L2 VISA - Work from Home from US

[atulgupta72]

Hi,

I am travelling to US on L1-B VISA and my wife is having a Valid L-2 VISA.
Current she is working for a US Based company in their India Center.

Since, the duration of my stay is around 6+ months so she wants to travel with me.
Does she is having any option to do work from Home (while staying in US) for her Indian Company i.e on Indian Payroll only?

Whether it is possible to apply for EAD in US without quitting her current job in India?

Regards,
Atul Gupta

[raghvi]

Hi,

I am travelling to US on L1-B VISA and my wife is having a Valid L-2 VISA.
Current she is working for a US Based company in their India Center.

Since, the duration of my stay is around 6+ months so she wants to travel with me.
Does she is having any option to do work from Home (while staying in US) for her Indian Company i.e on Indian Payroll only?

Whether it is possible to apply for EAD in US without quitting her current job in India?

Regards,
Atul Gupta

She should not work , even if from home, while in US , without first getting EAD. There is no requirement for her to quit her current job to get EAD.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[simonb]

She can keep her job - just watch out for tax implications

Once your wife has her L2 visa, she should apply for her EAD. Unfortunately, to my knowledge at least, this requires her to be in the USA (i.e. you must be physically in the US when you apply for your EAD).

Once she has applied for the EAD, she can leave the US until the EAD is granted. There is the possibility of being required to attend a biometrics meeting to have her fingerprints taken, which does not happen for all applicants but does happen for most (again, this is my understanding) - this would also require her to be in the US.

Once she has the EAD, she can work in the US for her Indian employer. What you need to watch out for, however, is the possibility that she would be liable to pay income tax in the US even though she is being paid in (and paying taxes in) India. This may depend on what tax treaties exist between India and the USA - you will certainly want to avoid any double-taxation!

The short answer is that it is possible to do what you are asking, but you need to go through various hoops and bureaucracy in order to make it happen. As others have said, your wife absolutely cannot work in the US until she has her EAD.

Simon