Allowable Payments by Visa Type | Division of Finance

The below table shows the allowable and unallowable payment types based on the type of Visa that the person holds. Before offering or requesting any payments to nonresident aliens, please consult the table below for allowable and unallowable payment types based on the Visa they hold. It’s essential to ensure compliance with Visa regulations prior to any payment discussions. If the Visa type is not listed or you have additional questions, please contact the Tax Zendesk for guidance.

Visa Type	Visa Definition	Independent Contractor	Honorarium	Expense Reimburse-ment	Scholarship/ Fellowship	Living Allowance (No Service Required)	Award/ Prize	Royalties	Residency Allowance for Artists (No expectation of service requirement)	Restrictions
B1	Visitor for Business	No	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes but see restrictions	Yes	Academic Activity cannot last longer than 9 days from more than five institutions within a 6 month period. Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. B-1/B-2 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
WB	Visitor for Business (Given to foreigners who used ESTA)	No	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes but see restrictions	Yes	Academic Activity cannot last longer than 9 days from more than five institutions within a 6 month period. Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. B-1/B-2 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
B2	Visitor for Tourism	No	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes	No	Yes	Yes but see restrictions	Yes	Academic Activity cannot last longer than 9 days from more than five institutions within a 6 month period. Expense Reimbursements not allowed if 9/5/6 rule violated Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. B-1/B-2 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
WT	Visitor for Tourism (Given to foreigners who used ESTA)	No	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes	No	Yes	Yes but see restrictions	Yes	Academic Activity cannot last longer than 9 days from more than five institutions within a 6 month period. Expense Reimbursements not allowed if 9/5/6 rule violated Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. B-1/B-2 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
F-1 Sponsored by RPI	Student	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. F-1 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
F-1 Non-Sponsored by RPI (No OPT)	Student	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. F-1 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
F-1 (Regular OPT)	Student	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes but See Restrictions	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Work performed must be within student's field of study Independent Contractor: student must be prepared to provide evidence showing the duration of the contract period and information about the contracting company
F-1 (Stem OPT)	Student	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. F-1 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
F-1 (CPT)	Student	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Royalties: As long as it is passive income generated by passive activity. F-1 cannot engage in unauthorized employment
J-1 Student sponsored by RPI	Student	No	No	Yes	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A
J-1 Student Non-Sponsored by RPI (No AT)	Student	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A
J-1 student on ( AT)	Student	No	No	No	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	N/A
J-1 Research Scholar/Short Term Scholar (sponsored by RPI)	Research/short Term Scholar	Yes - See Restrictions	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	If there is no employee/employer relationship then it is usually ok. Please contact the tax department.
J-1 Research Scholar/Short Term Scholar (not sponsored by RPI)	Research/short Term Scholar	No	Yes - See Restrictions	Yes - See Restrictions	Yes	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Requires sponsor to provide in writing; permission to participate in the occasional and short term activity.
O-1 (sponsored by RPI)	Foreign National with extraordinary ability	Yes (if authorized as part of O-1)	Yes	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	Yes	Would most likely be treated as an employee
O-1 (not sponsored by RPI)	Foreign National with extraordinary ability	No - See restrictions	No - See restrictions	Yes	No	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	If RPI is not on their itinerary then they cannot receive an honorarium or be a contractor.
H-1 B (Sponsored by RPI)	Employment Visa	No	No	Yes	No	No	Yes (Through Payroll)	Yes	N/A	Royalties: If it is commissioned and created by the person while the person is in the US in H-1B status for a different entity, then it is prohibited employment or self-employment. But if the writing already exists or is created when the employee is outside the US, then the royalties do not derive from unauthorized employment.
H-1 B (Not Sponsored by RPI)	Employment Visa	No	No	Yes - See restrictions	No	No	Yes	Yes	N/A	Must be related to their job activities.

Notes
Scholarships and Fellowships are amounts paid to a person for the purpose of independent study or research.
Royalties include payments for the use of a person's intellectual work product including plays, art pieces, films etc.
Honorariums have no contractual obligation to be paid and are not negotiated.
Academic activities related to honorariums include guest speakers, guest reviewers, guest judges, free performances.
Independent Contractors have legal contracts and it is necessary to determine the visa status of foreign nationals before engaging in contracted work
Residency Allowances are small fees paid to artists to cover their living expenses while being an artist in residence at RPI. There is no expectation of service to RPI.
Canadians will not have a B-1/B-2 visa but are treated like they do if they have no other visa.
Living allowance payments should only be paid to J-1 research or short term scholars sponsored by RPI who are solely at RPI for their independent research.

Key
OPT	Optional Practical Training
AT	Academic Training
CPT	Curricular Practical Training