B2 visa and foreign company

[Stefano 0]

Hi all,

I would like to know if I am allowed to stay in the US with a B2 tourist visa, while working (in remote) for a foreign company.

Thank you for your help in this matter.

Cordially,

Stefano

 

[nightingalejules 678]

There isn’t a law against it, to my knowledge, since you’re not “taking away a job from a US person.” If you’re doing some remote work (telecommuting) while on holiday I think it’s technically legal.

[JE57 239]

From a purely immigration perspective this may be OK as long as the work you are doing is not with US clients and could be done by a US Citizen.  However, assuming the company in question is a multinational company with interests or subsidiaries in the USA then your work from within the USA (if a significant amount of time) could result in tax implications for that company and it would be best to consult with your companies HR department before doing a significant amount of work for them.   Also, bear in mind that the purpose of a tourist visa is to VISIT the USA and as such if you spend a significant portion of your stay in fact working then it may raise some red flags on future entries to the USA. 

[az2014 381]

3 hours ago, nightingalejules said:

There isn’t a law against it, to my knowledge, since you’re not “taking away a job from a US person.” If you’re doing some remote work (telecommuting) while on holiday I think it’s technically legal.

Wrong.

 

2 hours ago, JE57 said:

From a purely immigration perspective this may be OK as long as the work you are doing is not with US clients and could be done by a US Citizen.  However, assuming the company in question is a multinational company with interests or subsidiaries in the USA then your work from within the USA (if a significant amount of time) could result in tax implications for that company and it would be best to consult with your companies HR department before doing a significant amount of work for them.   Also, bear in mind that the purpose of a tourist visa is to VISIT the USA and as such if you spend a significant portion of your stay in fact working then it may raise some red flags on future entries to the USA. 

Wrong.

 

No, you cannot work while on a B2 visa even remotely for a foreign company..

[SusieQQQ 11,585]

6 hours ago, Stefano said:

Hi all,

I would like to know if I am allowed to stay in the US with a B2 tourist visa, while working (in remote) for a foreign company.

Thank you for your help in this matter.

Cordially,

Stefano

 

What do you mean by “stay”? If you are visiting for tourism or business and do a bit of work for your home country company while there, that’s fine. If you are de facto living in the US, no matter how you are funding it, that’s not allowed.

 

plus, az2014 is right here :

2 hours ago, az2014 said:

 

No, you cannot work while on a B2 visa even remotely for a foreign company..

...as a friend of mine found out the hard way being in the US on a status that did not allow work, thinking working and getting paid outside the US was ok. It wasn’t.

[Boiler 43,757]

Potential tax issues as well.

[Stefano 0]

Thank you all for the answers.

Maybe I am wrong, but it seems this Visa is quite useless: if say you are working (for a company of your country, not connected with the Us) you are wrong. But also if you are unemployed: are you working here under the table ? Because they can think that none at your age, without a job, can live properly abroad for 3-5 months.

All in all, this  reminds me a phrase from a Morgan Spurlock' s program: "... Us looks like a private club..."

So it should be better if I go on holiday elsewhere  :).

Regards,

Stefano

[Boiler 43,757]

Enjoy your holiday.

[SusieQQQ 11,585]

53 minutes ago, Stefano said:

Thank you all for the answers.

Maybe I am wrong, but it seems this Visa is quite useless: if say you are working (for a company of your country, not connected with the Us) you are wrong. But also if you are unemployed: are you working here under the table ? Because they can think that none at your age, without a job, can live properly abroad for 3-5 months.

All in all, this  reminds me a phrase from a Morgan Spurlock' s program: "... Us looks like a private club..."

So it should be better if I go on holiday elsewhere  :).

Regards,

Stefano

Maybe the visa is “useless” because you want to use it for something it’s not intended for. (Most visas in fact are useless if you want to do something other than what they are issued for.)

 

You are not supposed to be “living abroad” in the US on it, you are supoosed to be on holiday (or on a business trip)

and it seems “they” are correct in thinking “none at your age, without a job, can live properly abroad for 3-5 months.” judging by the fact that you apparently need to work remotely to sustain yourself for those 3-5 months.

 

I’m somewhat curious as to how you got your visa, did you tell the interviewing officer that you planned to spend 3-5 months in the US, and that you planned to support this “living” there by working remotely? Or are these hypothetical questions in advance of applying for a visa?

 

If you want to spend some time living in the US and funding yourself as you go, you should look into J visa options.

 

[Stefano 0]

In fact, I should have apologised before for my awful English.

I have been on holiday in the Us with B2 visa for 3 and 5 months, sometimes with no problem at the Port of Entry, sometimes I had to go for a 2nd interview (don't know why....maybe because I don't wear burqa...).

I got my visa regularly, paying the fee and then having the interview at the local Embassy: thanks.

 

[MacUK 983]

On 28/02/2018 at 8:06 AM, Stefano said:

In fact, I should have apologised before for my awful English.

I have been on holiday in the Us with B2 visa for 3 and 5 months, sometimes with no problem at the Port of Entry, sometimes I had to go for a 2nd interview (don't know why....maybe because I don't wear burqa...).

I got my visa regularly, paying the fee and then having the interview at the local Embassy: thanks.

 

Not sure why you felt you had to include a bit of racism in that post