United States Consulate Stops B-1 Visa Corner for P-1A Athlete  and suspects unauthorized payments in the United States: What to do? 

How to help B-1 and ESTA Waiver essential support staff survive aggressive Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) behavior at US Consulates and Embassies

Consulates can be very aggressive and have a large amount of latitude for coaches and support staff traveling on B-1 visas and ESTA Visa waivers. As a rule, these travelers are not permitted to get paid in the United States other than prize winnings. If CBP suspects there is an authorized payment, they may place the traveler on hold if they already have the visa secured or place the beneficiary in administrative processing if they are seeking a new visa.

How does CBP choose to stop essential support staff of P-1, O-1 and EB-1A visa athletes?

CBP officers commonly perform google searches on the persons that they are interviewing for new visas and admission into the United States. It is highly recommended that travelers google search themselves to look at the results before CBP does in order to have explanations already. 

What to do if stopped for suspected unauthorized payments as essential support staff?

If an essential support traveler is stopped by CBP for suspected unauthorized payments, the best response would be to provide information from the possible payment sources. We recommend that the traveler provide a contract between the beneficiary and the support staff explaining that payments will be made outside of the United States. It should also be noted that the payments will occur directly from the primary athlete to the essential support staff without an intermediary when possible. Translations of these documents should not be a major factor if  they are being presented to a consulate in a country where the language on the document is commonly spoken. 

Furthermore, it is helpful to show fund transfers from the principal athlete to the support staff that is done from a foreign bank to a foreign bank. If the bank is from a US account to a foreign bank, it is best to show that the transfer occurred while the essential support staff was not in the United States.

Next, it is helpful to have any events or potential revenue sources, such as an event promoter or sponsor of the principal athlete, write a confirmation that they did not pay the essential support traveler. 

Together, this evidence helps drive home the point that none of the most likely sources paid the essential support traveler. 

If this does not work, the next step would be to file an essential support staff work visa under P-1S or O-2 categories if there is a principle P-1 or O-1 visa to support such a petition to USCIS.