Whether it’s possible under immigration law to leave the U.S. and live in Korea while receiving a salary
I graduated from undergrad last year, used a year of OPT, and was rejected in the H1B lottery, so I’m about to return to Korea as an international student.
My OPT ends August 1st, but the company wants me to keep working even after I return to Korea.
The work is under 20 hours a week, and they say they’ll deposit my pay directly into my bank account.
I’m planning to return to the U.S. eventually (probably through a green card holder spouse visa). I’d like to know if it’s a problem for me to work in Korea and receive money this way.
Also, I’m planning to leave my job around the end of June, before using up all of my OPT, and travel within the U.S. The company would like me to keep doing under-20-hour work even while I’m in the U.S. — would working and receiving pay for under 20 hours a week be a problem? It’s fine if my unemployment days increase as a result.
Hello, in principle, you shouldn’t work in Korea even during OPT. After OPT ends and you return to Korea, living in Korea while receiving a salary from the U.S. is fine as long as you handle the income tax issue — there’s no problem there. And once OPT ends, your status effectively expires, so you shouldn’t be working, but reducing your hours shouldn’t cause a major issue for maintaining OPT as-is.