My husband had an offer to help out at a restaurant when he was needed. He would just be given some cash at the end of the night for his help but would not technically be an employee. Its a very nice restaurant and well established. I am a little skeptical of the whole situation and absolutely do not want to interfer with any of our pending paperwork. I just want to know if anyone else tried anything like this or what the chances are of getting caught. Please any advice would be greatly appreciated before he decides to do this or not.

Thanks!

Diana

I understand the reasons it may be tempting, but is it really worth the risk? Especially with all the immigration craziness going on now.

I hope things get better for you soon!

I certainly would not take the risk after all you have been through to get your husband here legally. There are always people who don't agree with immigrants working illegally and could report your husband, without your knowledge.

Is it worth the chance that he could be banned from the U.S. for 10 years or life? It wouldn't be for me.

If your husband has already applied for EAD, it is usually approved within 3 months, so it won't be too long before he's able to work legally anyways.

Do not do it. I can not imagine that it would be worth the risk. Especially with the crackdown on that type of thing going on. I am going to assume it is just for something to do as opposed to the money. If that is the case there is nothing preventing him offering his services somewhere. Religious group, charity organization, schools, etc.

Joel

Diana,

Problems with working under the table would be with the IRS, not with USCIS. But I imagine the USCIS would not look kindly on problems with the IRS.

Probably a lot of people try something like this. Chances of getting caught might depend on the extent to which the restaurant engages in the practice and whether or not they might have already raised suspicions in the wrong places.

Yodrak

Personally I think your husband is very unlikely to get caught doing this, I know plenty of people who have done this (although they were USCs) and never got caught.

However, as others have said, why risk it when the stakes are so high?

I would advise not to do it also. All it takes is one angry person then all of your work to get him/her here will be for nothing and he/her will be banned for 10 years (worst case).

Thanks you for all your responses!! I pretty much felt the same way that all of you did. Its just so tempting when you need the money and my husband is so bored at home!! We have decided that we aren't going to risk it and just wait for the government for an eternity

Thanks
Diana and Enrico

My friend was in same situation and was helping hand in a shop. Some body took his photo graph and informed police that this guy is doing work without permit. so police came and caught him.

I think untill no body complains , nothing is going to happen. Bottom line message is DO NOT TAKE RISK

Hi There,
Everyone knows your not supposed to work without autherization but there are about 12 million people doing this in the US right now. You have more chance of getting help from the USCIS 1800 number than getting raided by I.C.E. It is the employers of many unautherized workers that get targeted, not single people earning cash under the table. Also working without autherization is forgiven in the AOS process if the workers spouse is a citizen. Strange but true.

My 2cents is if you are desperately needing cash take the job.
If you are not desperately needing cash then don't.

Best

It looks like you made a wise decision. Yes, my husband did work under the table before I met him from a friend he knew in the Granite business, but after we filed the paper work it wasn't worth the risk. I also heard from a neighbor of his up in Canada that she just volunteered for a while up in Seattle opening up a suntan shop every morning for free suntan sessions.
A INS officer did find out about it and she was deported just for volunteering, because she was taking the job away from a potential US citizen.

Moondancer

I would add just make sure you declare it to IRS.

Anybody care to clarify the 10 year ban? And from what?


Should have added a K1 is authorised to work, I assume he did not get the JFK stamp and does not have evidence of this.

Good advice in this forum. Trust me, I know that you may need the money but I am sure soon enough you will get the EAD.

Better to be careful, you've come so far...maybe the hubby can do something on a volunteer basis just to keep himself busy?

Best of luck!

It is against the law for an immigrant to work without an EAD and not report/pay taxes.

VisaJourney.com does not condone immigration fraud in any way, shape or manner. VisaJourney.com recommends that if any member or user knows directly of someone involved in fraudulent or illegal activity, that they report such activity directly to the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement. You can contact ICE via email at Immigration.Reply@dhs.gov or you can telephone ICE at 1-866-347-2423. All reported threads/posts containing reference to immigration fraud or illegal activities will be removed from this board. If you feel that you have found inappropriate content, please let us know by contacting us here with a url link to that content. Thank you.

If you do this I would tell ANYONE. The official answer is "no no don't do it'. But do what you need to survive.

We went to the local USCIS center via infopass when my husband's temp EAD expired. We specifically asked if he could continue to work while he was waiting for his EAD. She said "well, we don't usually tell people to work, but since he already had permission to work and he's applied for AOS and fulfilled the requirements of the visa, it's ok for him to continue to work, as long as his employer is ok with it. It' won't affect his greencard application. "

Take that for whatever it's worth.

What is this supposed to mean??? Why are you bringing this up? No one is doing anything illegal here!



Diana

Yes you are asking about illegal work.... and trying to find a way that will make it ok to do.... if you dont have the authority to work then dont do it.... there is no other answer....

Kezzie

I know that I asked about it but we are not going to do it. I know that it would be illegal that is why my husband did not take the job. I was just simply asking people's opinions and experiences with this topic. I don't want anyone to think that we doing something illegal here. Because we definetely are not going to take that risk!


Diana

'Under the table' work is illegal for anyone in the US regardless of status (USC, EAD, GC etc..) It implies tax-evasion. Because wages are paid without taxes being withheld (1099s are a different story).

Narc

I didn't report anything.. it was more a friendly reminder type thing... these boards are fair game for anyone to read.. including the federal govt... I only copied and pasted the disclaimer on the bottom of the page. If you want to tell someone to do something illegal, that's not my business, but do it in private message instead of risking getting in trouble.

Getting paid under the table or work for cash, is not illegal. I did it for years, as long as you file taxes on your income tax and report the income. I would just keep a ledger with the amounts and dates I was paid. Now as far as working without a permit, when you are married to a USC, it is usually forgiven. But if you get caught in a raid or something that's where the troubles can start.

The OP is a K1.

yup. just fair warning.

I just dont want to see anyone getting in trouble... that's all...

Icyspots,

I understand where you are coming from and what you are trying to say. It was a misunderstanding on both parts. I never wanted anyone to think that we were doing anything illegal, because we would never risk our green card no matter how tempting something like this is, i was just asking a question about it. You replied with what you thought was best and I took it the wrong way just like you did mine. I appreciate you trying to help and there are no hard feelings. I wish you all the best on your visa!!




Diana

Hmmm.....where do you get this information from? Working without a permit isn't forgiven, from what I've read. Do you have documentation for this, cause this is the first I've heard of it. It is ILLEGAL to work without an EAD, being the immigrant without a green card. Being caught in a raid...if that's where the trouble starts then that indicates to me that it would be wrong altogether.

I am not sure how many more times I need to say this, but a K1 is authorised to work, the issue is evidence.

The situations you are talking about involve people who EWI'd, and even then they are usually released.

The employer is from a practical point of view the one most at risk. But 10,000,000 plus people go to work everyday without work authorisation, probably the majority of those who adjust status in the US have worked illegally.

Still waiting for an answer on the 10 year ban.

PLEASE excuse my obvious ignorance. I assure you, you won't have to repeat this on MY accout again.

In your original post, he had not decided yet that he would not take the job. Reread the beginning post. You were contemplating doing something illegal ... you even asked about the risk of getting caught so you must have known it was illegal.

I was told by the immigration officer at my AOS meeting that because my work authorisation granted at JFK had expired, I would have to give up work immediately and apply for EAD or risk being deported if I was caught working.

I am unsure as to what you are saying here. I know that I always knew it was illegal I never said otherwise and as I pointed out in another post I said that I was always skeptical about the situation. I just thought that this was the one place I could get opinions from people without a hard time. Like I said before I didn't think or want this post to turn into a big deal. It was a temptation to take this job and I guess I was looking for people to talk us out of it! Which with that and common sense it definetely did. When you get desperate enough about something it is very easy to do something stupid! I am sorry if you misunderstood me.



Diana

and then another quote:

"I was told by the immigration officer at my AOS meeting that because my work authorisation granted at JFK had expired, I would have to give up work immediately and apply for EAD or risk being deported if I was caught working."

so who to believe??

(open comments, not just to the quoted OP)
Really, was that determined? 32 posts and everyone ignored Boiler's & noviademexicano's comments?

Is it just as irresponsible for The Group to say something is "not ok" when it is, as to say that something is "ok" when it is not?

It's OK to not answer if you dont' know the answer. Might learn something new every now and again.





Diana, I believe that individuals should research their own answers after getting information on a discussion group. How do you know who here is giving you the right info? Those who shout loudest? Or the biggest crowd? The oldest? The cutest?
Of course, your motivation to find the answer will depend greatly on your desire for the result (work, in this case). Either way is fine, but you should know the answer for yourself, so that *you* are making your decisions.

PaulC,

Find and read the laws underlying the issue - that will tell you who was correct.

Note that few, but possibly some, local USCIS officers are likely to belawyers or to have been trained in the law. They have been trained in the policies and procedures that the USCIS uses to implement the law, but that is not the same thing.

Yodrak

Thank you for this nice response. You make alot of sense and I have realized some of this myself already We did make the decision not to work because it is what we felt was right in the end and thats what matters! Thanks again!!!


Diana

I have seen people deported under suspicion of working illeagllylet alone being caught doing this, If it is discovered you did work and lied about it, that is grounds for immediate denial of your application,

That is not quite right..... read this from USCIS

You may be ineligible for adjustment to permanent resident status if:

You entered the U.S. while you were in transit to another country without obtaining a visa.


You entered the U.S. while you were a nonimmigrant crewman.


You were not admitted or paroled into the United States after being inspected by a U.S. Immigration inspector.


You are employed in the United States without USCIS authorization or you are no longer legally in the country (except through no fault of your own or for some technical reason). This rule does not apply to you if:


You are the immediate relative of a U.S. citizen (parent, spouse, or unmarried child under 21 years old).

K, I almost bit too---the quote does say "and lied about it.." which *would* be a major no-no.

I do believe incorrect conclusions may have been drawn in this thread, tho, & hate to see them left hanging there.

yeah.....i think your husband should be just as worried as the other 12 million plus illegals from mexico are worried aswell for "working under the table".....and they arent worried at all! lol

but as Yodrak said..its with the IRS,...

There's a difference though, those illegals aren't going through AOS.

Many are.

Probably in some countries the majority EWI'd to the US and worked illegally.

I meant, the "majority of illegals".

But yes, I know people who now have green cards that lived and worked illegally in this country. Would I recommend it to someone who is so far law abiding? Definitely not.

Does your husband have decent computer skills? If so, how about you two get familiar with items that can be sold on ebay... open up an account in your name (if you don't have one already)... you two go garage sale hunting on weekends... and during the week he can manage listing items that you can re-sell for more money and answering questions about them. You can also find re-sellable items in thrift stores and sometimes in big sales in stores - my sister sometimes finds clothing marked down immensly that she can sell on ebay for more than she paid. It wouldn't be the same as a job's salary, but I think it would be safer, and a little is better than nothing.