Non-americans in US

[Norm Buchanan]

I am currently on an H1B visa and will be applying for a "green card" later this year. Is there anyone in the US selling photos/art while here on a visa for another purpose? I am pretty sure I need to wait for my green card but I thought it may be worth checking if anyone else has any experience with this in case I don't need to wait.

[Walter Calahan]

Interesting question. Can the lack of a green card prevent one from selling art?

Galleries sell internationally known artists all the time. I can't imagine every non-US photographer having to have a green card to sell images in the US. But what do I know?

[Ed Richards]

Talk to an immigration attorney.

Walter - if they import the art to sell, it is not an issue. The problem is whether doing art work would violate the terms of his visa, which is tied to a particular job.

[Walter Calahan]

Ed

But is being an artist having a 'job'? Did Robert Frank have a Green Card before traveling around the US making the images that made him famous?

If one is in this country on an H1B for a particular job, but is doing photography on the side as a personal expression, does the H1B even apply to what one does on one's free time?

If I were a computer consulted here on an H1B, but I loved to oil paint, and a gallery decided to exhibit and sell my paintings, this has nothing to do with my H1B visa.

Talk to an immigration attorney.

[eddie]

all you need it is a work permit. then you can apply for a social security number. once you have that you can pay your taxes! if you pay, you can play! the govt. does not care as long as you have the permit and pay pay pay!

check out USCIS.gov you need a I-765 form EAD (employment authorization document)after that it is clear sailing!

eddie

[Sanjay Sen]

The simple answer is NO. If you are on an H1-B, you cannot have any income derived from any source other than from the job/employer that sponsors the H1-B on your behalf. While what Walter says makes a very logical argument, the current laws, unfortunately, will not permit this. Even if you have the employment authorization document (EAD) - which you can get after applying for your green card (I-485) - you will need to switch to the EAD (and "give up" the H1-B, so to say) before you can derive income from multiple sources.

If your sale of photo/art is for a charitable cause, then I would think that is okay as long as you do not derive any income from it.

Your best bet is to ask your immigration lawyer, but be warned that US immigration laws are VERY complicated, and you would be better served to cross-check what your lawyer says with one or two more opinions. Trust me on this - I have learnt this the hard way!


all you need it is a work permit. then you can apply for a social security number. once you have that you can pay your taxes! if you pay, you can play! the govt. does not care as long as you have the permit and pay pay pay!


Unfortunately, it does not work that way. While the IRS may not care as long as you pay your taxes, the DHS will surely not look at it that way. Like I said above, you need to switch to the EAD before you can have multiple incomes. After 9/11, these matters are taken very seriously.


Best wishes,
Sanjay

[Ed Richards]

Logic has never worked as a way to figure out US immigration laws, and it all got much worse after 9/11 when the immigration service became part of Homeland Security. (At least they did not call it Fatherland Security.) I have a really depressing movie about immigration hearings I show my administrative law students - the bottomline is, as the Chinese say, the nail that sticks up gets hammered. Do not give INS any reason at to wonder about you.

[Norm Buchanan]

Logic has never worked as a way to figure out US immigration laws, and it all got much worse after 9/11 when the immigration service became part of Homeland Security. (At least they did not call it Fatherland Security.) I have a really depressing movie about immigration hearings I show my administrative law students - the bottomline is, as the Chinese say, the nail that sticks up gets hammered. Do not give INS any reason at to wonder about you.

Indeed. I want everything on the up and up so I don't get tossed out. I will talk to the folks working on my green card after the holidays, they should know the answers or point me to a lawyer. It's funny though because I am pretty sure I could have a garage sale or sell my car. I sure hope I can sell my house without a green card!

[Ron Bose]

Norm,
There's nothing to stop you from 'making' the prints and 'producing' your work. You just can't sell it 'yet'.

Once you get your Green Card ... the selling begins :-)

[Sanjay Sen]

<snip> Do not give INS any reason at to wonder about you.

This is really the best advice you could get - anything that "sticks out", so to say, can be a problem later on during the GC processing when everything about you will go under the microscope. You wouldn't want anything unusual to show up on the FBI background check.


<snip> It's funny though because I am pretty sure I could have a garage sale or sell my car. I sure hope I can sell my house without a green card!

Yes, I am pretty sure that you could have a garage sale or sell your house without any problems. I guess this is so because you bought those stuff that you are selling, you did not make them. You can make money out of these transactions and that would be fine as long as you report these on your tax returns appropriately. I believe this is treated differently than an income.


Talk to your immigration lawyer and get a second (or third) opinion.


Best wishes,
Sanjay

[QT Luong]

You can have a substantial *revenue* (ie sales of prints) without having any *income* from photography (profit, once you take into account all the expenses that go towards the making of the photographs, including equipement and travel).

[eddie]

have a garage sale! just do not do it too often!

have someone else sell them for you. have the money transfered to your home country.

eddie

[Richard Raymond]

You can have a substantial *revenue* (ie sales of prints) without having any *income* from photography (profit, once you take into account all the expenses that go towards the making of the photographs, including equipement and travel).

Not quite correct. The term Revenue generally refers to Gross Income. Income is not the same as profit and there are a variety of types of Income. In accounting, and in the tax laws it has a very specific meaning. A typical Income Statement will show all sources (sales, interest, royalties, etc.) and amounts of money flowing in. There will then be an Expense Statement listing where all of the money goes (equipment, rentals, leases, taxes, salaries, etc). When Income and Expenses are balanced then one will get a Profit/Loss Statement. So, in this scenerio, the restriction appears to be targeted at additional income from all other US sources, with no regard to profit or loss. I have not read the latest statutes and am not giving professional advice on limitation on income for those holding a Visa. I am only trying to clarify the point about income and profit.
Best regards,
Ric

[Randy H]

Check with a local attorney that is knowlegable in such matters. CYOA (cover your own ass). There are fine lines dilineating between selling items to fund a "hobby" (in your case, "part-time. amatuer photographer) and selling a product for "profit" as a business. A certain amount of monetary value can be made without it being classified as "income". There isn't really a "fixed" amount.
I know that in Okla. it is like selling old cars. You can sell a certain number of them, but if you go over that, they "could" nail you for taxes, etc, as a "dealer" (they don't, but could. too much paper-work involved) And you can't sell more than one or two cars "at-one-time" without a "dealers" license. You can sell one a day. Just don't try selling more than a couple "at one time".
You may even be able to check with local INS office regarding such issues. AND, when you get an answer from "anybody", get their name, phone extension, time and date of conversation, and answer they gave you. and Write it down. Then, when and if there are any issues, you have "I was told by..." Like I stated earlier - CYOA

[eddie]

i have been thinking about his. if you are working for the employer that is satisfying the visa requirement and that is your primary job then it should satisfy the visa. the visa says you have to work at this job. as long as you continue to do so you have not violated your visa.

if you decided to buy stocks and bonds i am sure you could do this.....even though they would give you an income other than from the "visa job"

one last idea would be to form a corporation. again i do not think it is a violation of that visa to be a share holder in a corp. (ie own stock) the corp. is its own entity. so it could sell artwork and you could be paid as a stockholder and possibly even CEO.

again, as stated above CYOA. (i have had easy dealings with USCIS by just logically thinking through problems and when necessary calling the 800 number. while they will not give you advice, they will answer specific questions.) good luck.

eddie