Contract work from USA

[Nick1233]

Hello,

I had been living and working in Canada as PR for a year. I recently had an opportunity to apply for a remote position in California. Everything worked out and the contract would be setup through an intermediate consulting firm in California. However, the end client want me to visit them for a week, meet the team, get equipment etc. Now, what visa should i be applying for this purpose? For some background, i have worked in USA in the past in H1B visa for 10 years with approved I140 petition.

I thought of applying for visitor visa (B1/B2) but in the guidelines at https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/us-visas/tourism-visit/visitor.html" it says "An individual on a visitor visa (B1/B2) is not permitted to accept employment or work in the United States."

Both end client and consulting firm don't seem to be experts around immigration laws. What is an ideal option in this case?

 

[21Goose]

If you are getting paid by a US firm in the USA - will the money be paid in USD to a US account? If yes, then you need an H1B before you can accept this work.

If the US intermediate firm is paying you in CAD in your Canadian account, it's a bit better.. but the best way to do this is to set up your own company here, and then your company bills the US company (either the consulting firm, or the client direct). That way, you're a Canadian corporation working in Canada, and you have a client in the US (or Singapore, or France, or wherever).

Then, you would travel to the US on a B1/B2 visa (the B1 part would apply), since you would be going for a business meeting.

This is somewhat generic advice, but you can search the forum for "setup consulting firm" or "work remote in the US" and you'll find detailed examples of how people do this legally and correctly.

Or you can talk to a lawyer/tax professional. There are many people working like this in Canada so it shouldn't be too hard to find a qualified professional.

 

[Nick1233]

If you are getting paid by a US firm in the USA - will the money be paid in USD to a US account? If yes, then you need an H1B before you can accept this work.

If the US intermediate firm is paying you in CAD in your Canadian account, it's a bit better.. but the best way to do this is to set up your own company here, and then your company bills the US company (either the consulting firm, or the client direct). That way, you're a Canadian corporation working in Canada, and you have a client in the US (or Singapore, or France, or wherever).

Then, you would travel to the US on a B1/B2 visa (the B1 part would apply), since you would be going for a business meeting.

This is somewhat generic advice, but you can search the forum for "setup consulting firm" or "work remote in the US" and you'll find detailed examples of how people do this legally and correctly.

Or you can talk to a lawyer/tax professional. There are many people working like this in Canada so it shouldn't be too hard to find a qualified professional.

Thanks yes i already have a inc setup in Canada and i would be generating invoice to charge the intermediate firm in CAD and definitely not using US accounts. All my taxes would be paid in Canada.

The concern i had is with B1/B2 visa interview. This will be the first time i would be meeting the end client in person. During visa interview, can i say the purpose as negotiating contract and business meeting? If asked, is it okay to tell them about the online interview etc? The reason i'm concerned is because it is kind of an employment.

 

[DEEPCUR]

I think by accepting employment they mean you should not start working there on B1/B2 visa. If you can negotiate to start the job before your interview, then you can say something like visiting the client to overcome this ambiguity in verbose during the interview

 

[lampbreaker]

B1/B2 is okay for conducting business meetings, conferences etc. and not for 'working'. Now, there is no hard definition of where business meetings end and work begins. Some companies have taken undue advantage of this in that past and that has lead to additional scrutiny.
You can apply for B1/B2, but of course the approved I-140 will work against you (immigrant intent). Having established residence in Canada works in your favor.

As for taxes, since you will be working from Canada only, you need to pay Canadian taxes. Has the US employer aggreed to withholding Canadian taxes or will they employ you as an independent contractor. You need to figure all this out.

 

[21Goose]

Thanks yes i already have a inc setup in Canada and i would be generating invoice to charge the intermediate firm in CAD and definitely not using US accounts. All my taxes would be paid in Canada.

The concern i had is with B1/B2 visa interview. This will be the first time i would be meeting the end client in person. During visa interview, can i say the purpose as negotiating contract and business meeting? If asked, is it okay to tell them about the online interview etc? The reason i'm concerned is because it is kind of an employment.

No, it's not necessarily "kind of an employment" if you have a corporation and your corporation has been hired to do some work for another company.

That's the whole point of legally separating yourself from your corporation. For example, the contract between your company (ABC Corp) and the client (XYZ Corp) says something like "XYZ is going to pay ABC 100,000 to provide service Z". Note that this makes no mention of YOU; ABC Corp can hire 20 people in Canada to provide the service to the client. That doesn't mean those 20 people are employed by the client.

Again, I'm speaking in broad generalities. A lot of this depends on the actual contract between your company and the client, and also the nature of the work. (Is this your only client? Will you ever have other clients? etc. etc) It's not enough to pretend to be a corp when you're clearly an employee.

This is why you need to talk to a professional. The forums can only go so far - an attorney will look at the details of your contracts and your current set up and can advise you properly.

 

[Nick1233]

I think by accepting employment they mean you should not start working there on B1/B2 visa. If you can negotiate to start the job before your interview, then you can say something like visiting the client to overcome this ambiguity in verbose during the interview

Thanks, the actual work will be post meeting the team and from Canada. The purpose is to meet the team and get a official laptop and setup VPN etc.

 

[Nick1233]

B1/B2 is okay for conducting business meetings, conferences etc. and not for 'working'. Now, there is no hard definition of where business meetings end and work begins. Some companies have taken undue advantage of this in that past and that has lead to additional scrutiny.
You can apply for B1/B2, but of course the approved I-140 will work against you (immigrant intent). Having established residence in Canada works in your favor.

As for taxes, since you will be working from Canada only, you need to pay Canadian taxes. Has the US employer aggreed to withholding Canadian taxes or will they employ you as an independent contractor. You need to figure all this out.

Yeah, the approved I-140 is the concern for me. I spoke to a lawyer and they suggested to get an invitation letter from end client and to state explicitly that it will just be a one time visit.

 

[Nick1233]

No, it's not necessarily "kind of an employment" if you have a corporation and your corporation has been hired to do some work for another company.

That's the whole point of legally separating yourself from your corporation. For example, the contract between your company (ABC Corp) and the client (XYZ Corp) says something like "XYZ is going to pay ABC 100,000 to provide service Z". Note that this makes no mention of YOU; ABC Corp can hire 20 people in Canada to provide the service to the client. That doesn't mean those 20 people are employed by the client.

Again, I'm speaking in broad generalities. A lot of this depends on the actual contract between your company and the client, and also the nature of the work. (Is this your only client? Will you ever have other clients? etc. etc) It's not enough to pretend to be a corp when you're clearly an employee.

This is why you need to talk to a professional. The forums can only go so far - an attorney will look at the details of your contracts and your current set up and can advise you properly.

Yes, this would be my only client. Spoke to a lawyer today and they suggested to be upfront and suggested to ensure not to engage in any kind of work while over there.

 

[Mirapakay]

Please post your experience after your B1/B2 interview. Also, if you could PM me the attorney details, that would be helpful.

All The Best for your interview.

 

[Nick1233]

Please post your experience after your B1/B2 interview. Also, if you could PM me the attorney details, that would be helpful.

All The Best for your interview.

Thanks, fingers crossed. Will update this thread post everything, may be by end of Jan or something.
And for attorney, i just spoke to my previous ones who did my H1B for my employer.

 

[Mirapakay]

Thanks, fingers crossed. Will update this thread post everything, may be by end of Jan or something.
And for attorney, i just spoke to my previous ones who did my H1B for my employer.

I did contact my previous H-1B attorney as well and I didn't get a proper response. So, I am thinking of going through a new employer when I have the opportunity.

 

[Nick1233]

Just an update folks.
Interview went well and B1/B2 visa was approved, waiting for the passport now.

Wasn't asked any documentation about the business meeting or intent to return but was asked how long i lived in US, Canada, when i moved to Canada and typical questions.

 

[lampbreaker]

Good to know, thanks for sharing.

 

[Mirapakay]

Just an update folks.
Interview went well and B1/B2 visa was approved, waiting for the passport now.

Wasn't asked any documentation about the business meeting or intent to return but was asked how long i lived in US, Canada, when i moved to Canada and typical questions.

Thanks for posting your experience. What documents did you carry for the visa interview and if I may ask the Consulate you atteneded?