Work under K1-visa

[Octopuss 0]

Hi,

I found a job in the US and I could start as soon as I move there. Of course I could not sign anything since I don't have the visa yet but the guy who wants to hire me is ready to wait.

Can someone tell me if I can work with a K-1 visa? Are there specific forms to fill in?

I checked on the consulate website and there is no information about that.

Thanks in advance for your help!

Zoé

[canadian_wife 1,829]

Once you arrive in the US on your K-1 you'll need to get married within 90 days and apply for your adjustment of status. When you apply for your AOS, you will also apply for your Employment Authorization Document which allows you to work until your green card arrives. that takes about 90 days to arrive (sometimes sooner). You cannot work in the US without that authorization. Even if you get an 'employment authorization' stamp at the port of entry - that is usless from what I've read

Good luck.

[Octopuss 0]

We planned to get married in May but then I think we will have to make it legal when I arrive in the US to speed up the arrival of the green card. We can still keep the party in May...

I will ask at the interview since there is no way to know more about it.

Thanks for the quick reply!

[canadian_wife 1,829]

I will ask at the interview since there is no way to know more about it.

Or you could read the guides regarding Employment Authorization for a K-1. OR you could wait for others to verify what I said. There are plenty ways to know more about it. However, what I said stands - you cannot work in the US without employment authorization. A K-1 is not employment authorized without an EAD

[OBX 51]

We planned to get married in May but then I think we will have to make it legal when I arrive in the US to speed up the arrival of the green card. We can still keep the party in May...

I will ask at the interview since there is no way to know more about it.

Thanks for the quick reply!

"Making it legal in the US" is not going to speed up your green card! As canadian_wife posted there are steps to follow to allow you to work once you marry in the US and that can take upwards of 3 months. The only way to allow yourself to work immediately is to marry first, apply for a CR1 visa and wait out the process in your home country.

Read the guides to familiarize yourself with the different options and then you can choose whichever suits your situation best. Good luck.

Edited January 22, 2010 by OBX

[Octopuss 0]

There is this information on the website of the Belgian Embassy: you can call on Wed. and Fri. from 2 pm to 3.30 pm for any question about pending visas.

Well, when you are lucky to have a receptionist on the phone, they transfer to another service when no one never answers until the beeeep beeeep just stops. And when you want to leave a message to the receptionist to ask someone to call you back "we are not allowed to take messages". Great!!! Thanks for the support

Oh of course you can call that 15€ phone number when you are told they cannot give you more information

I guess I have no choice but wait for the interview...

[DainandVicky 4]

I think the OP means push the wedding date up to get the AOS process started sooner.

[Octopuss 0]

What is OP ???

Yes I think we will keep the wedding party on May 8 but make the marriage legal as soon as I arrive in the US to get the AOS sooner. In the meantime, I can still start working at that place as a volunteer.... but of course it would be better to get $$$, especially with all those fees

[TracyTN 237]

OP = original poster.

[canadian_wife 1,829]

I would avoid doing anything that might appear to be working. If you are doing charity work or working for a church and doing volunteer work that is different. I'd stay away from 'volunteering' at a job that will pay you eventually - as that gives the impression of working and you cannot be compensatd for that work even at a later date.

but that is just my opinion

Good luck

[Octopuss 0]

Thanks for your advice.

It would be a job at a French school (not teacher but assistant of the principal), located at one mile from the house so I really want that job! I would start as volunteer to be sure to get the job as soon as I am allowed to work.

The principal is nice enough to wait for me and not hire another person, I can't let this chance go away in this economical situation.

[Seraya-Karl 0]

The short answer is "YES". You can work with a K-1 visa, married or not, for the 90 days on the I-94 that they give you, when you enter. Hopefully, you will get married, file an EAD and receive it before the 90 days are up. You will need to apply for a social security number.

My finance arrived on a Sunday, and we went to the social security office on Monday - before we got married. We brought her passport with the I-94 in it. We brought the notice that we got here at visajourney. com, just in case they didn't know the rules, but it wasn't needed. Home Land Security had not put her in their computer yet, so they said we would have to wait up to a month for them to get verification from Home Land Security and then another two weeks to get the social security number. (We got the verification letter about a month later.) BUT, they gave a her letter that day stating that said she could work in the meantime.

See here applying for a Social Security Number:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...om&page=ssn

They have a copy in pdf format of notice that you are eligible for a social security number to work with a K-1 visa here:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...page=otherforms

[Bobby+Umit 161]

The short answer is "YES". You can work with a K-1 visa, married or not, for the 90 days on the I-94 that they give you, when you enter. Hopefully, you will get married, file an EAD and receive it before the 90 days are up. You will need to apply for a social security number.

My finance arrived on a Sunday, and we went to the social security office on Monday - before we got married. We brought her passport with the I-94 in it. We brought the notice that we got here at visajourney. com, just in case they didn't know the rules, but it wasn't needed. Home Land Security had not put her in their computer yet, so they said we would have to wait up to a month for them to get verification from Home Land Security and then another two weeks to get the social security number. (We got the verification letter about a month later.) BUT, they gave a her letter that day stating that said she could work in the meantime.

See here applying for a Social Security Number:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...om&page=ssn

They have a copy in pdf format of notice that you are eligible for a social security number to work with a K-1 visa here:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.ph...page=otherforms

Eh?

The K-1 does not give you authorization to work. The K-1 allows you to get an SSN, which is usually stamped with "Cannot work without DHS authorization" (or something to that affect)

You may be thinking of the stamp on the I-94 they sometimes put on "authorizing" work - however, there are several well researched posts here that indicate this is no longer valid to actually work, you need the EAD.

Without marriage and AOS (which can generate the EAD if you apply) or a seperate EAD application - you are not authorized to work unless you have that EAD/GC.

[sachinky 465]

You need the EAD to work on a K-1.

Stop spreading false information.

[Matt & Bing 56]

The short answer is "YES". You can work with a K-1 visa, married or not, for the 90 days on the I-94 that they give you,

The correct short answer is no.

Your SS card will say not authorized to work without DHS authorization (ie EAD or Green Card).