UK Person working in US

[The Moose]

I understand that if a British person wants to work in the US, they need a Visa etc, but my sister is currently trying to get a 3 month unpaid internship with a company out here.

Whilst I'm sure it's possible to argue the merits of unpaid slave labor such as this, she wants to, but we're unsure of the legal requirements - googling doesn't seem to she much light on this.

My thoughts are that it should be allowed, but obviously there's not a lot of point in going through the process to find she can't get a visa if it's required.

Any thoughts/ideas/experiences?

[anonymous-user]

You need a visa to stay more than 90 days. You can get a 6 month visitor visa but must prove where you are going to stay and that you have the funds to support yourself. You are not allowed to work on this type of visa.

[The Moose]

Bandit said:

You need a visa to stay more than 90 days. You can get a 6 month visitor visa but must prove where you are going to stay and that you have the funds to support yourself. You are not allowed to work on this type of visa.

Thanks for that - I am aware of all that. The internship is only 3 months so is 90 days or so. Does unpaid internship count as work?

ETA: Actually unpaid as opposed to "unpaid" with cash in hand.

[Stu R]

J1 visas cover internships IIRC.

[walm]

If she is literally getting no benefits whatsoever from the company then IMHO she should just come over on a visa waiver and work for them for free.

However, it is more than likely that the company would do the right thing and recognise her as an employee (probably some health and safety bks to avoid lawsuits).
So they might demand a SSN which she won't have.

[anonymous-user]

It would be unwise to work, paid or not, in the US without an appropriate visa. Abusing a visa waiver entry would be a pretty reliable way of getting banned from making future trips to the US.

[mikef]

walm said:

If she is literally getting no benefits whatsoever from the company then IMHO she should just come over on a visa waiver and work for them for free

Definitely not allowed

"The Fair Labor Standards Act says that if a person provides a normal service for which a person would normally be employed, the activity is work/employment"

http://www.visaservices.duke.edu/volunteer.html#q5

[davepoth]

It needs to be on a proper visa unfortunately, a J-1 as said above is likely to be the most appropriate.

http://j1visa.state.gov/

[mikef]

Info on J1 visas and permitted internships here: http://www.fulbright.org.uk/study-in-the-usa/short...