Some of our clients are often confused whether they can work for a U.S. company if they are not in the U.S. and whether they need a U.S. visa to work for a U.S. company (even if they will not be working from the U.S.).
Example
You are a national of the UK. A U.S. company is sponsoring you for an H-1B visa . The company filed an H-1B registration (your petition is subject to the H-1B cap), and it was selected in the H-1B lottery. Your H-1B petition was already approved by USCIS but you cannot start working for the H-1B company until October 1. The Company needs you to start working as soon as possible and you are wondering whether you can work for the company remotely from some country other than the U.S.
Can I work for a U.S. company from the UK if I am a UK national? Do I need a U.S. visa to work for a U.S. company?
U.S. immigration law does not prevent you from working for a U.S. company from the UK (the U.S. immigration law would only governs if you are physically in the U.S.). However, if you want to work for a U.S. company from the UK, you should consult this with a labor and tax attorney to see if there are any legal implications of you working for a U.S. company from the UK. You do not need a U.S. visa to work for a U.S. company from the UK.
Can I work for a U.S. company from a country I am not a national of?
U.S. immigration law does not prevent you from working for a U.S. company from anywhere in the world. In the scenario above, if you want to work for a U.S. company from Canada, that is fine under the U.S. immigration law. However, you should contact a Canadian immigration law attorney to see if you need some sort of visa to enter Canada and work from Canada and you should also contact a labor and tax attorney to see if there are any other legal implications of you working for a U.S. company from Canada.
Please see more about the H-1B cap registration when you click here.
Please see our blog post discussing what is the difference between H-1B visa and L-1 visa when you click here.
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