Working for current UK employer remotely in US

[Joe Kano 327]

5 minutes ago, ra0010 said:

The caveat is that I don’t think USCIS has thought about modern world and the ability to telework. I’m pretty sure a lot of people do it without even thinking about it! 

For sure

 

Here is my take: I did my first K1 back in 2007, this was a debated topic back then, pretty much everyone decided it was a gray area and you decide for yourself.

 

The way I see it, is probably the USCIS has no legal authority to tell a K1 or similar they can't work for a non US company so the USCIS words it the way it does.  On the surface it seems like you are not allowed to work at all, and then if you really start looking at it really doesn't say either way.  But I also realize that the lion share of people coming to the USA will eventually end up working for a US Based company.  That my 2 cents on the subject.

[Wuozopo 4,293]

34 minutes ago, ra0010 said:

am looking for resources that say that this is not allowed, and there is no agreement. USCIS doesn’t even mention that, and the rest are attorneys that claim that this is a gray area; so just like I couldn’t find any official sources that say it is NOT legal, I couldn’t find any saying openly it is. So it seems that  -at the end of the day- it all depends on the risk that the beneficiary wants to run. Personally, I wouldn’t risk it.

There is no clear yes or no from USCIS. I don’t see it as a risk. I would do it. At the end of the day—who would know what you are doing in the privacy of your home. 

[Boiler 45,537]

The main risk is lying about it.

[Wuozopo 4,293]

19 hours ago, Huckleberry&Koala said:

I wouldn't risk it. As far as I know: As a spouse of us citizen, he will be considered as resident per IRS, and IRS requires residents to report income overseas as well (doesn't matter which bank it is paid from, what currency it is paid in, which company it is paid from, income is income) and foreign earned income exclusion is not applicable. So, the conflict here is how one reports income to IRS without having work authorization. For me, that's not a gray area, and I didn't work even I was offered to continue working remotely just like your fiance. It was just not worth the risk.

IRS requires resident aliens or “US persons” filing a tax return to report worldwide income for the entire Jan- Dec tax year if filing jointly . Let’s say the OP’s fiancé arrived in Sept 1. He reports the whole year of wages. He qualifies to exclude his foreign earned income paid from Jan through August. Anything he gets paid Sept to Dec is not excludable and is fully taxable wherever he got it. There is no conflict. You follow the IRS rules and report and exclude as appropriate. The IRS does not require work authorization to process your tax return. They are happy to process the returns of illegals with fake social security numbers.  IRS and USCIS are separate branches of the government and don’t talk to each other. 
 

Would USCIS know you worked for your UK employer remotely? No. They don’t typically ask that at interviews.Even if you told them, you would still get a greencard. 
 

Does the IRS actually know you earned money abroad? No, not usually. It’s somewhat of an honor system to report it. They do not require any documentation Of the foreign  wages with the tax return. The tax year I was new to the US, I totally made up a figure for my UK wages. I hoped it was close, but it could have been thousands off. 

 

Does the IRS know what you earned from a US employer? Yes because employers send your W2 or 1099 wage info to the IRS as well as to you. Do US employers check your immigration status? Yes because if they hire illegals and get busted, they are fined.

 

Does the IRS know what your earned “under the table” ie cash payments, especially for day laborers or cash tips? No. Again sort of an honor system to report it. 
 

Back to the IRS not caring about immigration status. My wife helped one of the girls on our maid crew with her taxes. She hadn’t received her refund. The family is clearly illegal except for the two youngest children born in the US. The IRS has issued the rest  ITINs. There’s no way the SSN the Dad works under is his. He filed with an ITIN and had a W2 with a SSN. After several calls to the IRS and trying to find a bilingual rep, it was about the children and what she needed to send. The two children born in the US got the benefit, but the ones the IRS knew to be illegal were being denied.Thus the refund was reduced. And the wife reported no wages so clearly is getting paid cash by the maid service. Yet in the various conversations with the IRS, not once did they question that this was a family of 4 illegals and 2 US citizens. The information was all straightened out with a few documents proving the children existed.  Birth certificates and report cards had to be mailed in. They got their refund.  There was so much wrong there, but my wife was asked to help her get the refund and so she did, ignoring all the rest of the issues she saw. 

Edited August 3, 2021 by Wuozopo

[laylalex 7,285]

3 hours ago, Joe Kano said:

I remember just  a few years ago, K1 immigrants were all getting EAD stamps on entry at JFK, Do you remember that ?

That was more than a few years ago. I lurked on here in 2009/2010 and read about the stamps and they were already gone by then.

[Boiler 45,537]

15 plus years ago?

 

Things have changed a lot, K1 always had its issues but now....

 

5 minutes ago, laylalex said:

That was more than a few years ago. I lurked on here in 2009/2010 and read about the stamps and they were already gone by then.

 

[Joe Kano 327]

10 minutes ago, laylalex said:

That was more than a few years ago. I lurked on here in 2009/2010 and read about the stamps and they were already gone by then.

Yep, I was doing my first K1 2008 and it was 2009/2010 ish time frame for sure😁

[Joe Kano 327]

4 minutes ago, Boiler said:

15 plus years ago?

 

Things have changed a lot, K1 always had its issues but now....

 

 

Seems about the same to me, changed a little but not alot. Same basic premise meet 2 years prior file and do interview and get approved.

[Boiler 45,537]

You could expedite if you did not get EAD/AP in 90 days and whilst it did happen that seems to have been uncommonly long.

[LKA 27]

6 hours ago, ra0010 said:

Right. I never really had to work for a remote employer, but it’s interesting to know. Also, I really doubt that my designated international advisor knew about this. Some international advisors don’t have any idea about rules and regulations, what’s allowed and what is not!

Also given the current status of how many people are now working from home due to the pandemic,  if there is an even more gray area. My fiancé has been remote since March 2020

[SusieQQQ 11,586]

3 hours ago, Wuozopo said:

Friend of mine did this (worked and paid remotely) adjusting status on a non marriage based green card, assuming like many others it would be fine. Their immigration lawyer - actually the lawyer working for the university that was sponsoring their green cards after her husband got tenure - freaked out when he heard she was doing it and told her to stop, immediately. Because they were adjusting via an EB category she got the 245k exemption but had to leave and re-enter the US for her particular case to be ok.  So again an immigration lawyer “opinion” but they had to use 245k so… it seems valid to me.  
It is less serious if adjusting as IR because violations are forgiven. I wouldn’t try it in any other category.

Edited August 3, 2021 by SusieQQQ

[laylalex 7,285]

30 minutes ago, Joe Kano said:

Yep, I was doing my first K1 2008 and it was 2009/2010 ish time frame for sure😁

 

There were already serious problems with it by 2009 (which is what I remembered):

 

[Joe Kano 327]

2 hours ago, Wuozopo said:

IRS requires resident aliens or “US persons” filing a tax return to report worldwide income for the entire Jan- Dec tax year if filing jointly . Let’s say the OP’s fiancé arrived in Sept 1. He reports the whole year of wages. He qualifies to exclude his foreign earned income paid from Jan through August. Anything he gets paid Sept to Dec is not excludable and is fully taxable wherever he got it. There is no conflict. You follow the IRS rules and report and exclude as appropriate. The IRS does not require work authorization to process your tax return. They are happy to process the returns of illegals with fake social security numbers.  IRS and USCIS are separate branches of the government and don’t talk to each other. 
 

Would USCIS know you worked for your UK employer remotely? No. They don’t typically ask that at interviews.Even if you told them, you would still get a greencard. 
 

Does the IRS actually know you earned money abroad? No, not usually. It’s somewhat of an honor system to report it. They do not require any documentation Of the foreign  wages with the tax return. The tax year I was new to the US, I totally made up a figure for my UK wages. I hoped it was close, but it could have been thousands off. 

 

Does the IRS know what you earned from a US employer? Yes because employers send your W2 or 1099 wage info to the IRS as well as to you. Do US employers check your immigration status? Yes because if they hire illegals and get busted, they are fined.

 

Does the IRS know what your earned “under the table” ie cash payments, especially for day laborers or cash tips? No. Again sort of an honor system to report it. 
 

Back to the IRS not caring about immigration status. My wife helped one of the girls on our maid crew with her taxes. She hadn’t received her refund. The family is clearly illegal except for the two youngest children born in the US. The IRS has issued the rest  ITINs. There’s no way the SSN the Dad works under is his. He filed with an ITIN and had a W2 with a SSN. After several calls to the IRS and trying to find a bilingual rep, it was about the children and what she needed to send. The two children born in the US got the benefit, but the ones the IRS knew to be illegal were being denied.Thus the refund was reduced. And the wife reported no wages so clearly is getting paid cash by the maid service. Yet in the various conversations with the IRS, not once did they question that this was a family of 4 illegals and 2 US citizens. The information was all straightened out with a few documents proving the children existed.  Birth certificates and report cards had to be mailed in. They got their refund.  There was so much wrong there, but my wife was asked to help her get the refund and so she did, ignoring all the rest of the issues she saw. 

I have a family of DACA working for me, 3 of them. The father is illegal he actually has a legit Social Security number, he told me about 20 years ago they would issue SSN to illegals.  He also used to have a Texas Drivers Licenses many years ago but they wouldn't renew it and I think that was many years ago. 

Edited August 3, 2021 by Joe Kano

[Joe Kano 327]

3 hours ago, Boiler said:

The main risk is lying about it.

Who would you lie to?  Who would even ask? Police are not allowed to ask your immigration status.

[Boiler 45,537]

USCIS?