USA is a land of opportunity and provides people with lot of avenues to make money. Due to inflation everyone is trying to make some side income. H1b beneficiaries also come across many opportunities to make some side income or they think of opening a side business. Can a H1b beneficiary take up a side gig or start his/her own business? Unfortunately, the answer is a “No”. The reason being, H1b beneficiary cannot be involved in any other work than the duties listed in the H1b petition.
So H1b beneficiaries cannot drive with Uber/Lyft/Doordash. Basically, they are shut out from the gig economy, which is sad but the stark reality. There are also many H1b beneficiaries who are budding entrepreneurs, and they are unable to start their own business. This is because if you start a business, you will be involved in the activities of the business, and it will be outside the scope of the H1b petition which limits you to work for the H1b employer and not for anyone else.
Question often arises if one can be a silent partner in a company? One can be a silent partner is it even feasible to be a silent partner when you are a co-founder! Will the USCIS buy your argument in case of an investigation of status violation that you were just a partner and not do any activity! Things get even more complicated when you have to fill out the Form I-485 at the time of filing the adjustment of status application. Here you have to list all your prior jobs held and if you were a co-founder, you may be obligated to enter the details of any activities you were involved and you cannot miss out on you being a co-founder of a corporation. It is so difficult to divest yourself from all the activities and be a silent partner.
So, what can you do when you have an amazing business idea or have got an offer to get involved in a start up and use your specialized skills. One way out is filing a part-time H1b. It is allowed under the laws for one to have a part-time H1bs so that you can do work after your day job and over the weekend. Any startup or established company can file such part-time H1bs as far as the work you are doing will qualify as specialty occupation. You will also consult an attorney specializing in contracts or intellectual property to make sure that you are not violating any non-compete terms or non-disclosure clause with your full time H1b employer.
Only actual work is not allowed but if you are going to be just a passive investor then there are no issues of status violation. You can own stocks of companies and there are no restrictions on that since you are not actively involved in the activities of the company. Will a day trader be considered as a restricted activity? It depends on if you day trade, as if you are running a business.
Can you on a H1b perform work for a company in your home country? You will be surprised that activity is also not allowed even though you might be a citizen of your home country. Any work you do other than the work mentioned in the H1b is not allowed. So, what we suggest is that if at all you want to be involved in an activity other than your H1b chose a field which will qualify for specialty occupation and ask your prospective part-time employer to file a part-time H1b.
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