Government is a complete mystery. Wouldn't we (the U.S.) want college graduates to stay in the U.S.? One would think so, especially in the highly technical fields. I can't understand why college graduates are not upgraded to a work visa automatically if they have an employer sponsor.

 

[ctkaiser]

Could it not also be the responsibility of Nika's agent and management team? While I get teams should have some accountability, it doesn't seem fair to not look at the agent on this.

That too.