Tech billionaire Elon Musk has denied allegations that he worked illegally in the United States in the early days of his career.
An Oct. 27 report from The Washington Post alleges that Musk began his career working illegally in the U.S. for a period in 1995 while he was building a Silicon Valley startup, Zip2, which sold for about $300 million four years later.
The outlet cited company documents, former business associates, and a past CEO of the company who said investors were worried that Musk could be deported if discovered.
In a series of posts on social media, Musk denied the allegations.
Responding to a video of President Joe Biden referencing the Post’s claims, Musk said he had authorization to work in the United States.
“I was in fact allowed to work in the U.S.,” Musk said in the Oct. 27 post.
In another post, he provided more details about his immigration status. Musk says he was initially on a J-1 visa for international students to pursue academic training or research, then transitioned to an H1-B visa allowing temporary employment for specialty occupations.
“I was on a J-1 visa that transitioned to an H1-B. They know this, as they have all my records,” Musk said.
Musk was born in South Africa. At age 18, he immigrated to Canada after gaining Canadian citizenship through his Canadian-born mother. He attended Queen’s University at Kingston in Canada before transferring to the University of Pennsylvania.
Musk moved to California in 1995 to attend Stanford University but dropped out after two days and co-founded Zip2 with his brother Kimbal. He became a U.S. citizen in 2002.
The Epoch Times has contacted Elon Musk, Stanford University and the University of Pennsylvania for comment.
From The Epoch Times