Elon Musk Briefly Worked 'Illegally' in US in 1990s: Reports

Recently, Elon Musk criticised Biden ministration's handling of immigration, alleging a surge in illegal entries under Vice President Kamala Harris’s watch. However, Washington Post reports that Musk himself worked without proper authorization during his early years in United States. 

Musk, originally from South Africa, arrived in United States on a student visa. In 1995, he dropped out of Stanford University after just two days to pursue a business opportunity. He started his first company, Zip2, during this time. However, he did not have required work permit to operate a business in U.S. for nearly two years.

It was only around 1997 that Musk reportedly obtained necessary legal work authorization. Under U.S. immigration law, foreign students are generally not allowed to leave ir studies to start a business. This makes Musk's early actions a violation of those regulations, putting him in a "legal grey area," as he has described it. In a 2020 podcast, Musk reflected on this time, saying, “I was allowed to do work sort of supporting whatever,” but he also acknowledged that he was expected to be engaged in student-related activities.

Despite his own experience, Musk has often voiced strong opinions on illegal immigration, recently describing situation at U.S.-Mexico border as a “zombie apocalypse” and alleging that Vice President Kamala Harris is “importing voters” through undocumented immigration.

Musk has shown his support for Donald Trump , who vocates for stricter immigration laws to combat crime and violence, which he believes are primarily perpetrated by migrants from or countries.