I'm just kinda mulling this over on how it will work.

I've been at my current company for 10 years in the office. Over the last year my boss expanded into the US market and opened an office in New York. I'm moving into the Cleveland area and he has asked if I'm interesting in being a Sales Rep for the area.

Unless I'm mistaken, when I enter the US I can work with a temporary work authorization for 90 days and then I cannot work until I receive my permanent EAD (which I file for once I'm married and has a wait time of about 3 months?). As a commissioned sales rep, what is classified as not working ... simply not collecting commisions during that time period? Is soliciting business classified as working?

Help with some clarification would be appreciated

bump

If you enter via JFK, and maybe some others, you can get a temporary EAD, yes.

Correct.

Yes, its classifed as working, its a job after all right? Not being paid does not mean its not employment. You are not supposed to engage in this kind of work unless you have employment authorisation.

Yes, you can work as long as your employer is willing to hire you for 90 days only.
Check this out:

https://s044a90.ssa.gov/apps10/poms.nsf/lnx/0100203500

Also, you can get hired even w/o SSN, just need to apply for one and lots of people just keep working until getting EAD.
Check it out:

http://www.socialsecurity.gov/employer/hiring.htm

It is your decision but how are they gonna know if you are getting paid in Canada.

Have you thought about the tax consequences of getting paid in Canada?.... and how that may or may not impact your PR status...

You may find that it may not be such a good idea...

my uk employer wants me to extend my notice period so that i can transition my work. I suspect he will want me to stay on for 3-6 months to hire a replacement for me. They would still pay me in the UK and get taxed there.
Would this be illegal if I was in the states on a K1 visa? I'm hoping to enter on the K1 in May so need to get this finalised asap. I've tried USCIS but no one speaks good enough english to explain..

I looked into this but my company's (a large multinational IT firm) legal department vetoed it due to tax and insurance issues. Their policy was to treat me as though I was a US employee rather than a UK employee - even though I would have been working with my UK team whilst telecommuting in the US. Something to do with workplace liability came into it too.

There is nothing stopping you - or at least no-one told me about anything and I asked a number of qualified people - being paid in the UK and being taxed in the UK. You are a UK citizen after all and have a right to work there. The ineligibility to work without an EAD or Green Card only applies to US employers. HOWEVER, you should bear in mind the tax implications. It's possible to apply for a UK tax rebate when you leave the country but obviously, if you've left the country and yet are still being paid in the UK (and paying UK tax), this will be heavily impacted.

Obviously, please do not take my advice as law. I do think that the US CIS helpdesk or an immigration attorney would be of more help.

thanks Mark - i think i need to call a US attorney. I've tried different people @ uscis and they don't seem to understand the question!!

Also - i called the tax office this morning - and since I'm leaving in May - I will only get a tax rebate from the 5th April 07 - so if i do stay with my UK employer then its actually more beneficial as i will get peanuts in tax rebate.


So - if i work for my UK employer for 3-6 months (from home in the US) and pay UK taxes and National insurance, then i don't need to worry about EAD until i get a job with us USA employer ?

Yeah, to be fair to them, it is a relatively complex question and they are helpdesk staff rather than lawmakers. But I understand your frustration - I had the same problem. I had to get tax people and legal people in the company I worked for to help.

Ah, if you're leaving in May, then, yes, I wouldn't worry about the UK tax rebate

EAD enables you to work with an United States-based employer - so, no, you don't need it to work for a UK-based employee. However, your company's legal department should confirm that there are no legal problems - such as insurance, workplace safety, etc - which might need to be addressed.

If I were you, I'd apply for the EAD in case you need it in the short-term future (it takes 180 days from receipt of the application to receive it). It's better to have it in your hand and not need it than needing it and not having it in your hand.

Some immigration attorneys are meant to be good - I've never used one myself, but it's better to blame them if you ever get a problem than have to plead ignorance :-)

Thanks again Mark thats really helpful. Will definitely apply for EAD as soon as I arrive, was just wondering about interim *if* i decide to stay with my employer for a few more months while they find a replacement for me..

Hi Zyggy,

What are the tax consequences of getting paid in Canada? How could it impact my PR status when it is an official document?
I went to apply for SSN a few days ago and social advisor told me that I do no need any authorization to work in USA for the first 90 days. They even had a temp who was K1 working for them for 2 months w/o EAD.

Thanks!

It's a bit touchier than that. I could see an argument that an arriving K-1 is employment authorized for their first 90 days in the US and MAY be elgible to work for an overseas employer, but be careful to not confuse the issues.

A non-US resident may not just show up and work in the US, even for a non-US employer, without the correct employment authorization.

Vox it is DHS and the I-9 that authorises work, not the SS administration. If you can't meet the requirements of the I-9 (part of which is being work authorized and being able to prove it in a timely fashion), you can't legally work, not matter what some bozo in the SS office says.

1) You have to file a Leaving Canada return to close off your tax situation with CRA, you only get taxed until the date that you left Canada... if you're still getting paid as if you were still in Canada, how are you going to rectify this situation... There are also legal situations on how you would treat as your tax home and issued with deemed residency that could cause you to continue to be taxed in Canada, with a possible higher burder of proof that you really have cut your ties to Canada... it's a headache that you don't want to have... think long term.. you may gain in the short term boost of income,.. but may lose long term by having to pay higher Canadian Income Taxes for much longer than you would otherwise have to and give a lot of that short term income boost back...

How would it reflect on your PR status if Canada still considers you a deemed resident for a period where you were supposed to be resident in the US... it's a conflict of facts and confusion often brings trouble...

2) You have to report the income that you earned in Canada on your US 1040... You would take a pretty big tax hit as you could be limited on the Amount of Foreign Tax Credit that you could take and your deductions would be reduced by the amount of foreign income that you have, so you would probably be paying higher US taxes as well...

3) If it were possible (there are gray areas if your employer is yourself since I believe an I-9 is not required for self-employment), It would be better if you told your employer that you wish to work with them on a contract basis and have them pay you that way (as a self-employed contractor)... when you negotiate a fee be sure to include the extra Social Security Tax and Medicare Taxes that you will have to pay as a self-employed individual...

THe fact of the matter is that you knew what the terms of the K-1 were when you got it (little possibility of work) and now people are trying to get around it... if the K-1 didn't fit your needs, you should have gotten a visa that did... i.e., you made your bed, now you have to lie in it...

Hi Zyggy,

Thank you for the great information; you always provide great info and guidelines you can’t find anywhere else.
I have a question for you:
I have a job offer from my ex-Canadian employee to run a huge project and be the project manager from August 2007 to August 2008; the money is great (30% more than I can make in the USA) and one part of the job can be done from home remotely and one part in the office in Canada meaning I would have to commute for a year.
I plan to have an EAD by then (I entered on K1 visa and getting married in 3 weeks) and am Canadian.

If I take this job, how does it may my PR status in USA?
I understand that I may have to pay an extra tax $$$$ but this is something I really like and prefer to do.

Let me know your opinion please.

Again Thank You!

The only risk is the risk of abandonment in terms of your PR status... but there are PR business people who are making the commute every day and it doesn't risk their PR status...

In terms of the tax situation, there are ways that you can be paid as a commuter to reflect your situation as a US Resident (no Ontario Medical Premium for example)... your HR department should be able to figure out a way for you to work through that... but you would be paid as usual, but would have the 25% non-resident tax taken out of your check if you remained as an employee...

I would have a short consulatation with a Immigration Attorney who isknowledgeable about abandonment just to make sure that you have your i's dotted and t's crossed... I would also consult with a cross border tax advisor to see how you can minimize your tax burden by cross border employment...

Thanks Zyggy!

I actually have options of either working as full time employee in Canada (CPP, EI + Canadian taxes paid) or to start up my own small consulting company in USA and provide services to them (pure contract based job); they do not care how it is formulated.
I arrived a month ago, I still do not know how big deal it is to start up your small consulting business in USA and provide your services in another country. It was very easy in Canada, you did not have to collect any provincial nor federal tax up to 30K earned, and it may be more difficult in USA.
I have to figure if I am allowed to start up your own consulting company in USA with EAD, I think this would be the best route since I would get to write off all business related expenses and pay less USA tax.

Thanks again Zyggy, great input!