Tax - providing service on J1
#16
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You are welcome to take whatever gamble you like with your own future, but you are asking for our opinion. There are long-term consequences to the choices.
If you are not a US citizen or PR, you need employment authorization to perform work while you are physically inside the US.
If you have a specific non-immigrant status, you can only do the employment/work you are authorized to do.
I think that's the 3rd time I've posted basically that in this thread.
If you are not a US citizen or PR, you need employment authorization to perform work while you are physically inside the US.
If you have a specific non-immigrant status, you can only do the employment/work you are authorized to do.
I think that's the 3rd time I've posted basically that in this thread.
Concurrent H1Bs is obviously the way to go to work for a second company long term, but 'one-off' sales of goods do not seem to constitute 'doing business', which is prohibited on the H1B as you rightly say. Unless there is an issue doing a 'one-off' sale with a company as opposed to private individual?
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That looks like a grey area though, based on the definition of 'work'.
If I sell a laptop that I own, whilst based in the US, this seems legitimate? If I built the laptop from parts that I bought online, then this is probably legitimate too, so long as I am selling only a small volume of laptops?
What is the difference between this a selling a HTML document that I wrote/edited?
If I had previously written the document whilst based in the UK, and then sold it in the US, is this a different case?
If I sell a laptop that I own, whilst based in the US, this seems legitimate? If I built the laptop from parts that I bought online, then this is probably legitimate too, so long as I am selling only a small volume of laptops?
What is the difference between this a selling a HTML document that I wrote/edited?
If I had previously written the document whilst based in the UK, and then sold it in the US, is this a different case?
What you are describing seems to be for profit, more than 1 sale, and planning ahead for it. To my layman's view, that sounds more like "work". If you want to be selling things that you wrote or made, for a profit, it sounds like you're running a business.
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That looks like a grey area though, based on the definition of 'work'.
If I sell a laptop that I own, whilst based in the US, this seems legitimate? If I built the laptop from parts that I bought online, then this is probably legitimate too, so long as I am selling only a small volume of laptops?
If I sell a laptop that I own, whilst based in the US, this seems legitimate? If I built the laptop from parts that I bought online, then this is probably legitimate too, so long as I am selling only a small volume of laptops?
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Selling on ebay seems to be fine, for low volume, 'one-off' items that you have used for your own purposes and sold, from my reading. Whether the item is a computer, or a piece of code, seems irrelevant if it is a single transferable unit.
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If your hell bent on doing something dodgy, that's up to you, it's no skin of anyone elses nose. You just want to talk to a immigration lawyer first to fully understand what you are getting yourself into, especially if you have any long term plans of staying in the US.
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If you're selling off your junk, that's just selling off your junk, if you're selling stuff regulary for money, that would be work and not allowed.
If your hell bent on doing something dodgy, that's up to you, it's no skin of anyone elses nose. You just want to talk to a immigration lawyer first to fully understand what you are getting yourself into, especially if you have any long term plans of staying in the US.
If your hell bent on doing something dodgy, that's up to you, it's no skin of anyone elses nose. You just want to talk to a immigration lawyer first to fully understand what you are getting yourself into, especially if you have any long term plans of staying in the US.
Thanks.
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Clearly I am not going to risk something illegal - but I am keen to run scenarios past more experienced readers here to work out exactly where the leeway is, rather than sitting on my hands with an imprecise blanket definition of what 'work' is... Words like 'regular' are open to interpretation - and so it is desirable to know the bounds of such interpretation etc.
Thanks.
Thanks.
Can't get any clearer than that.
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Umm... right. You're asking because you want to know how much you can get away with, before it becomes "too much".
I speed when I drive. I'm aware that I speed when I drive. Speeding is illegal. I accept the risk and speed anyway. But even 1 mph over the limit could get me a ticket. What are the chances that I'll get a ticket for driving 1 mph over the limit? Is that the same thing as it being okay to drive 1 mph over the limit?
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I speed when I drive. I'm aware that I speed when I drive. Speeding is illegal. I accept the risk and speed anyway. But even 1 mph over the limit could get me a ticket. What are the chances that I'll get a ticket for driving 1 mph over the limit? Is that the same thing as it being okay to drive 1 mph over the limit?
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You seem desperate for someone to tell you that taking on side jobs will be ok. Nobody here is going to do that. Hire a lawyer and get the story from him.
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You can't. You can't do any work that someone else might be paid for. You can't "work for free".
No. You can't receive any compensation whatsoever, and money isn't the only form of compensation.
I understand that you're asking because you don't know... but we're giving you the benefit of our 10 or 13 years of experience with exactly these sorts of questions. You can ignore everything we say, if you want to. That's your choice. But don't, for a moment, think we're going to actually help you define that line.
Ian
... and they provide me a car to use for this volunteer work, then I am fine?
I understand that you're asking because you don't know... but we're giving you the benefit of our 10 or 13 years of experience with exactly these sorts of questions. You can ignore everything we say, if you want to. That's your choice. But don't, for a moment, think we're going to actually help you define that line.
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