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In short, the question is whether I can enter the US under the visa waiver program for a research visit at a university, given my particular situation (details below). Basically this question, but with extra complications.

I (citizen of a EU country, PhD student) am in the US for a 6-month long research internship as a visiting student. A couple of weeks ago, my passport, which contained my J1 visa, was stolen. I was able to apply for a new passport, but the only way to get a replacement of the visa is to re-apply for a new visa, which cannot be done in the US (only at a US consulate or embassy abroad).

Now, if I planned to stay in the US until the end of my visit anyways, there would be no problem. However, I had planned on leaving the US for a few days around one month before the end of my internship, in order to attend a conference. There would be no time to apply for a visa during the conference time, and in any case would be too risky.

So now my question is whether I am able to leave the US for this conference: since the remaining time I need to be in the US is only about a month, can I re-enter the US under the VWP, instead of applying for a new visa? Basically my strategy would be to "convert" the remaining one month to an informal "research visit" for which I can enter without a visa.

If needed, I can explain the situation to my host professor/university and get a letter of invitation for my 1-month "research visit". Note that I am getting paid for this internship, but not through the US university or any US entity: I'm getting paid from my home institution to my non-US bank account. In addition, it is formally not a "salary" for any "work" that I am doing in the US, but rather a stipend to cover my living expenses in this time period to allow me to perform research.

The main differences that may make my case more tricky than in the other question are, I believe:

  • I am unsure if it counts as "working". Note that this applies equally to the other question, where the person is also a PhD student getting paid from their home university, but perhaps it is a different kind of grey area here.
  • My stay in the US is only one month long, but it is part of a longer visit.

If the answer is essentially "yes", a further question would be: is it better to really try to present this as a "1 month research visit", or is it better to be upfront and explain the whole story (i.e. from my passport getting stolen)? In that case I can also ask for the "whole story" to be included in the letter of invitation. I can also show a copy/scan of my J1 visa (which I do have).

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    I’m no expert, but ‘openly admit to using the VWP as a workaround’ does not sound like a viable option unless your objective is to be denied entry.
    – Traveller
    Commented Jul 15 at 18:09
  • Why did you have a J-1 visa instead of a B-1 visa?
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 16 at 6:53
  • @Traveller in this case, probably. But in any situation where the last month could legitimately be conducted in visitor status, it would be acceptable.
    – phoog
    Commented Jul 16 at 7:36

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I am getting paid, but not in the US, so I am unsure if it counts as "working"

Of course it does. It doesn't matter where you get paid, or even if you're being paid at all.

If the answer is essentially "yes", a further question would be: is it better to really try to present this as a "1 month research visit", or is it better to be upfront and explain the whole story (i.e. from my passport getting stolen) and openly admit to using the VWP as a workaround?

Why is canceling the trip not an option?

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    "Of course it does..." can you elaborate or provide a citation? The travel.state.gov document linked in the other question repeatedly mentions "Receives no salary or income from a U.S. based company/entity". Yes, cancelling the trip is an option, but that's not what this question is about.
    – Aqualone
    Commented Jul 15 at 17:19
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    Working, whether paid or not, is working. VWP allows you entry as B1/B2, under which working is prohibited. If you're doing any work (like doing something in a lab, being research assistant, teaching assistant, etc) in the US university in this status - you'd be in violation. You can discuss it with the university's immigration counsel, since they're the ones who are ultimately responsible for you, not us randos here.
    – littleadv
    Commented Jul 15 at 17:25
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    can you explain how the person in the accepted answer here travel.stackexchange.com/questions/86247/… is not "working" in the US?
    – Aqualone
    Commented Jul 16 at 6:14
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    @Aqualone I don't know that person. You'll need to ask them. Generally, coming for a couple of days or weeks for a collaboration is acceptable. Coming for half a year is not, and your fact pattern is that you're coming for half a year. The fact that you are taking several days off to go to a conference is irrelevant.
    – littleadv
    Commented Jul 16 at 6:27
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    @Aqualone you would (or could) be lying. You know that, you wouldn't be having this argument otherwise. Sure, if you lie to the immigration officer and they believe you they'll let you in. But how stupid do you think they are? They'll see that you've spent 5 months on a J visa and suddenly you're back with a brand new passport and no visa in it coming "for a visit"? You seriously think you can pull that off?
    – littleadv
    Commented Jul 16 at 6:46

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