The catch: They're not allowed to code, make strategic decisions, or interact with customers.

Amazon is one of many American companies scrambling to adapt to the Trump administration's rapid-fire changes to the H-1B visa program, including a mandate that consular officers must review visa applicants' social media posts before issuing visas. The additional screening has delayed processing, and some embassies and consulates have rescheduled visa appointments by several months, leaving some employees stranded outside the country.

The delays have prompted Google, Apple, Microsoft, and other companies to issue travel advisories in recent weeks, warning US employees with visas to avoid international travel to prevent extended stays outside the US.

Amazon allows employees traveling abroad for visa renewals to work remotely for up to 20 business days, an exemption from the normal requirement that they work in their office five days a week. Now, any Amazon employee in India as of December 13 and who awaits a rescheduled visa appointment may work remotely until March 2, according to the memo, which was posted to Amazon's internal HR portal on December 17.

The permission to work remotely comes with a long list of constraints. Employees working remotely from India are barred from coding of any kind, including troubleshooting and testing. They cannot work from or visit Amazon buildings. And they cannot negotiate or sign contracts.

"All reviews, final decision making, and sign offs should be undertaken outside India," the memo says.

The memo also said that "in compliance with local laws, there are no exceptions to these restrictions."

The memo does not provide guidance for employees whose visa appointments have been rescheduled beyond March 2, 2026, or for those stranded in a different country. Some US embassies and consulates have rescheduled appointments as far out as 2027.

Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

For employees in technical roles, the restrictions raised questions about what work they can actually perform.

"Seventy to eighty percent of my job is coding, testing, deploying, and documenting," one Amazon software engineer told Business Insider.

A State Department spokesperson in December told Business Insider that the purpose of the social media reviews is to use "all available tools" to flag visa applicants who are inadmissible, including those who pose a risk to national interests.

The delays pose a particular challenge for Amazon, which is among the largest users of the H-1B program. During the 2024 government fiscal year, Amazon filed 14,783 certified H-1B applications, including 23 for Whole Foods, according to Business Insider's analysis of publicly available data from the Department of Labor and US Citizenship and Immigration Services.

Read the full memo below:

H-1B/H-4 Visa Appointment Postponement Issue - December 17, 2025Temporary Remote Work AuthorizationEffective immediately, impacted employees who were in India as of December 13, 2025, and are awaiting their rescheduled visa appointment may work remotely until March 2, 2026. You must follow all current limitations on remote work activities, including restrictions against coding. See the FAQs below for details.We continue to monitor developments closely and will provide further updates as more information becomes available. In the meantime, if you need additional support please reach out by asking Aza or contacting MyHR Live Support to be connected to an HR expert. You and your household also have 24/7 access to a wide range of support and resources through Resources for Living.Employee GuidanceThe remote work grace period is subject to the same activity restrictions (listed below) as all current remote work guidance in India. In compliance with local laws, there are no exceptions to these restrictions. If you have questions, please work with your manager and HRBP to determine what activities you can engage in while abroad, based on these guidelines:Do not code. This includes troubleshooting, testing, or documentation.Do not work from or visit an Amazon building or site. All work must be remote from a residential address or other non-Amazon location.Do not give the impression of authority to bind any Amazon entity or appoint an agent authorized to bind any Amazon entity to any contract or agreement.Do not undertake any strategic business decisions, business planning, product management/development, and/or business development type activities.Do not negotiate any contracts, sign/execute or otherwise conclude any contracts, or secure any orders, either in the approval tools and/or DocuSign (or via any other method).Do not render any services to any customer (resident or otherwise) or to any Amazon entity in the country where the employee is remotely working, or otherwise perform any activity that directly benefits an Amazon entity in the country where remote working is taking place.Do not perform any activity relating to directing, controlling, or supervising or facilitating the day-to-day operations of any Amazon local entity or employee of an Amazon local team in the country where the employee is working remotely.Do not make hiring decisions for any Amazon entities in India.Do not perform any activity related to managing any customer/partner/vendor relationship, such as discussing specific contract terms, pricing negotiations, placing orders, accepting orders, or soliciting sales.All employment-related matters should continue to be decided by the respective legal employing entity, i.e. the Amazon U.S. entity.All reviews, final decision making, and sign offs should be undertaken outside India.AWS employees are expected to adhere to the AWS Operating Guidance whilst working remotely, the same way they would follow the guidance during normal times. (Business Insider Africa)

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