# Australian moving to the US – request for advice about working remotely.



## BrisbaneGirl (Mar 28, 2009)

Hi,

My boyfriend has recently moved over to the US for a couple of years and I’d like to move across to join him.

In two weeks I’m going over to the US for 90 days on a tourist visa. I work in an IT speciality area. Hopefully while I’m over in the US I will line up a job and someone who will sponsor me with an E3 visa.

My current employer from Brisbane Australia has just offered to extend my contract for 3 months and said I could work remotely for them. Technically I would still be an employee of a Brisbane based company. This sounds pretty good to me as it means I will still have work while I’m looking for work. 

What I would like advice on:
1.	Does anyone have experience working remotely in the states for an Australian company? Do you find this works successfully? Would you provide any advice for someone considering entering this kind of engagement?

2.	Would I legally be allowed to work in this kind of arrangement under the visa waiver program? Or can you recommend someone I can contact to find this out?

3.	If my employer wanted to extend this remote contract beyond three months is there a different kind of visa I should be looking into?

4.	Is this going to make my tax situation really weird?

Any advice would be most appreciated! 

Kind regards,

BrisbaneGirl.


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## Fatbrit (May 8, 2008)

1: See 2.
2. No.
3. See 2.
4. If you spend more than 180 days in the US, you will be liable to Uncle Sam for tax.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

It can be very difficult (i.e. not possible) to change your status from the VWP to any sort of long-term visa while remaining in the US. Even if you were to find a job during your "visit" to the US (and that's a real big IF in the current economy), you would probably have to go back home for a period of at least several months to apply for and process the visa.

This from the US Embassy site in Australia: 

>>Q Do I have to find a job in the U.S. first before applying for an E-3 visa?

A Yes. You need to have a job offer from the U.S. before you can apply for the E-3 visa.

Q Can I go to the U.S. to find a job and then apply for the E-3 visa from there?

A No. You cannot apply for an E-3 visa from within the U.S.<<

I think that about sums up your options.
Cheers,
Bev


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## BrisbaneGirl (Mar 28, 2009)

Hi,

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I've been in touch with the consulate, and I'm able to go over on the VWP and hopefully recieve a sponsorship (though you are completly correct, I will need to come back to Oz to apply for the paper work). I've lined up a few interviews with companies who have indicated they would be willing to sponsor me so I think it will work out. 

The consultate did mention I could also apply to come over on the B1 visa, however as I've decided that I want to come over for a 3 month stint first, I've decided that the VWP is the best process.

Thanks again to everyone who responded.

BrisbaneGirl.


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

Shellymaple said:


> if you are planning to move in US so you can get together with your boyfriend, you must first apply a job only so you can have a reason to live there.



Shelly you may want to check your information. Having found a job does not necessarily mean the job will bring a visa. Depending on her boyfriend's visa she may be able to join him as wife. Again - her being able to legally work in the US will depend on his visa. No, she cannot work remote in the US without proper authorization.


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## renski (Apr 7, 2009)

Hi Brisbanegirl,

I think you can apply for the E-3 visa from canada, so you don't have to travel back to australia.

I'm hoping to make the move around september, the whole job situation has me a bit worried though. I too am an I.T professional, but as the previous poster said, even if you get a job offer, you're not guaranteed to get the visa.

Anyway good luck..

Stephen


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## razzledazzle (Feb 22, 2010)

Hi BrisbaneGirl,

I came across your thread and am in a similar position although my boyfriend is a citizen and lives in the States and i would like to move there for a while to be in the same place. Can you advise what you did to move to the States? Any help would be appreciated..thanks.


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## BrisbaneGirl (Mar 28, 2009)

Sure, 

I came to the states on a Visa Waiver. While I was here, I found a job and they sponsored me for an E3 visa. I was very upfront with companies about what they needed to do to sponsor me, and I paid for my own ticket back to Aus to get the visa and then back to the states to start working. You don't need to do that, I just thought it would make me more competitive. 

I targeted larger companies for jobs, as the company needs to have a legal team file for the visa on your behalf. I figured that it might be too much work for a little company to go to that kind of effort. 

Checkout: canberra.usembassy.gov/consular/visas/niv/e3.html to make sure you have the right qualifications for the E3 visa. Also be aware that they might be concerned about you having a boyfriend in the states, when you go to get your E3 visa they try to acertain that you are definatly going to come back to Aus once your visa is up. 

I also did some research on my industry before leaving Australia and applied for jobs and completed a number of phone interviews before leaving the country. Remember, companies can take a while to recruit (a few months even) so it's good to have the process kicked off.

If all else fails - you could just go for 90 days on the VWP. At the end of that - get married


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## razzledazzle (Feb 22, 2010)

Hi there,

Thanks so much for your reply. I looked into the E3 visa and i do qualify as i have my B Computer Science and am working in I.T currently, would you have any advise on how to look for IT jobs in the States, what are the best sites and how to target for companies who want to sponser you? I looked through some jobs but they were for American Residents only and so far all i see are agenices that want you to pay them to get a US job  ...i have thought about doing non profit IT work too as im interested in that also...Sounds like you knew exactly what you were doing before you left so any kind of help would be really appreciated as it seems so overwhelming


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## BrisbaneGirl (Mar 28, 2009)

Hi, avoid those agencies, they are just scam artists. 

I looked at lots of sites, monster, craigslist, job seeker etc. When I found a job I liked the look of, I went to the employers website directly to apply for the job there. Find out what the big IT companies are in the city you want to move to - eg Cisco, Google, Oracle, Microsoft etc and register a profile on their job boards. 

I also found people working in my specialty by using linked in and gave them a phone call to ask them what their job was like, what things employers looked for etc. 

Whenever I contacted a company about a job, I included the reference:

"Please be aware, I am eligible to work in the US on the E3 visa, a special visa for Australian professionals. The administration for this visa is similar to the TN visa for Canadians in that there is no cost to the employer, it can be filed and approved quickly at any time and is renewable indefinitely."


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## irvingben (Aug 11, 2010)

Hey,

This was a great post and a great read.

I am looking to do the same thing, I was wondering, once you came back to AU, how long did it take to get your visa organised and processed?


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## Kathetoph (Sep 18, 2010)

*Did you use any I.t. Recruitment agencies to help you with finding work*

hi brisbane girl

I just wondered.. If you had used any I.t. Recruitment firms in the U.S. Iam in I. T recruitment have my own small office un Sydney and iam going to open an office up in New York would love to hear how you found a job in I. T ?
And was there much work for you?
it has always been my dream to live in America so Iam going to go and give it a go, and work hard in placing I.T. professionals,
Thx for any advice on the I.t. job Market.


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## hutais (Jul 2, 2010)

Do not go with the PGC group!!!

Long story but be warned


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## gauravbhati (Feb 25, 2011)

*Hi*



hutais said:


> Do not go with the PGC group!!!
> 
> Long story but be warned


Hi there,
I also got a mail from the PGC group ... can you plz give some more details as to what fishy business PGC is into 
I am planning to move to the US and then couple of days back I got this email from PGC group ... 
Also if you can tell some IT recruitment companies in US whom I can approach for possible job opportunities in US ... 
I am in Melbourne currently ...

Thanks!
Gaurav


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## hutais (Jul 2, 2010)

gauravbhati said:


> Hi there,
> I also got a mail from the PGC group ... can you plz give some more details as to what fishy business PGC is into
> I am planning to move to the US and then couple of days back I got this email from PGC group ...
> Also if you can tell some IT recruitment companies in US whom I can approach for possible job opportunities in US ...
> ...


There is no "fishy" business just they are unable to produce an E3 visa. You need to be employed by a company permanently to be eligible for an E3 visa. They had managed to find a way around it however they can no longer do that. They apparently can assist you once you have a job. I think in that case your better of doing it yourself. The US is cracking down on IT recruitment companies doing this as they told my husband this as they issued his E3. My husband is employed by a US company hence why we are living here on an E3.
The one huge benefit they do have is that they can lower your tax for that first year which would be great.

Also you need to be here in the US if you want to try and get a job as they will not even consider you if you are still in Australia. So you need to come here on a tourist visa.If you get a job then you need to leave the US and apply for the E3. In a nutshell its getting a lot harder to get an E3 if your not doing it the way its intended.


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## mateinone (Feb 27, 2011)

BrisbaneGirl said:


> Hi,
> 
> Thanks for taking the time to reply. I've been in touch with the consulate, and I'm able to go over on the VWP and hopefully recieve a sponsorship (though you are completly correct, I will need to come back to Oz to apply for the paper work). I've lined up a few interviews with companies who have indicated they would be willing to sponsor me so I think it will work out.
> 
> ...


Hi 
I tried to find a method to PM you (is there an option on this board for that, but I am blind? ) Is it possible to ask you questions about this? My company is more than happy to let me work over in the US if I can show the approval to do so. My gf is American and we are looking at marriage etc as well, but that is a hell of a long time apart and I am the wage earner out of us, so being able to go there, work whilst potentially applying for other visas etc is easily the preferred method if it is a valid method.


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

mateinone said:


> Hi
> I tried to find a method to PM you (is there an option on this board for that, but I am blind? ) Is it possible to ask you questions about this? My company is more than happy to let me work over in the US if I can show the approval to do so. My gf is American and we are looking at marriage etc as well, but that is a hell of a long time apart and I am the wage earner out of us, so being able to go there, work whilst potentially applying for other visas etc is easily the preferred method if it is a valid method.


You will have pm privileges once you've posted a few valid messages on the boards. In the meantime, why not take advantage of the collected wisdom of the forum members?

One thing to understand about the US is that it is normally not possible to change visa types while in the US. (There are, of course, a few exceptions but none that would apply to what you've told us so far.)

For your company to "allow" you to work from the US, they will have to sponsor you for a work visa - either as a transfer or the standard H1B - and for either of those, they need to have a presence in the US, a branch office, subsidiary or other business entity with a payroll function. Main thing is that they must initiate the process - and once their sponsorship petition has been approved, you then apply for the visa from Australia. Otherwise, you need to do as Brisbane Girl has suggested, and educate potential employers about the special visa available to Australians as a part of your job search.
Cheers,
Bev


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## mateinone (Feb 27, 2011)

Hi Bev
Thanks for the reply. The company presence over there is not and issue and if I went that path it would be an L1-B visa. But I am currently back in Australia and what I am looking at are options to travel to the US and telecommute from the US back to Australia. My company is more than willing to do this as I work from home in Australia anyway. 

Looking at BG's comments, the consulate gave her approval to do this sort of work remotely on either a VWF or through a standard Business visa. I just wanted confirmation of this and how she went about getting it, because that suits my requirements perfectly.

Regards


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## Bevdeforges (Nov 16, 2007)

As long as your company is willing to put you on an L1-B visa, you have nothing to worry about.

BG was talking about job hunting on a VWP after which she would return to Australia to apply for an E3 visa, sponsored by her new employer-to-be. (That is, if I understand her post correctly.)
Cheers,
Bev


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## mateinone (Feb 27, 2011)

Hi Bev
You could be right, I read it a little differently as I tied it into her original request.


> My current employer from Brisbane Australia has just offered to extend my contract for 3 months and said I could work remotely for them. Technically I would still be an employee of a Brisbane based company. This sounds pretty good to me as it means I will still have work while I’m looking for work.


Perhaps this is an incorrect reading of the situation, but if not I would be interested. In regards to my company... The arm of the company out here would like to keep me, out in the other side I would need to apply for a job and get one before the L1 could be approved.


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## yannis (May 26, 2015)

*pgc*



hutais said:


> There is no "fishy" business just they are unable to produce an E3 visa. You need to be employed by a company permanently to be eligible for an E3 visa. They had managed to find a way around it however they can no longer do that. They apparently can assist you once you have a job. I think in that case your better of doing it yourself. The US is cracking down on IT recruitment companies doing this as they told my husband this as they issued his E3. My husband is employed by a US company hence why we are living here on an E3.
> The one huge benefit they do have is that they can lower your tax for that first year which would be great.
> 
> Also you need to be here in the US if you want to try and get a job as they will not even consider you if you are still in Australia. So you need to come here on a tourist visa.If you get a job then you need to leave the US and apply for the E3. In a nutshell its getting a lot harder to get an E3 if your not doing it the way its intended.


Hi, I am an Australian citizen looking to get employed here and my employer wont sponsor me, but I have found which acts as the umbrella company and can sponsor me. My only concern is their fee - its 21% of my salary before tax which results in an astonishing 55%+ of taxes on my initial salary. Are there any other companies that offer better rates? What is the market like on this front, it looks like there is not so many information on the internet. Thanks in advance


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## twostep (Apr 3, 2008)

yannis said:


> Hi, I am an Australian citizen looking to get employed here and my employer wont sponsor me, but I have found which acts as the umbrella company and can sponsor me. My only concern is their fee - its 21% of my salary before tax which results in an astonishing 55%+ of taxes on my initial salary. Are there any other companies that offer better rates? What is the market like on this front, it looks like there is not so many information on the internet. Thanks in advance


Inform yourself about US visa requirements on one of the official sites such as USCiS.gov and you will find that visa fraud is not considered a gentleman's crime.


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## yannis (May 26, 2015)

*pgc*

hi twostep,

thanks for the reply. I am planning to get an E3 visa but planning to work as an independent contractor so am looking for a company to sponsor me. A way to do this is getting employed by an umbrella services company-in my case I checked but the fee they hold is massive. I just want to know why they hold such a big fee and if there are any other umbrella services company that offer a better package.


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## Bellthorpe (Jun 23, 2013)

There's a contradiction there. E3 visas are not for 'independent contractors'. They are for employees. One employer, one job, one employee per visa. Any attempt to thwart this is visa fraud. And as twostep has pointed out above, it's not a good look.


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