HelloStampedBefore you sign
Your visa and your paycheque are two different systems.
Almost every expensive mistake in an immigrant career starts by confusing them. W-2 and 1099 describe how you are paid and taxed. OPT and H-1B describe the work each status allows. Different agencies set them, they fail independently, and an offer has to satisfy both.
General information, not legal, immigration or tax advice.How
This page is general information, not legal, immigration or tax advice. Rules change and individual circumstances matter enormously — the same arrangement can be straightforward for one person and a serious problem for the colleague sitting next to them. Talk to a licensed immigration attorney, a tax professional, and your designated school official about your own situation. Every rule below links to the government page it came from, with the date somebody read it.
The one idea
Every US job an immigrant takes is judged twice, by different people, under different law. Passing one tells you nothing about the other.
Status down the side, arrangement across the top
Thirty pairings. Choose one to see what it actually requires and where the requirement comes from. Nothing here rules on whether an arrangement is open to you — it says how much scrutiny it deserves before you agree to it. 13 of the thirty are the shape the status assumes; 9 turn on conditions; 8 run against the published rules.
| STATUS / SETUP | Direct hire, W-2 | Staffing firm, W-2 | 1099 contractor | C2C, own company | Unpaid internship |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F-1 on CPT | |||||
| F-1 on OPT | |||||
| F-1 on STEM OPT | |||||
| H-1B | |||||
| H-4 with EAD | |||||
| Green card |
- Standard — The arrangement this status was designed around
- Ask first — Possible, and the conditions decide it
- High risk — The published rules point the other way — take advice
F-1 on OPT × 1099 contractor
Contract work can be OPT employment where it is directly related to the major and meets the hours. What changes is that nobody else is keeping the evidence, because no Form I-9 is completed and no payroll record is created.
What to establish first
- A written contract with dates and scope, kept.
- Proof of reaching at least 20 hours a week across qualifying work.
- Whether the facts actually make this a contractor relationship under the IRS factors, or an employee one described in contractor language.
Where this comes from
All OPT employment must be directly related to the student's major area of study.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Post-completion OPT expects part-time work of at least 20 hours per week, or full-time work.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
No Form I-9 is completed for an independent contractor, so the step that normally verifies work authorisation does not run — though it remains unlawful to contract with someone known to lack authorisation.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
The IRS weighs behavioural control, financial control and the type of relationship together, and says no single factor decides the question.
Internal Revenue Service · read 2026-08-26
W-2 against 1099, line by line
A tax and employment-law distinction, decided by the facts of the working relationship — not by what the contract calls you, and not by anything to do with your visa. Note the last row but one: in a contractor arrangement nobody completes a Form I-9, so the check that would normally catch a problem never runs.
Who hires you
W-2 employee
A company, as its employee — directly, or through a staffing firm.
1099 contractor
A client, as an outside business. You are your own employer.
Who pays you
W-2 employee
Payroll, on a fixed cycle, after deductions.
1099 contractor
Accounts payable, against an invoice, gross.
Income tax
W-2 employee
Withheld from every payslip, based on the Form W-4 you filed.
1099 contractor
Nothing is withheld. You generally make your own estimated payments.
Social Security and Medicare
W-2 employee
Split with the employer, where the taxes apply at all — an F-1 student who is still a nonresident alien is generally exempt on practical training.
1099 contractor
No employer half exists. Self-employment tax may apply, though a nonresident alien is not subject to it.
Internal Revenue Service · 2026-08-26Internal Revenue Service · 2026-08-26
Control of the work
W-2 employee
The employer can direct what you do and how you do it.
1099 contractor
You control the how; the client contracts for a result.
Paperwork you sign
W-2 employee
Form I-9 and Form W-4, on or near the first day.
1099 contractor
Form W-9. No Form I-9, because you are not an employee.
Paperwork you receive
W-2 employee
Form W-2 each January.
1099 contractor
Form 1099-NEC from each payer that paid you enough to trigger one.
Benefits
W-2 employee
May include health cover, retirement and paid leave. Never assume — read the offer.
1099 contractor
None from the client. You buy your own.
Minimum wage and overtime
W-2 employee
Covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act unless a valid exemption applies.
1099 contractor
Not covered. The Act protects employees.
If the work stops
W-2 employee
May qualify for state unemployment insurance, subject to state rules.
1099 contractor
Generally none. The contract simply ends.
If you are injured
W-2 employee
Generally covered by workers' compensation, which varies by state.
1099 contractor
Generally not covered.
Who checked your right to work
W-2 employee
The employer did, on Form I-9, before or on the first day.
1099 contractor
Nobody. There is no Form I-9 step, so the check that would normally catch a problem never runs.
Comparing two rates
W-2 employee
A W-2 rate arrives with tax already taken out and an employer paying its share.
1099 contractor
The same number as a contractor is not the same money. Set aside tax, and price in the cover that is not there.
Read next
This page is the map. The guides are the detail — the left column is the classification half, the right column is the immigration half.
How the work is classified
Working out a date rather than an arrangement? Your dates computes the grace period and compares the documents that record your admission.
Where all of this comes from
Federal sources only, each read directly on the date shown. Rules move — the $100,000 H-1B payment moved twice in 2026 alone — so check the source before you rely on anything here.
System A — what your status permits
DHS, USCIS and ICE. These decide whether you may do the work at all.
OPT work may not begin until USCIS approves the Form I-765 and the Employment Authorization Document is in the student's hands.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
All OPT employment must be directly related to the student's major area of study.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Post-completion OPT expects part-time work of at least 20 hours per week, or full-time work.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Post-completion OPT allows up to 90 days of unemployment; a 24-month extension adds 60 more, for 150 days across the whole OPT period.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
CPT has to be integral to the major and part of the programme of study, not simply work the student would like to do.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement · read 2026-08-26
CPT is authorised by the DSO on a new Form I-20, and requires a signed cooperative agreement or a letter from the employer.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement · read 2026-08-26
12 months or more of full-time CPT ends OPT eligibility; part-time CPT does not affect it.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement · read 2026-08-26
A STEM OPT employer has to be enrolled in and using E-Verify in good standing, and to hold its own Employer Identification Number.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
The entity that signs the Form I-983 has to be the same entity that provides the training, in a real employer-employee relationship rather than one in name only, and the student may not be a volunteer.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Staffing agencies, temporary agencies and consulting firms may employ a STEM OPT student only where they themselves provide the training and maintain a bona fide employer-employee relationship.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
DHS names multiple-employer arrangements, sole proprietorships, temp agencies and labour-for-hire consulting among the shapes that may not be able to demonstrate a bona fide employer-employee relationship.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Training at a site other than the employer’s own premises is contemplated by the rule, provided every training obligation is still met.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
The people who train and supervise a STEM OPT student have to be the employer’s own staff or its directly retained contractors, and not the staff or contractors of its clients.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
A STEM OPT employer may not hand its training responsibilities to a client or to anybody working for one.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
A signed Form I-983 training plan is required, changes go to the DSO within 10 days, and the student confirms their details every 6 months.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
H-1B classification comes from a petition an employer files, on Form I-129, with a Labor Condition Application certified by the Department of Labor.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
On the Labor Condition Application the employer promises a wage no lower than the higher of the actual wage paid to similar workers and the prevailing wage for the area.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
An H-1B worker changing employers may generally begin work once the new employer properly files a non-frivolous Form I-129, or on the requested start date, whichever falls later.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
The specialty-occupation criteria contemplate a beneficiary being staffed to a third party, and look at what that third party normally requires.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Where the worker owns more than 50% of the petitioning company, the initial petition and the first extension are each limited to 18 months.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
After H-1B employment ends there is generally up to 60 consecutive days, or the end of the authorised validity period if that comes sooner.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
An employer that terminates an H-1B worker before the end of the authorised stay is liable for the reasonable cost of return transportation; a resignation carries no such liability.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
Where an H-1B worker is not working because of a decision by the employer, the employer is required to pay the wage stated on the Labor Condition Application.
U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division · read 2026-08-26
An H-4 spouse may apply for employment authorisation where the H-1B principal has an approved Form I-140, or holds H-1B status under sections 106(a) and (b) of AC21.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
A lawful permanent resident may work for any employer, in any lawful work, without an employment authorisation document.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
For Form I-765 renewals filed on or after 30 October 2025 a timely filing no longer extends an expiring card automatically.
U.S. Department of Homeland Security · read 2026-08-26
A timely filed STEM OPT extension carries employment authorisation for a further 180 days while it is pending.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
System B — how the work is classified
The IRS, the Department of Labor and the Form I-9 process. These decide what the working relationship is, and what it costs you.
The IRS weighs behavioural control, financial control and the type of relationship together, and says no single factor decides the question.
Internal Revenue Service · read 2026-08-26
No Form I-9 is completed for an independent contractor, so the step that normally verifies work authorisation does not run — though it remains unlawful to contract with someone known to lack authorisation.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services · read 2026-08-26
An F-1 student who is still a nonresident alien is generally exempt from Social Security and Medicare tax on authorised work, practical training included.
Internal Revenue Service · read 2026-08-26
A nonresident alien is not subject to self-employment tax, which changes the moment they become a resident for tax purposes.
Internal Revenue Service · read 2026-08-26
Whether a for-profit employer may take an intern unpaid turns on a seven-factor primary beneficiary test, which the Department of Labor describes as flexible with no single factor deciding it.
U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division · read 2026-08-26
Unpaid internships in the public sector and at non-profit charitable organisations, where the intern volunteers without expecting pay, are treated differently from those at for-profit employers.
U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division · read 2026-08-26
The FTC says honest employers, the federal government included, never ask a candidate to pay to get a job.
Federal Trade Commission · read 2026-08-26