work Capacity to work during my transition to the US?

[DavidofLondon 1]

Hello, I'd like to know if I am able to work in any capacity during the K-1 Visa Transitioning phase, Here are my questions:

1. After first moving to the US, can I still work for UK clients prior to gaining marriage/green card status, during the transitioning phase?
2. Is there any capacity that I can work for myself, selling digital content online, prior to gaining marriage/green card status, during the transitioning phase? 
3. After marriage, how long have you generally had to wait, before you have been able to work?

Thank you for any responses that may shed some light.

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

   Are you getting paid to a US account in US dollars or receiving the payment inside the US   ?   If so than you are working illegally.  K1's are not for people that want to work immediately on getting to the US.  That is the drawback of choosing that route.  You can't have it all. 

[DavidofLondon 1]

Thank you NigeriaorBust, I'm not desperate to work in the US right away, just making sure I'm fully prepared and knowledgeable.

What if I was earning money from a UK citizen to a UK account? After moving to the US, but prior to a green-card?

 

[Jordan8768 107]

Just now, DavidofLondon said:

Thank you NigeriaorBust, I'm not desperate to work in the US right away, just making sure I'm fully prepared and knowledgeable.

What if I was earning money from a UK citizen to a UK account? After moving to the US, but prior to a green-card?

 

Sounds like a grey area. Honestly not worth the risk. Apply for the work permit and you can work within a few months. 

[Coco8 1,039]

56 minutes ago, DavidofLondon said:

2. Is there any capacity that I can work for myself, selling digital content online, prior to gaining marriage/green card status, during the transitioning phase? 

No, you cannot do this.

 

55 minutes ago, DavidofLondon said:

3. After marriage, how long have you generally had to wait, before you have been able to work?

 If you apply for the EAD with AOS, it would take 4 months to get that and you are authorized to work. Your green card would arrive much later.

[Boiler 43,396]

It is a grey area and from a practical point of view the only issue will be US taxes. Can be an added pain.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

EAD is recently taking around 90- 120 days. If you get a job offer you can apply expedite this. Green Card can take anywhere from 3-12 months depending on if you get interview or are waived interview (which isn't uncommon for a K1). Time to GC depends a lot your local field office wait times (in the case of interview). I got my waived interview GC 2 weeks after my EAD which I got after roughly 95 days, but this varies a lot, you don't have any guarantees on what your specific timeline will be, and the waiting IS hard. You aren't legally allowed to work, that said work for spouses of US citizens are overlooked during AOS process, so ppl that have gotten themselves into a financial bind and work can still AOS. I'm not advising this, as you'd be breaking the conditions of your visa and status in the US.

[Boiler 43,396]

K1 is work authorised.

[DavidofLondon 1]

Thanks for your input everybody, I'd just like to say you're a really helpful and amazing community.

Much appreciated. 

[Boiler 43,396]

Our pleasure.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

3 minutes ago, Boiler said:

K1 is work authorised.

yes, but only with the EAD - ok so technically not a violation of the visa itself, but the stipulations that come with it.

Edited August 12, 2017 by Suss&Camm

[theanswerisdance 144]

53 minutes ago, DavidofLondon said:

Hello, I'd like to know if I am able to work in any capacity during the K-1 Visa Transitioning phase, Here are my questions:

1. After first moving to the US, can I still work for UK clients prior to gaining marriage/green card status, during the transitioning phase?
2. Is there any capacity that I can work for myself, selling digital content online, prior to gaining marriage/green card status, during the transitioning phase? 
3. After marriage, how long have you generally had to wait, before you have been able to work?

Thank you for any responses that may shed some light.

1. I recall threads about this in the past where it seemed to be a really gray area. I'm assuming you're talking about working remotely from your home in the US for your UK clients. While it all seems on the surface like it should be legitimate because you aren't working FOR a US job or making US income from this, you will have to declare this worldwide income when you file US taxes and I don't know how that will go over because you cannot get a US job until you get married, apply for Adjustment of Status, and then receive either the EAD or the GC (it's free to apply for the EAD concurrently with the GC so you'll want to do that). But how the letter of law is interpreted when you're not working at a US job, but are working on US soil, is the tricky part. I recall one case where the individual spoke with their foreign company's HR department and HR said it was legal specifically because their company did not have a US presence/division of their company based in the US, whereas if they had a US division, it would not have been legal since the individual would have technically been working for a company that had an American base. Take that for what it's worth.

 

2. I don't think you can work for yourself because you as the employer would be based in the US, even if you had UK clients and the money was going into a UK account. 

 

3. The EAD that will allow you to work takes roughly 3-4 months after filing for AOS. Keep in mind you can't file for AOS until you're married, and you have 90 days to marry once you enter the country with the K-1, so if work is a pressing issue you'll want to get married and file AOS at the beginning of those 90 days, not wait till later.

 

I continued to work for my Canadian business for a year after moving here on a K-1. However, my job required me to physically go back to Canada for work for several months at a time once I obtained my GC, and thus I was not working remotely, so it made it a bit less fuzzy than your situation. I also did not work during the AOS period until I had my EAD because I was unsure of how that would play out when I filed US taxes and I didn't want to chance it. 

[Boiler 43,396]

1 minute ago, Suss&Camm said:

yes, but only with the EAD - ok so technically not a violation of the visa itself, but the stipulations that come with it.

No

 

Has been discussed many many times and OP seemingly does not require evidence of his status.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

1 minute ago, Boiler said:

No

 

Has been discussed many many times and OP seemingly does not require evidence of his status.

What are you talking about? A K1 can't work without the work authorization. I don't understand what you are saying.

[Suss&Camm 2,213]

Do you mean since he doesn't need to present the EAD to an employer?