Working not allowed when visiting the US on a tourist visa Loop Jamaica

Black Immigrant Daily News

Check out this weekly feature for practical tips and information on living in, working, studying, and visiting the USA.

Many people visit the US on visitor’s (tourist) visas, which are officially called the B1/B2 visa.

Every visitor gets one of a range of timeframes for the visa – a single entry, a one-year multiple entry, a five-year multiple entry, or a 10-year multiple entry. But, many don’t realise that the visa has specific legal requirements that holders must follow.

The most important requirement of the visitor’s visa is that visitors are prohibited from working in the USA.

The visa is to allow individuals to visit friends and family and experience the US as a tourist and then to return home at the end of the visit. So, usually, the visit would range from a few days to a longer time frame.

When visitors land in the USA, their passports are stamped with a time frame, the maximum time is six months. For the past few years, the border officers are not stamping the passport, but they are entering that six-month time frame into their database.

So, even if nothing is in the passport, it is in their electronic database.

Unfortunately, many persons breach the requirements of the visitor’s visa in several ways. The most common breach is by working.

Working is not allowed in any form on a visitor’s visa, so it doesn’t matter if the work is housesitting in exchange for free accommodations and so no actual money is being exchanged, or if the work is in a place where a pay cheque is given.

So, people find all sorts of employment and begin to work, usually what is called “working under the table”, as they are not legally allowed to work and are, therefore, paid, usually in cash.

If they had a social security number from a long time ago (eg for school) they might use that to help to get a job. If US immigration officers do an audit visit of the workplace and persons do not have legal authorisation to work, they will be in breach and deported. The employers also face hefty fines.

Even if persons appear to get away with working illegally, they could be flagged and extensively questioned when leaving the country and especially when coming back, because immigration has various red flags that they look for in various scenarios.

Red flags include large sums of unexplained cash, having stayed much longer than the original time told to border immigration officers, regularly coming to the USA in a short period of time and claiming to be on vacation, and online communication showing a clear intention of plans for working or actually previously working.

Persons may be questioned extensively and rigorously and sometimes admit that they were working. In those cases, they are often put back on the next plane home and their visitors’ visas are immediately revoked.

Another breach is that persons stay longer than the maximum time of six months allowed because they hold a visa that says, for example, “one-year multiple entry, five-year multiple entry or 10-year multiple entry”. People incorrectly think it allows remaining over six months because the visa page has this notation. That is incorrect, but many people don’t seem to know.

They end up being “visa overstays” or as Caribbean people say “they run off”.

They then run the risk of being deported from the USA if found, as well as being barred from re-entry for a long period if they do leave and try to return to the USA. These persons are also viewed negatively by the US immigration authorities if they try to apply for other US immigration benefits later on, so it makes sense to be very careful.

Visit and have fun, enjoying friends, family and the scenes, sights and sounds of the USA on your visitor’s visa and return home when your visit is over.

*This article does not constitute legal advice and is intended for informational purposes only.

Nadine C Atkinson-Flowers is admitted to practice in the USA and Jamaica. Her US practice is in the area of immigration, while her Jamaican practice areas include immigration and general legal consultancy. She has been an attorney for over 15 years in Jamaica and has written articles for several legal publications. She is passionate about access to justice issues and volunteers with several legal, business, children and community service organisations in Jamaica and the US. She can be contacted at info@atkinsonflowerslaw.com

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