Filed under:hznp.com — cfz @ January 9, 2009 edit
Can a non-resident alien (with an H-1B visa) open a business in the USA?
I live in California. My wife is an artist (on an H-4 visa). I would
like to open a business to enable her to sell her artwork.
I will continue to work with the company that sponsors my H-1B but
want to know if I can set up this business as well.Hi alieninusa,
The answer is no. H1-B Visa holders are specifically barred from self
employemnt, even in their free time.
REFERENCE:
Immihelp - H-visa (second paragraph from the bottom)
http://immihelp.com/visas/h1b/
H1 visa holder can buy house or any other real estate property in USA.
H1 visa holder can also work invest money in stocks, mutual funds,
bonds etc. H1 visa holder can not work as self-employed or freelancer
and do contract type of work in free time.
"Who can an H-1B alien work for?
http://www.ins.usdoj.gov/graphics/howdoi/h1b.htm
..."H-1B aliens may only work for the petitioning U.S. employer and
only in the H-1B activities described in the petition. The petitioning
U.S. employer may
place the H-1B worker on the worksite of another employer if all
applicable rules (e.g., Department of Labor rules) are followed. H-1B
aliens may work for
more than one U.S. employer, but must have a Form I-129 petition
approved by each employer..."
And in the St Petersburb Times:
http://www.sptimes.com/2004/07/25/Worldandnation/In_911_glare_hid_anot.shtml
..."After moving to Florida in 1992, Dekkers got a visa designed for
investors with "substantial" capital, even though he had a bankrupt
company in Holland. And for the past year, he has remained in the
United States on a coveted H-1B visa that is supposed to be issued
only to foreigners who have specialized skills and work exclusively
for a U.S. employer.
Dekkers would not say who he is working for or what he is doing. It is
not clear how he qualified for his current visa, since he also is
running his own plane-leasing company, despite regulations that
experts say bar H-1B visa holders from self-employment..."
Sorry the news is bad... if I can clarify, please let me know.
~~Cynthia
Search terms used at Google:
"H1B visa" "self employment"
I also found this in my Google search:
Subject: Work authorization to become a Google Researcher with an H1-B visa
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=2687
(Google Answers Researchers are self-employed)#If you have any other info about this subject , Please add it free.# |
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