I moved from Peru to the US at 17 on a tennis scholarship. 8 years later, an H-1B layoff sent me home.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Luciana Pereyra, a 25-year-old Peruvian national who moved to the US at 17 on a tennis scholarship, lost her H-1B-sponsored job in 2025, and had to return to Peru. It has been edited for length and clarity.

I was born and raised in Lima, Peru, and I've been into tennis since I was 7, when my dad first took me to a court five minutes from our house. My parents had always wanted me to play a sport.

I started competing when I was around 11, and by 14, I was watching older girls from my club go to the US on tennis scholarships. I wanted that, too. An agency connected me with US college coaches, and I sent them a video of myself playing in tournaments across South and Central America.

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I spent my first year at Middle Georgia State University, then transferred to the University of Findlay in Ohio. I played varsity tennis there for four years while earning a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration.

I graduated in May 2022 with a 4.0 GPA. Because the pandemic gave college athletes an extra year of NCAA eligibility, meaning I could continue competing, I stayed for an MBA and finished the following year. My scholarship covered nearly everything.

I'd already started job hunting in October 2022, but I kept getting rejected after answering "yes" to the question about whether I'd need sponsorship. Eventually, I got a marketing and communications specialist role at Ohio State's College of Nursing.

My future boss agreed to hold the offer until July, when my OPT authorization began. About nine months later, in April 2024, my H-1B approval notice arrived.

Once I had my own apartment in Columbus and was earning my own money, I felt settled. But I never fully relaxed into it. I never really decorated my place because I didn't know how long I'd get to keep it.

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That stability only lasted until late 2025, when the College of Nursing restructured. On December 15, HR told me my position would end on January 15. I would have 60 days to find a new sponsor and file a new petition, or leave the country.