Working out of US after GC?

[Ramkguru]

Hi All

I am curious.I am from India and I have Green Card and due to this economic climate,I plan to join an indian company as onsite coordinator. The Q is how long I can stay out of US on GC..cuz.they want me to be in India during training period.It might be either 2,3 months or 1 year!..Anyone have good knowledge on this reply...thanks

 

[confused007]

Based on my limited immigration knowledge, I think you cannot work in India unless the Indian company is a subsidiary of an US company and the US company agrees to sponsor N-470.

Remember that most Indian software companies listed on NASDAQ have their US branch as a subsidiary of their Indian branch. So these companies cannot sponsor your N-470 since it needs to be the other way i.e. Indian branch needs to be a subsidiary of the US division.

Further, you also need N-470 from the US company so that your stay outside counts towards the citizenship. I am not sure whether this requires that the company pay your salary in US currency.

Simply getting a re-entry permit (1 year) will not allow you to work in India. If INS finds out that you are working in India on a re-entry permit, your green card could get revoked.

Anyway, I am sort of in the same situation.
I guess some expert like joef might be able to give a more accurate assessment of your situation.

 

[confused007]

Originally posted by JoeF
No, that's not true.
The main consideration is that your stay abroad has to be temporary in nature, with a clear ending date.
You also have to file US resident tax returns and declare your worldwide income.

If the company in India pays in the local currency, is the salary still taxable? I believe there is a tax treaty between India and USA to avoid double taxation. Further does this not run contradictary to the intention of having a green card (working in some other country)?

 

[sadiq]

typically the first $80,000 dollars is exempt from US taxes (my knowledge from 3 countries: Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, and Taiwan; sorry but I do not have a source to cite). after that you have to pay the marginal tax rate on any additional income. remember that benefits (i.e housing allowance) are still taxable, so if you have an expat compensation package it can still add up quickly. if you are in this situation I strongly suggest hiring/consulting an accountant who has experience in this matter.

sadiq

p.s. one way to minimze your tax bill is to ask the company to give you a per diem allowance. several years ago an employer sent me abroad for training (I was on H1 then) for 6 months, broken down into 4 sessions. my $50 daily allowance was tax free since IRS considers it reimbursement for traveling expenses. however, once you reach a year, it'll be counted as income.