2nd Jobs: Regulations and Company Standards

Modified on Wed, 25 Mar at 7:14 AM

Second Job Approval for Summer Work Travel Program Only

Summer Work Travel (SWT) Exchange Visitors can have a second job if certain guidelines and procedures are followed. Exchange Visitors on the Intern, Trainee, Teach and Camp programs are not permitted to have a second job and should focus on training and learning on program.

Department of State Program Sponsor must approve Exchange Visitors second jobs before work at the second job starts.

Once the details of the second job have been submitted for our approval, we will review the position to ensure that it complies with program regulations and that the employer is acceptable. We ask that Exchange Visitors respect their primary host company (listed on the DS-2019) and ensure their second job schedules do not interfere with their first. If the second job negatively impacts performance and attendance at the primary job, Exchange Visitors will be asked to resign from the second job.

Remember: Approval is needed before work can begin!

Key Facts for Second Job Employers about the SWT Program

All J-1 SWT exchange visitors are full time students at accredited post-secondary institutions in their home countries, here on their official summer vacations.   
They have been pre-screened by U.S Department of State Visa Sponsor and have received the J-1 visa from the U.S. Embassy in their home country.   
They have a level of English sufficient for day-to-day living in the U.S.   
They have medical insurance (provided by Visa Sponsor) that covers them in the case of medical treatment needed or emergencies. 
As J-1 visa holders, they are subject to pay federal, state, and local taxes but are not required to pay FICA or FUTA.   
They have applied for and/or have already received a Social Security number and are eligible to work regardless of the DS-2019 form Visa Sponsor has provided.

Jobs Not Allowed

Sponsors must not place Exchange Visitors:

In positions that could bring notoriety or disrepute to the Exchange Visitor Program;
In sales positions that require Exchange Visitors to purchase inventory that they must sell to support themselves;
In domestic help positions in private homes (e.g., childcare, elder care, gardener, chauffeur);
As pedicab or rolling chair drivers or operators;
As operators or drivers of vehicles or vessels for which drivers’ licenses are required regardless of whether they carry passengers or not;
In positions related to clinical care that involves patient contact;
In any position in the adult entertainment industry (including, but not limited to jobs with escort services, adult book/video stores, and strip clubs);
In positions requiring work hours that fall predominantly between 10:00 pm and 6:00 am;
In positions declared hazardous to youth by the Secretary of Labor at Subpart E of 29 CFR part 570;
In positions that require sustained physical contact with other people and/or adherence to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Universal Blood and Body Fluid Precautions guidelines (e.g., body piercing, tattooing, massage, manicure);
In positions that are substantially commission-based and thus do not guarantee that Exchange Visitors will be paid minimum wage in accordance with federal and state standards;
In positions involved in gaming and gambling that include direct participation in wagering and/or betting;
In positions in chemical pest control, warehousing, catalogue/online order distribution centers;
In positions with traveling fairs or itinerant concessionaires;
In jobs that do not allow Exchange Visitors to work alongside U.S. citizens and interact regularly with U.S. citizens and to experience U.S. culture during the workday portion of their Summer Work Travel programs;
With employers that fill non-seasonal or non-temporary job openings with exchange visitors with staggered vacation schedules;
In positions that require licensing;
In positions for which there is another specific J visa category (e.g., Camp Counselor, Trainee, Intern);
In positions with staffing agencies, unless the placements meet the following three criteria:

Exchange Visitors must be employees of and paid by the staffing agencies
Staffing agencies must provide full-time, primary, on-site supervision of the Exchange Visitors
Staffing agencies must effectively control the work sites, e.g., have hands-on management responsibility for the Exchange Visitors

After November 1, 2012, in positions in the North American Industry Classification System’s (NAICS) Goods-Producing Industries occupational categories industry sectors 11, 21, 23, 31-33 numbers (set forth at http://www.bls.gov/iag/tgs/iag_index_naics.htm).

Required Documents for 2^nd Job Approval

Preferred:

Business License
Screenshot from their state’s Secretary of State business listings showing the company is in good standing

Acceptable: (if neither of above items can be provided)

Articles of Inclusion
Tax Information (redacted)
Certificate of Authorization
Certificate of Good Standing
Acceptable: Liquor license