Is working from Europe for a week allowed?

[SJ2020 65]

Hello, I have my 2 year conditional green card (family based) and I am currently working for a US based company. We’ve been working remote ever since I started so I was planning on going to Europe for Christmas and working from there but also spending some time with my family without taking PTO (Xmas time is the busiest time for us so I won’t be able to get time off). My boss told me that I might not be allowed to do it even for a week because of tax purposes and liability protection of the company. Can someone confirm if this is an issue or if you’ve done it before? Thanks so much! 

[Crazy Cat 41,980]

Those sound like legit concerns to me.  I would ask the company attorney. 

Edited September 7, 2021 by Crazy Cat

[saksnoot 31]

I’m not sure this is a visa issue so I’m not sure why it’s here. The issue seems to be the company believing that they’ll be liable under a foreign government’s laws if you work from them while abroad.

 

That said, I don’t actually see this issue here. People regularly travel and do work abroad without tax liability. Imagine a journalist going to the Olympics, for example. At the end of the day, the only thing you can do is plead your case to your employer. If they won’t let you work from abroad, then you can’t, regardless of any (lack of) legal hurdles. 

[Adventine 3,201]

A journalist sent to cover the Olympics is on a temporary work assignment - and depending on their nationality, they do apply for the appropriate visas for their destination.

 

Going to Europe for Christmas is a personal decision and isn't a work trip sponsored by OP's employer.

 

OP's company should have a written teleworking policy that specifically addresses working outside your home/country of residence. There may also be data privacy or IT security policies related to taking company information overseas. Check with the HR department.

[RLA 323]

On 9/7/2021 at 1:00 PM, SJ2020 said:

My boss told me that I might not be allowed to do it even for a week because of tax purposes and liability protection of the company. Can someone confirm if this is an issue or if you’ve done it before?

I've worked from Europe (Germany) for a week earlier this year, on a personal trip.  No visa necessary because I'm a German citizen.  As a UK citizen you should have no legal problems working from the UK.  Not sure about the rest of Europe, now after Brexit.

 

Taxes should not be a problem either, at least I've never noticed any tax effects from my frequent work trips to various countries in the past.

 

In the end, though, your employer does not have to let you work from Europe, even if there are no tax or liability problems.