
Ask HN: Can H1-B holder open Stripe account and accepts payments? - thakobyan
Hey HN community! I&#x27;m very close to launching a SaaS project but not sure if my visa (h1-b) situation allows me to accept payments outside of my current job. If no, is there any alternatives I can use besides stripe to accept recurring payments? Thank you so much!
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kjksf
You can't earn side income on h1-b visa. However, the job of enforcing that
belongs to INS, not Stripe.

Stripe doesn't care. You can open Stripe account and accept payments, you just
risk deportation if INS finds out.

Your other options:

* offer the SaaS for free until you get Green Card. It's still valuable to find out if your product will be used when the cost is $0 and you can build SEO/reputation. If you don't want to paint yourself into a corner you can build a "lite" version, that withholds some features. When you're ready, you can add those features and charge for a pro plan

* you can setup a business in your own country (or some non-US country that allows easy formation of businesses) and have payments (Stripe) directed to that business. I'm not sure how INS would interpret such work-around, but it's a moot point since the probability of INS finding out in this scenario is close to 0%

* like the above but have a trusted family member to open and manage the business. It's still a work-around but almost certainly INS-proof

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billconan
I don't think you can. As an H1b, the only allowed sources of active income
are your H1b sponsors.

