bob85

3 minutes ago, A'n'L said:

It's a grey area in the sense that there is no law prohibiting it, but some people tend to think it's not OK. Those people misinterpret the regulations regarding US employment. The only thing that is illegal/against US law is for a US employer to hire an alien without a valid US work permit. Working remotely for a foreign company while on US soil is currently not under any regulations whatsoever.

This is my understanding of the current law as well.

7 hours ago, Loki_Go said:

Hi, I did it. I never stopped working for my Canadian company when I moved to the US on a K1. I'm now on a conditional 2 year green card. It's entirely possible and yes, it's a grey area, but understand it is a risk. My employment never came up in my K1 interview but it certainly did in my AOS interview. The CO seemed to know I was working and Didn't ask me anything about it, but instead turned to my husband and asked. My husband and I decided long ago that if it ever came up we were going to be honest about it and so he was. The CO didn't seem to care and moved on to other questioning.

 

If you want more info about my experiences I welcome you to look through my previous posts. There's a lot of info I've given over the time, too much to try to repeat here.

 

In a nutshell: Taxes are complicated and expensive. I get paid in CAD into my Canadian bank. You may have to cash out some investments and/or particular savings accounts (like tax free ones) because non-residents cannot hold them.

 

There's a lot that goes into this, and don't expect your company to cover your butt. YOU need to look out for YOURSELF.

 

Thanks for the info Loki_Go! Yeah I did a search before posting and remember reading your post about it. The AOS interviewer not being concerned about it is very interesting.

Can I ask if you got an EAD and were 'working' with that before your AOS interview? Also did you continue the same work after your AOS was approved?

The other option I was thinking about which may be less of a grey area (not sure about this either tbh) is getting paid for a project rather than a wage within the time to get the EAD. i.e. paid in a lump sum after the EAD is granted.

geowrian - I think all the confusion and frustration stems from this not being clear in the written rules. Your link is really the opinions of some lawyers (which are of course more knowledgable to some extent) and Loki_Go's experience is the opinion of their particular CO. As such the only way to get an idea of how this works in reality is to hear the real life experiences and judgements made. I agree it's a crappy situation to be put in, and I am still deciding what I would like to do hence posting this thread.

18 hours ago, KristyD said:

I asked my immigration lawyer the same question as I am in the same boat and it doesn't matter so long as it's going into an Australian account and will be taxed by Australia.  I wouldnt transfer any money from Australia to the US though until your visa is approved.

Did your lawyer go over the tax situation in the US? I'm a bit confused about the Australian-US tax treaty. Do you need to file taxes in both countries and pay double taxes?

Hi geowrian, thanks for the info. I'll have a read of your link.

It is a bit of a tricky situation. I work for a very small business (not in the US) and am looking to continue that work long term. I guess the safest way to go would be to take a leave of absence while the EAD is processing. However the business would suffer in the months that I cannot work.

I am trying to find the balance to do right by the US gov but also for the company I work for.

So I am currently working for an Australian company and waiting for my K1 to be processed. When I move to the US with the K1 I would like to continue working for my Australian employer during the AOS waiting period. I understand this is a grey area, hence I wanted to hear about real experiences people have had in this situation.

Is there anyone who has done this and now applying for Citizenship and having any problems? Or any issues while filing taxes, etc?

Any info is much appreciated!