Can finance professionals do robot training next to their job?
Registered with FINRA, or working at a bank or an adviser? A paid robot-training job counts as an outside activity your firm may need to hear about before your first shift. Four questions show what holds for you.
What the answer rests on
The rules we check
Each one read from the law, regulation or professional code itself, with its source. Checked 19 Oct 2026.
For finance professionalsShow 3 rulesHide
FINRA-registered: give your firm written notice first
Needs an OK first
FINRA Rule 3270 bars a registered person from working as an employee or independent contractor for anyone else, or being paid for an outside business activity, without giving their firm written notice in advance. The firm then decides whether to allow it and on what terms.
If you are FINRA-registered, paid robot training work is an outside business activity under today's rule, so your firm must have written notice before you start.
First: Fill in your firm's outside business activity form with the robot training employer, the role, the hours and the pay.
FINRA Rule 3290 will narrow the duty once FINRA sets a start date
Check this clause
On 15 September 2026 the SEC approved FINRA Rule 3290, which replaces Rules 3270 and 3280 and limits reporting to investment related activity. FINRA will name the effective date in a regulatory notice.
Once the new rule applies, robot training work with no link to investments should stop needing notice under FINRA's rule, though your firm may still ask for it. Until then, Rule 3270 governs.
First: Rule 3270 still governs until FINRA announces the date; after that, ask compliance how your firm reads the new rule.
CFA members need written consent for possibly conflicting pay
Check this clause
CFA Institute Standard IV(B) says members may not accept compensation that competes with, or could create a conflict with, their employer's interests unless every party consents in writing.
Robot training work seldom competes with an investment employer, but if your firm invests in, lends to or covers robotics, autonomous vehicle or drone companies, get written consent first.
First: Put it in writing to your supervisor or compliance officer and keep the reply on file.
A broad invention clause may cover anything near your employer's business
Check this clause
Many employment agreements hand the employee's inventions to the employer. Where a state limits these clauses, it protects only work made in your own time with your own equipment that does not relate to the employer's business; elsewhere the clause's wording decides.
The risk is real when your employer is in robotics, vehicles, drones, AI or software, since robot training work can count as related to that business, and small when it is in an unrelated field.
First: Read your invention or intellectual property clause and see whether it claims work "related to" your employer's business.
Tech companies: outside work must not create a conflict
Check this clause
The codes of conduct of large tech companies (Microsoft's and Alphabet's are public) tell staff to steer clear of conflicts of interest and, before taking outside work, to make sure it neither harms the company's business nor breaks agreements they signed. The approval process itself is internal.
Paid robot training work can look like a conflict at a tech company, above all one that builds robots, self-driving cars, drones or AI models, or when the company you would work for is a competitor.
First: Before the first task, submit a request under your company's outside work policy that names the robot training employer and describes the work.
Software, robotics and AI employers: your IP clause may reach the work
Check this clause
State laws that protect own-time work (California's Labor Code 2870 is the template) still let an employer claim whatever relates to its business or research. Demonstrations, recordings and labelled sensor data made to train robots sit close to the business of many software, hardware and AI employers.
If your employer builds software, robots, vehicles or AI, check whether its clause reaches this work before you begin, and keep the work off its devices, code and data.
First: Read the invention assignment and moonlighting clauses, and if the robot training work comes close to your employer's products, raise it with your manager in writing.
Hospitals and health systems: check the outside activities clause
Check this clause
Employment agreements for physicians and clinicians often settle whether outside activities are allowed, whether the employer must sign off on them and who keeps the income. Some forbid them; others permit whatever does not interfere with your duties.
Whether you may take paid robot training work, such as weekend filming projects or remote shifts, depends on your contract and your hospital's policy, which also set any approval step.
First: Look up the clauses on outside activities, moonlighting and exclusivity in your contract, and get written permission where they leave room for doubt.
Universities: outside work counts under conflict of commitment rules
Needs an OK first
Universities count paid professional work in your own field as an outside activity. At the University of California, outside employment needs approval in advance, consulting must be reported, and outside work is capped at 39 or 48 days a year; Stanford asks for approval in advance for outside work similar to your university job.
Robot training work is an outside activity, and if it draws on your field (robotics, engineering, computer vision) it is very likely an outside professional one: disclose it, get approval where your policy requires it, and count the days.
First: Your department chair or the conflict of interest office can tell you how the university classes the work; ask before signing a contract.
UC physician faculty: outside income over a threshold goes to the Plan
Check this clause
Members of the University of California Health Sciences Compensation Plan need prior written approval for some outside activities, must keep track of outside earnings, and must pay outside income over their school's threshold (no more than $40,000 or 40% of base salary) into the Plan.
For UC physician faculty, robot training income can count as outside professional income, and above the threshold it may have to go into the Plan.
First: Ask your department chair how your school tracks outside income and where your threshold sits.
Law firms: one lawyer's conflict belongs to the whole firm
Check this clause
The ABA Model Rules impute conflicts across a firm: if one lawyer there would be barred by a conflict, none of the firm's lawyers may take the client, so outside work by one lawyer can conflict the whole firm.
Paid work for a robotics, self-driving or drone company that is a client of the firm, or on the other side of one, can conflict the firm. Firms also keep their own outside activity policies.
First: Read your firm's outside activity policy (and, as a partner, the partnership agreement), then give the general counsel or the conflicts team the name of the robot training employer.
School district policies put school duties first and forbid outside work that interferes with them or creates a conflict. Bossier Parish in Louisiana, for example, forbids outside duties during working hours without written approval, and any use of school facilities or equipment for them.
Robot training work in the evenings and at weekends, with your own phone or computer, is usually fine, but your district may require notice or approval. Never film at school or with students in view.
First: Your board's policy on outside or non-school employment says whether notice or approval is needed; HR can confirm.
Federal staff: outside work must not clash with your duties
Check this clause
5 CFR 2635.802 forbids outside employment that conflicts with official duties: work that a statute or your agency's own regulation prohibits, or work that would force you to step away from matters central to your job.
Paid robot training work is not banned in itself. It becomes a problem if the robot training employer deals with your agency (a self-driving, drone or robotics company it regulates or contracts with), or if the tasks overlap your government work.
First: Tell your agency's ethics official who the employer is, what the tasks are and what your duties are, and do it before you sign up.
5 CFR 2635.803 allows agencies to require prior approval of outside work through supplemental regulations, and many do: HHS for paid professional or consultative services, DOJ for work that involves law or the component's subject matter, and DoD for paid work with a prohibited source by employees who file financial disclosures.
Whether you need approval depends on your agency and often on your job. At DoD, for one, a robotics or autonomous vehicle company with defense contracts may be a prohibited source for a financial disclosure filer.
First: Look up your agency's supplemental regulation or ask the ethics official which one governs you, and where approval is required, wait until you have it in writing.
No government time, equipment or nonpublic information
A rule to keep
Official time is for official duties, government property is for authorized purposes only, and nonpublic information learned on the job may not be used for anyone's private gain: all three apply to every federal employee.
Do robot training work in your own time with your own phone, camera or computer, never film anything at your workplace, and never draw on nonpublic information from your government role.
First: Use only personal devices and accounts, outside working hours, and keep every piece of agency material out of the work.
No outside pay for writing linked to your official duties
Check this clause
5 CFR 2635.807 bars accepting pay from anyone other than the government for teaching, speaking or writing related to your official duties, which includes work that uses nonpublic information or covers a program you are assigned to.
If a robot training task asks you to write instructions or labels about a subject your agency handles (transport safety or aviation, for example), check whether it relates to your official duties.
First: Ask your ethics official before you take pay for tasks in your agency's subject area.
Ask before you start: written ethics advice protects you
Likely fine
Every agency has a designated ethics official, and an employee who discloses all the facts and then acts in good faith on that official's advice will not be disciplined for that conduct.
Asking before you start is free and the safest route.
First: Email your agency's ethics office with every relevant fact and keep the written reply.
Military: outside work may have to be reported, and can be refused
Needs an OK first
The Joint Ethics Regulation (section 2-502, May 2024) covers outside work by all DoD personnel, active duty members included. Supervisors may require it to be reported before it begins and may forbid it when it creates a conflict, harms readiness or poses a security risk.
You can be refused even when no law is broken, and many commands use a written request form. Remote work off duty is not exempt, and filming anywhere on a base is a separate security question.
First: Check with your supervisor and your legal or ethics office whether your command uses a written request, and submit it before the work starts.
Guard and Reserve: these rules apply while on duty orders
Check this clause
The Joint Ethics Regulation applies to Reserve and National Guard members while they are on active duty orders or performing official duties. Outside those periods, the rules of your civilian employer take priority.
A drilling reservist who takes robot training work in civilian time should read the civilian employer's policy first, then ask the unit about any reporting rule.
First: Ask your unit's legal office whether you must report the work.
State and local employees: your state's ethics law comes first
Needs an OK first
Each state has an ethics law of its own for public employees. California forbids outside work its departments declare incompatible, New York asks employees to get their agency Ethics Officer's advice before any outside activity, and Florida forbids outside work with entities that do business with your agency or that creates a recurring conflict.
Robot training work in your own time is usually allowed, but your agency may make you ask first and can turn down work that conflicts with your duties, for example a self-driving or drone company your agency permits or inspects.
First: Before you start, ask your agency's ethics officer or HR, naming the robot training employer and the work.
California local agencies can forbid incompatible outside work
Check this clause
Under Government Code 1126, a local agency employee may not take paid outside work that conflicts with the job, and the agency may ban outside work that draws on its time, facilities or influence or makes the employee less effective.
Robot training work in your own time, such as filming tasks at home or a remote teleoperation shift, is generally allowed unless your agency declares it incompatible.
First: Read your agency's written policy on outside employment.
Cabinet Office guidance says every paid outside activity should be declared, and line manager approval obtained before outside work that might affect your role, especially work that draws on your civil service job.
Robot training work must be declared, and if it touches your department's area (transport, defence or aviation, for example) get your manager's approval before you start.
First: Complete your department's outside interests declaration before the first task.
Germany's civil servants need prior approval for paid side jobs
Needs an OK first
Section 99 of the Bundesbeamtengesetz requires prior approval for any paid side activity, apart from listed exceptions. Approval is refused when official interests would suffer, which is generally presumed once it takes more than a fifth of regular weekly working time.
Paid robot training work needs written approval from your authority before you start.
First: Apply in writing to your Dienstbehörde before you start, stating the work, the hours and the expected pay.
French public agents need authorization for any side activity
Needs an OK first
Service-Public says public agents may take on side work such as expertise or consultation only with prior written authorization from their administration, which replies within a month; the activity must not harm the service or create a conflict of interest.
Robot training work is a side activity that needs authorization first, whatever form it takes.
First: Write to your hierarchy before the first task, setting out the employer, the work, the hours and the pay.
Spanish public staff need compatibility recognized first
Needs an OK first
Under article 14 of Ley 53/1984, any professional or labour activity outside the public administration needs compatibility recognized beforehand, with a decision due within two months, and certain pay structures rule compatibility out.
Without recognized compatibility, you may not start paid robot training work.
First: Ask your HR unit how to request reconocimiento de compatibilidad.
Indian government employees need sanction for other paid work
Needs an OK first
Under Rule 15 of the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964, a government servant needs the government's previous sanction to engage in any trade, business or other employment, with an exception for occasional literary, artistic or scientific work.
Paid robot training work needs previous sanction.
First: Apply through your department for previous sanction before taking any paid work.
Brazil: federal servants may not take work incompatible with the post
Check this clause
Lei 8.112/1990, article 117, prohibits federal civil servants from managing a private company and from any activity that is incompatible with their post or working hours.
Robot training work outside working hours is not banned by name, but running a company or work that clashes with your duties is.
First: Read your agency's rules, and if unsure, ask its ethics commission or HR.
Philippines: government employees need written permission
Needs an OK first
Civil service rules forbid officers and employees from engaging in private business, vocation or profession without written permission from the head of their department, and Republic Act 6713 forbids private practice unless it is authorized and free of conflict.
Paid robot training work needs written permission from your agency head before you start.
First: Ask your personnel office for the form requesting permission to engage in private work.
Government employees almost everywhere need approval for paid side work
Needs an OK first
In every country we looked at, public servants must get permission for paid outside work or declare it: the UK, Germany, France, Spain, India and the Philippines among them.
Whatever country you serve, plan on asking your department before taking paid robot training work.
First: Look up the outside work or conflict of interest rule for your service, and check with HR or your manager first.
Your own-time recordings and writing are not work for hire for your employer
Likely fine
Under US copyright law the employer owns a work made for hire, which for an employee means a work made within the scope of the job: as part of regular duties, in the employer's time, or with its premises or tools.
Videos, demonstrations, written instructions or labels you make for a robot training employer in your own time, outside your duties, are not your employer's work for hire. Your contract with the robot training employer usually hands them to that employer instead.
First: Do the work away from your job's hours and tasks, and check the robot training employer's terms to see who owns your recordings and text.
No real patient information, ever, in a recording or a task
A rule to keep
HIPAA lets protected health information be used or disclosed only as the Privacy Rule permits, and information counts as de-identified only when it meets a strict standard. A robot training employer is normally neither your employer nor a business associate of it.
Never film, photograph or describe real patients, their charts, screens or a care setting for a robot training task, and never bring work footage home. Tasks filmed in your own home with no patient information in view are fine.
First: Record only in your own space with nothing from work in view, and ask your privacy officer if you are unsure whether something counts as de-identified.
AMA ethics: patients' welfare comes before your own interests
Likely fine
The AMA Code of Medical Ethics holds that physicians must never put their own financial interests ahead of their patients' welfare.
Paid robot training work with no patient care and no patient information does not create that conflict on its own. It would only if it shaped what you advise your patients.
First: Keep the work entirely apart from your patient care.
Residents: get your program director's written permission
Needs an OK first
Under ACGME rules every program must have a moonlighting policy. Moonlighting must be voluntary, needs the program director's permission in writing, counts toward the 80-hour weekly cap and is off limits to PGY-1 residents, and a program may ban it altogether.
If your program treats robot training work as moonlighting, a PGY-1 resident cannot take it, and everyone else needs written permission first and must count the hours toward the limit.
First: Ask your program director for permission in writing and keep the reply.
Does non-medical side work count as moonlighting? It varies by program
Check this clause
ACGME defines moonlighting as voluntary, paid, medically related work outside the program. Carilion's January 2026 policy covers paid work whether medically related or not; the University of Florida Jacksonville policy treats non-medical earnings as outside moonlighting but asks for an outside activity form first.
Most robot training work (filming household tasks, teleoperation, labelling robot data) is not medically related, but your program's policy may still cover it, and it still takes hours away from rest.
First: Ask your program director or GME office how your program treats non-medical paid work, and file any form it needs before you start.
Pharmacists: keep patient information confidential
A rule to keep
The APhA Code of Ethics says a pharmacist serves every patient privately and confidentially.
Never let real patient records, prescriptions or labels appear in a robot training recording or task, and never film in the pharmacy. Tasks at home with your own things are fine.
First: Film only your own space and belongings, and read your employer's outside work policy.
Psychologists, counselors and social workers: protect client confidentiality
A rule to keep
The APA Ethics Code (4.01, 3.06), the ACA Code of Ethics (B.1.c) and the NASW Code (1.07, 1.06) all require keeping clients' information confidential and avoiding roles in which other interests could impair your judgment.
Robot training work such as filming chores or labelling clips has nothing to do with your clients and is fine. Never record clients, their information or your practice, and never describe a real client in a task, even without names.
First: Keep clients and your practice out of the work entirely, and check your licensing board's rules and your employer's policy.
Lawyers: keep client information out of every task
A rule to keep
ABA Model Rule 1.6 bars disclosing information about a client's representation unless the client gives informed consent or an exception applies, and requires reasonable steps against its disclosure. Working for a robot training employer is not representing anyone.
Keep client files, screens and documents out of every recording, and never describe a real client matter in a task, even without names. Filming your own household tasks raises no issue.
First: Record only where no client material is in view, and check your state's version of the rule.
ABA Formal Opinion 512 on client data in generative AI tools
A rule to keep
ABA Formal Opinion 512 (29 July 2024) says a lawyer needs the client's informed consent before entering information about the representation into a generative AI tool that can learn from it.
The opinion concerns lawyers using AI tools in client work, not being paid to help train robots, but the principle carries over: nothing from a client matter goes into any recording, upload or task.
First: Treat every robot training app and upload as an outside system, and read your state bar's guidance on AI.
Lawyers: a paid side role can conflict with a client matter
Check this clause
Under Model Rules 1.7 and 1.8, a conflict exists when a duty to a third person or your own interest could materially limit a client's representation, and client information may not be used to the client's disadvantage.
Paid robot training work is rarely a conflict, but it can be when you act for a client against, or in a deal with, the company paying you (a robotics, self-driving or drone company, say).
First: Run the robot training employer's name through your firm's conflict check before you start.
Rule 1.700.001 of the AICPA Code, on confidential client information, says a member in public practice may disclose it only with the client's specific consent.
No client financial, tax or audit material may appear in a robot training recording or task. Filming your own household tasks raises no issue.
First: Record only where no client material is in view, and check your firm's policy.
CPAs: an independence question if your firm audits the robotics company
Check this clause
Members in public practice must stay independent of their attest clients under the AICPA Independence Rule, and an impairment cannot be fixed by disclosing it or by getting consent.
Paid work for a company your firm audits or reviews could impair independence. If the robot training employer is not an attest client of your firm, this is no obstacle.
First: Look for the robot training employer on your firm's client list, and ask your independence or compliance team.
Licensed engineers: disclose conflicts and protect project data
Check this clause
The NCEES Model Rules bar licensees from revealing information obtained in their professional capacity without consent, and require them to tell employers or clients about any known or potential conflict of interest.
Robot training work is generally fine when no confidential project data is involved and it does not conflict with your employer's interests, which matters most if your employer designs robots, vehicles or automation.
First: Keep every employer and client project out of the work, and disclose it if it overlaps your employer's business.
NSPE Code: notify your employer before outside engineering work
Needs an OK first
Under the NSPE Code of Ethics, an engineer tells the employer before taking outside engineering work, accepts part-time work only within the employer's policies, and uses the employer's equipment for it only with consent.
If the robot training work counts as engineering (testing a robot's behaviour against a specification, for example), tell your employer first and keep it off the employer's equipment.
First: A short written note to your employer is enough to start; ask in it whether any policy applies.
Teachers: no students or student records in any task
A rule to keep
FERPA requires a school to have written consent before it discloses personally identifiable information from a student's education records, except in the cases the law lists.
Never film students, their work or their records for a robot training task, and never record in a classroom. Tasks at home with your own things are fine.
First: Record only at home, with nothing from school in view.
Citizens and permanent residents face no immigration limit
Likely fine
US work authorization rules restrict only non-citizens. A lawful permanent resident may work with no limit on place or type of work (8 CFR 274a.12(a)(1)), and USCIS names the right to do any legal work you choose.
No visa rule limits robot training work for you, whether it is a 1099 contract or a shift job. Any limits come from your employer, your profession or a benefit you receive.
First: Only your employer's rules and any benefits you receive can limit you; no immigration approval is involved.
A work permit valid for any employer covers contract work
Likely fine
USCIS says holders of an unrestricted EAD may work for any employer and may be self-employed. That includes H-4 spouses with an EAD, DACA recipients with a valid EAD, asylees and others; L-2 and E spouses are work-authorized by their status itself. Since a final rule took effect on 14 October 2026, filing a renewal no longer extends the card automatically.
Robot training work, as an employee or a 1099 contractor, is covered while your card is valid. A student (F-1) EAD has limits of its own.
First: Check the category code and the expiry date on your card, and file the renewal early.
An H-1B worker may be employed only by the petitioner that obtained the status (8 CFR 274a.12(b)(9)). Work for any other employer needs that employer's own H-1B petition, and unauthorized work counts as a failure to maintain status.
On an H-1B, any robot training work beyond your sponsor's, from a 1099 filming project to a second employee job, needs that company to file its own H-1B petition for you; doing it without one endangers your status.
First: Hold off. An immigration attorney can tell you whether a concurrent petition or another route exists.
F-1 students: on-campus work only, unless you have CPT or OPT
Not allowed as things stand
While classes are in session, F-1 students may work up to 20 hours a week on campus (8 CFR 214.2(f)(9)); off-campus work needs CPT, OPT or hardship authorization approved in advance.
Robot training work, whether from home or at an employer's site, is not on-campus work, so it is not allowed during your studies unless your CPT or OPT covers it.
First: Talk to your designated school official before you apply for any robot training job.
CPT is work or training that forms part of your degree program under an agreement with your school, and it can begin only after your DSO authorizes it on your I-20.
Robot training work is unlikely to count as CPT unless your program requires it (a robotics or engineering program with a practical component, say) and your school agrees. Work before authorization is unauthorized.
First: Ask your DSO whether your program allows CPT for this work, and wait for the endorsed I-20 before you start.
OPT: contract work counts when it relates to your degree
Needs an OK first
SEVP guidance says OPT employment can include 1099 work and self-employment as long as it relates to your degree. Post-completion OPT requires an average of at least 20 hours a week, allows 90 days of unemployment in total, and every new employer has to be reported.
Robot training work counts for OPT only if it relates to your field of study, as it may for robotics, engineering or computer vision. Weeks under the average count toward your 90 days, and the employer must be reported.
First: Explain to your DSO who the employer is and how the work ties to your degree, enter it in the SEVP Portal, and keep your contracts and a record of hours.
STEM OPT: it must be an employee job, never self-employment
Not allowed as things stand
A STEM OPT employer has to use E-Verify, sign a training plan (Form I-983) and keep a genuine employer-employee relationship with you; students on the extension may not be self-employed.
A 1099 recording or labelling contract cannot be your STEM OPT job. The rules say nothing about extra contract work beside your STEM job, so that is for your DSO to decide.
First: Ask your DSO before any side work, and report a change of employer within 10 days.
A J-1 exchange visitor may work only for the program sponsor or the sponsor's designee, and only within the program's guidelines (8 CFR 274a.12(b)(11)).
Robot training work outside your program needs your sponsor's written permission. Without it, the work is unauthorized.
First: Before any work, email your sponsor's responsible officer with the employer and the hours you expect.
TN: no self-employment, and a new employer needs approval
Not allowed as things stand
According to the USCIS Policy Manual, self-employment is not a qualifying activity under USMCA, and USCIS must approve work for a new or an extra employer before it can begin.
TN status does not cover freelance or 1099 robot training work, or a second employer, without that approval.
First: Talk to an immigration attorney about an added-employer TN application before you take the work.
L-1, O-1 and other employer-tied visas: work only for your petitioner
Not allowed as things stand
On an L-1 or O-1, only the petitioner that obtained the status may employ you (8 CFR 274a.12(b)(12) and (13)); an O-1 worker can serve several employers only through separate petitions or an agent's petition. Any other work is a failure to maintain status.
Robot training work for another company is not covered unless an approved petition covers it, so it puts your status at risk.
First: Hold off, and ask the attorney or agent behind your visa whether a further petition could cover this work.
Receiving unemployment benefits: report each week's earnings
Needs an OK first
Every state runs its own unemployment insurance under federal rules, and claimants must report all earnings from work in each week they claim. California counts work in the week it was done, paid or not; New York counts even one hour of freelance work.
Robot training earnings must be reported for the week you did the work, including a single filming session or shift, and they can cut or stop that week's benefit. Leaving them out can be treated as fraud.
First: Find your state agency's rule for part-time and self-employment income before you do any task, and include those earnings in every weekly claim.
Social Security before full retirement age: the earnings limit for 2026
Check this clause
In 2026 Social Security holds back $1 for every $2 earned over $24,480 in the years before the one in which you reach full retirement age, and $1 for every $3 over $65,160 in that year. Net self-employment profit counts; earnings from the month you reach full retirement age on do not.
Wages from a robot training job and net profit from robot training contracts both count toward the limit. Benefits held back are not lost: they are added back once you reach full retirement age.
First: Add up the wages and net contract profit you expect this year and compare them with your limit.
On Medicare: a high-income year can raise premiums later
Likely fine
Medicare Part B and D premiums go up for people whose modified adjusted gross income exceeds $109,000 (single) or $218,000 (married filing jointly), judged from the tax return of usually two years before.
Robot training income is unlikely to matter below those figures, but a big year can push your premiums up two years later.
First: If your income is close to the line, check before you commit to many hours.
CalPERS retirees: the hour cap concerns public employers
Check this clause
A CalPERS retiree working for a CalPERS employer may work no more than 960 hours in a fiscal year, and some contractor arrangements with those employers count too. Those on disability retirement have extra limits.
The cap is written for work for a CalPERS public employer, so robot training work for a private company is probably outside it. Disability retirees should ask first.
First: Check with CalPERS first if you are on disability retirement or the work has any link to a public agency.
Security clearance holders: some outside work has to be reported
Check this clause
Guideline L of the national security adjudicative guidelines treats certain outside work as a concern, such as work for a foreign government or entity or involving intelligence, defense or protected technology, and so is failing to report an outside activity when reporting is required.
Robot training work for a US company is usually no concern, but a foreign-owned employer, defense robotics or drone work, or recordings near a secure site may have to be reported.
First: Ask your facility security officer whether you must report the work before you start.
Canada: an employer-specific work permit means that one employer
Not allowed as things stand
IRCC says holders of an employer-specific work permit are authorized to work for the employer that supported their application, while open permit holders may work for any eligible employer.
An employer-specific permit does not cover robot training work for another company.
First: Hold off, and ask an immigration adviser whether an open work permit or another option applies.
UK Skilled Worker visa: up to 20 hours of other eligible work
Needs an OK first
GOV.UK says Skilled Worker visa holders may work up to 20 hours a week in another job or their own business alongside their sponsored job, if the work has an eligible higher-skilled occupation code, appears on the immigration salary list, or is in the same sector and at the same level as their main job.
Robot training work fits only if it meets one of those conditions, and every hour of it, invoicing included, counts toward the 20.
First: Check the work's occupation code with an immigration adviser before you start.
Work permits tied to one employer seldom allow other work
Needs an OK first
Permits tied to an employer allow work for that employer: Canada's employer-specific permits do so, and the UK's Skilled Worker visa allows other work only within fixed limits.
Treat robot training work as not covered until the conditions of your own permit say it is.
First: Go through the conditions printed on your permit and speak to an immigration adviser first.
Canada study permit: up to 24 hours off campus, self-employment included
Check this clause
According to IRCC, eligible students can work off campus for up to 24 hours a week while their academic session runs, and those who are self-employed have to log their hours to prove they meet the permit's conditions.
If your permit allows off-campus work, robot training work can be part of it, up to 24 hours a week during the session.
First: Check your permit's conditions and keep a log of your hours.
Student visas limit work, and self-employment often more
Needs an OK first
Each student visa sets its own work limits: the UK rules out self-employment entirely, while Canada allows off-campus work, self-employment included, up to 24 hours a week during sessions.
Your country's student visa rules decide whether robot training work is allowed, so treat it as something to check first.
First: Ask your school's international student office before taking any paid work.
Contract profit is subject to self-employment tax of 15.3% (12.4% for Social Security, 2.9% for Medicare) on 92.35% of net earnings, once they reach $400. Your salary uses up the 2026 Social Security wage base of $184,500 first, and half of the tax can be deducted.
As a 1099 contractor, each $1,000 of net robot training profit carries roughly $141 of self-employment tax, plus income tax at your rate; an employee job withholds these for you instead. With wages over $184,500, only the Medicare part applies.
First: Keep roughly 15% of net contract profit aside for self-employment tax, and income tax on top at your own rate.
Pay the tax yourself: each quarter, or through your paycheck
A rule to keep
Nobody withholds tax from contractor payments. For 2026 the estimated tax dates are April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026 and January 15, 2027. Or you can file a new W-4 with your main employer to withhold more, which counts as paid evenly across the year. You avoid a penalty by paying in at least 90% of this year's tax or 100% of last year's (110% if your income was above $150,000).
If you have a salary, more withholding from your paycheck is usually the easiest route, even late in the year. For contract income starting now, the next quarterly date is January 15, 2027.
First: Use the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator to set the extra amount on a new W-4, or make a payment by January 15, 2027.
A 1099-NEC from $2,000, but every dollar is taxable
A rule to keep
From 2026 a payer files Form 1099-NEC for anyone it paid at least $2,000 for services (the line used to be $600). Side income must be reported even when no form arrives, whoever paid it.
A robot training employer or payment service may send you no 1099 under $2,000, but you still report every payment.
First: Log every payment yourself and report the total on Schedule C.
Tax falls on your profit, and up to 20% of it may be deductible
Likely fine
Contract income and the business expenses set against it go on Schedule C. The qualified business income deduction, made permanent by recent law, allows eligible people to deduct up to 20% of business income, and from 2026 at least $400 when that income is $1,000 or more.
Costs the work needs, such as a head mount, a camera or extra storage you buy for recording projects, lower your taxable profit, and part of the profit may be deducted from income tax (not from self-employment tax).
First: Keep receipts and a simple log of income and expenses from the first payment.
Contract profit can fund a retirement account of its own
Likely fine
Self-employed people can open a solo 401(k) or a SEP-IRA for their self-employment income. Elective deferral limits apply per person across every plan you have, your employer's included.
Net profit from robot training contracts can go into a retirement account on top of your employer's plan, within the combined limits.
First: IRS.gov lists this year's contribution limits; a provider can tell you whether a solo 401(k) or a SEP-IRA fits better.
State income tax follows where you live and where the work happens
Likely fine
States tax residents on their income and non-residents on work done inside the state; California and New York do both, while Florida has no personal income tax.
Robot training work done from home is generally taxed by your home state; on-site shifts in another state can also be taxed there, and some states charge no income tax at all.
First: Read your state tax agency's rules, including whether it expects estimated payments as well.
The CRA says self-employment income, gig work and income earned through digital platforms included, has to be reported on your return with Form T2125. Self-employed people file by 15 June, but any balance owing is due on 30 April. GST/HST registration is only required once revenue passes CAD 30,000 over four consecutive quarters.
Income from robot training contracts is self-employment income to report alongside your salary, even if no tax slip arrives. A robot training job as an employee goes through payroll instead.
First: Record what you are paid and what you spend, and enter both on Form T2125 when you file.
Under HMRC's trading allowance, the first GBP 1,000 of trading income in a tax year is tax-free. Beyond that you register for Self Assessment by 5 October after the end of the tax year.
Up to GBP 1,000 a year from robot training contracts may need nothing from you. Beyond it, register and file a return, apart from your employer's payroll.
First: Keep a running total of gross contract income for each tax year (6 April to 5 April) and register with HMRC by 5 October once it passes GBP 1,000.
Germany: tell the Finanzamt, and file once side income passes EUR 410
A rule to keep
Section 138 of the Abgabenordnung requires you to notify the Finanzamt when freelance work begins, and under section 46 of the Einkommensteuergesetz an employee must file a return when income not subject to wage tax exceeds EUR 410 a year.
Even with wage tax deducted from your salary, freelance robot training income above EUR 410 must be declared, and the start of the activity must be notified.
First: Notify your Finanzamt through ELSTER when the activity begins, and keep your records.
Netherlands: put freelance income in your tax return
A rule to keep
According to the Belastingdienst, earnings from work outside an employment, such as freelance work done online, are declared in the income tax return as income from other work, and no wage tax is taken from them.
Income from robot training contracts is taxed on top of your salary through the annual return.
First: Keep a record of payments and costs, and find out whether you count as an entrepreneur for income tax.
France: freelance income goes through a micro-entreprise
A rule to keep
Micro-entrepreneurs selling services stay in the simplified tax regime up to EUR 83,600 of turnover for 2026 income; they declare turnover monthly or quarterly as well as yearly, keep a revenue book and issue invoices.
Freelance robot training income in France normally runs through a micro-entreprise registration, alongside your salary.
First: Register as a micro-entrepreneur on the official portal, choosing monthly or quarterly declarations.
Spain: once self-employment is regular, register as autónomo
A rule to keep
Article 305 of the Ley General de la Seguridad Social places in the self-employed regime (RETA) anyone who regularly carries out a paid activity on their own account, even while employed.
Once robot training contract work becomes regular, you must register as autónomo even if you have a job.
First: Check with the Seguridad Social or a gestor whether your work counts as regular, and register if it does.
Ireland: myAccount under EUR 5,000, self-assessment above
A rule to keep
According to Revenue, side income below EUR 5,000 a year can be declared in myAccount; at EUR 5,000 or more you register for self-assessment and file a Form 11.
A little robot training contract income goes through myAccount; more than that means self-assessment.
First: Add up the year's income from outside PAYE, and register with Revenue once it reaches EUR 5,000.
business.gov.au says anyone carrying on a business or enterprise can register a free Australian Business Number, which keeps PAYG amounts from being withheld from payments you receive.
If your robot training contract work amounts to a business, a free ABN helps, and some employers ask for one.
First: The Australian Business Register can tell you whether you are entitled to an ABN; either way, keep income records for your tax return.
India: freelance income counts as business or professional income
A rule to keep
Business or professional income is reported on ITR-3, the Income Tax Department says, or on ITR-4 when the presumptive scheme applies. The Income-tax Act, 2025 applies from 1 April 2026.
Money from robot training contracts, earned beside a salary, is normally taxed as business or professional income.
First: Ask a chartered accountant which form applies and whether you can use the presumptive scheme.
Mexico: salaried people can use RESICO's flat rate too
A rule to keep
Article 113-E of the Ley del Impuesto sobre la Renta lets individuals with professional income under MXN 3,500,000 opt into RESICO and pay 1% to 2.5% each month by the 17th, even when they also earn a salary.
You can keep the withholding on your salary and pay a simple flat rate on robot training contract income.
First: Ask the SAT or an accountant about joining RESICO and issuing CFDI invoices.
Philippines: salary plus contract income means BIR registration
A rule to keep
Under BIR Revenue Memorandum Order 23-2018, someone earning both a salary and self-employment income is a mixed income earner, taxed at graduated rates or, when receipts are under PHP 3,000,000, at an 8% rate on gross receipts if chosen at registration.
Freelance robot training work means registering with the BIR and choosing between the graduated rates and the 8% option.
First: Register at your Revenue District Office with BIR Form 1901.
Poland: small freelance earnings may need no registered business
A rule to keep
Article 5 of the Prawo przedsiębiorców treats an individual's activity as unregistered while quarterly revenue stays at or below 225% of the minimum wage; above that, you must register in CEIDG within 7 days.
Occasional robot training contract work can run without a registered business; income tax is due either way.
First: Keep a quarterly revenue total, and register in CEIDG within 7 days of going over the limit.
Portugal: open your activity with the tax office before freelancing
A rule to keep
The Tax Authority requires anyone who provides services independently and habitually to file the declaração de início de atividade before the activity begins.
Regular freelance robot training income normally means opening your activity first.
First: File the declaration on the Portal das Finanças before your first freelance task.
Canada: outside work on company time can justify dismissal
Check this clause
The BC Supreme Court, in Dove v. Destiny Media Technologies (2023 BCSC 1032), confirmed that unless otherwise agreed an employee owes the employer full-time service, and that doing work for an outside business during business hours without approval can be grounds for dismissal.
That case is about work hours; robot training work in your own time is another situation. Even so, your contract's outside work and conflict clauses apply, and none of the work should touch work hours or work equipment.
First: Read your contract and code of conduct for outside activity or conflict clauses, and do the work only off the clock with your own equipment.
Ontario has banned non-competes in employment contracts
Likely fine
Section 67.2 of Ontario's Employment Standards Act, 2000 forbids employers from entering into agreements with employees that contain a non-compete and voids any such clause, with exceptions for executives and for a seller of a business who joins the buyer.
A clause meant to keep you from working after you leave is void for most employees. Outside work, conflict and confidentiality clauses that apply while you are employed are untouched.
First: What still matters is any outside activities or conflict of interest clause that applies during employment, so look for one.
Quebec: a duty of loyalty and tightly limited non-competes
Check this clause
Article 2088 of the Civil Code of Quebec requires employees to act faithfully and honestly and not to use confidential information obtained at work, and article 2089 permits a non-compete only in writing and limited in time, territory and type of work.
Nothing here forbids a second job, but loyalty and confidentiality mean you may not use your employer's information or compete with it.
First: Check your contract for exclusivity or outside activity clauses, and keep your employer's information out of the work.
UK: the 48-hour average week covers all your jobs together
Likely fine
The Working Time Regulations 1998 cap working time at an average of 48 hours a week unless you opt out in writing. Acas says that when your jobs together go above 48 hours, each employer should talk it through with you, and you are not obliged to opt out.
A full-time job plus a few hours of robot training work a week normally stays under 48 hours, but weekend shifts add up fast. Above the cap you can opt out in writing or cut hours, and refusing to opt out cannot be held against you.
UK: salaried staff can be held to a no-other-work clause
Check this clause
Exclusivity terms cannot be enforced against zero-hours workers or, since December 2022, against workers earning at or under the lower earnings limit (Acas puts it at GBP 129 a week). Other employees have no general protection.
On an ordinary salary, a clause that forbids work elsewhere, or allows it only with consent, may well be enforceable.
First: Find the exclusivity or other employment clause in your contract and see whether it requires consent or only notice.
Germany: your employer may require consent, but needs a reason to refuse
Check this clause
According to the Federal Labour Court (BAG 9 AZR 464/00), a contract may make side jobs subject to consent, but the employer cannot withhold it at will: where its operational interests are not affected, you have a right to consent. Article 12 of the Basic Law protects the freedom to take on a side job.
If your contract requires consent or notice, ask first; your employer needs a genuine reason, such as competition or working time, to refuse robot training work.
First: Search your contract for "Nebentätigkeit" and, if consent is required, send a short written request before you begin.
Section 2(1) of the Arbeitszeitgesetz adds up hours worked for different employers, and section 3 limits the working day to 8 hours, or 10 at most if the 8-hour average holds over 6 months. Your employer may ask how much side work you do.
Robot training work as another employer's employee, such as teleoperation or test shifts, counts toward the daily limit. Whether purely self-employed hours count is unsettled.
First: Keep your main job and side work together within the daily limits, and be ready to give your employer the hours if asked.
EU: an employer may restrict a second job, not forbid it
Likely fine
Under Article 9 of Directive (EU) 2019/1152, member states must stop employers from forbidding work for other employers outside the agreed schedule, or penalizing it, and may let employers restrict it only on objective grounds: health and safety, business confidentiality, the integrity of the public service, or avoiding conflicts of interest.
A blanket ban on side work is not permitted in the EU. Any restriction on robot training work needs a real reason, such as a conflict of interest or safety after a long shift.
First: See whether your employer names a specific objective reason for any restriction.
EU: a 48-hour average week, counted under national rules
Check this clause
Directive 2003/88/EC caps average working time at 48 hours a week, with an opt-out in some countries. National law decides how hours with several employers, or as a self-employed person, are added together.
Countries count hours across several jobs in different ways, and some leave self-employed hours out entirely, so the national rule is what matters.
First: See the point for your country in this answer.
Netherlands: a ban on side work is void without an objective reason
Likely fine
Article 7:653a of the Burgerlijk Wetboek voids a clause that forbids or limits working for others outside your hours unless an objective reason justifies it, and forbids putting you at a disadvantage for relying on this.
A blanket ban in a Dutch contract is void; a specific restriction on robot training work needs an objective reason such as a genuine conflict of interest.
First: Where your contract limits side work, ask your employer in writing to name the objective reason behind it.
France: a duty of loyalty, and exclusivity clauses kept narrow
Check this clause
According to the Ministry of Labour's guide, an employee with several jobs owes each employer loyalty and may not compete with it. An exclusivity clause holds only when it is indispensable to protect the company's legitimate interests and is justified by the nature of the job, and as a rule it cannot bind a part-time employee.
Robot training side work that does not compete with your employer is generally allowed, unless your contract holds a valid exclusivity clause.
First: Check the contract and the collective agreement for a clause d'exclusivité, and whether the robot training work overlaps your employer's business.
France: the 48-hour limit counts salaried work, not freelance work
Likely fine
Employees may not work over 10 hours a day or 48 hours a week across all employers, but when salaried and self-employed work are combined, only the salaried hours count toward the maximum.
Robot training work done as a self-employed person stays outside the legal cap, but salaried robot training shifts count toward it, and your employer may ask you to confirm you stay within it.
First: Expect to confirm in writing, if asked, that your salaried hours respect the limits.
Spain: a second job can be barred only for unfair competition or paid exclusivity
Check this clause
Article 21 of the Estatuto de los Trabajadores allows a bar on working for several employers only in cases of unfair competition or when you agreed to full dedication for express compensation, and you can end such a pact with 30 days' written notice.
A Spanish employer cannot forbid robot training work in general. Check whether you signed a paid full-dedication pact.
First: See if your contract has a "plena dedicación" or "no concurrencia" clause and, if so, whether it comes with extra pay.
Ireland: a second job cannot be banned, only limited in writing on objective grounds
Likely fine
Section 6E of the Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 forbids employers from banning work for another employer outside your schedule; any restriction must be proportionate, objectively justified and in writing.
An Irish employer cannot forbid robot training work on the side in general.
First: If you are told not to take a side job, ask for the restriction and its grounds in writing.
India: no-other-work clauses usually hold while you are employed
Check this clause
In Vijaya Bank v. Prashant B Narnaware (2025), the Supreme Court repeated that Section 27 of the Indian Contract Act voids restraints of trade, but held that clauses requiring exclusive service while employed are generally not a restraint and can be enforced.
A non-compete after you leave is generally void, but a clause against moonlighting or for exclusive service usually holds while you are employed, so its exact wording decides whether robot training work is allowed.
First: Your appointment letter is where to look: search it for exclusivity, dual employment or prior consent wording.
India: the double-employment ban is about factories and mines
Likely fine
Section 30 of the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (in force since 21 November 2025) forbids working in a factory or mine within 12 hours of working in another one; it does not extend to remote or office work.
For most people no statute stands in the way of robot training work from home, such as recording tasks or labelling clips; your contract is what may restrict it. Factory or warehouse workers taking a second factory job are covered by the rule.
First: Look at your appointment letter rather than the statute.
Brazil: no general ban, but competing trade is cause for dismissal
Check this clause
Under article 482(c) of the CLT, regular trading without the employer's permission is a just cause for dismissal if it competes with the employer or harms the work. The article does not prohibit holding a second job.
Robot training work that neither competes with your employer nor harms your job is not cause for dismissal under this article.
First: Your contract and code of conduct may still require consent or exclusivity, so check both.
Mexico: a second job is no ground for dismissal, but breaking secrecy is
Check this clause
Article 47 of the Ley Federal del Trabajo lists the grounds for dismissal without liability, and holding another job is not among them; article 134 requires workers to keep the technical, commercial and manufacturing secrets they learn at work.
The law does not treat robot training work on the side as grounds for dismissal, but disclosing your employer's secrets or competing with it can be, and your contract may still demand exclusivity.
First: Go through your contract and the internal work rules for clauses on exclusividad, conflicto de intereses or confidentiality.
Philippines: a second job is not a just cause, but breach of trust is
Check this clause
The Labor Code sets out the just causes for dismissal, among them serious misconduct and willful breach of trust; holding a second job is not one of them.
Robot training work on the side is not a ground for dismissal in itself, unless your contract forbids it or it involves competing or misusing confidential information.
First: Your contract and company policy may still restrict outside work or conflicts of interest, so read both.
Poland: a ban on competing needs a separate agreement
Check this clause
Article 101(1) of the Kodeks pracy forbids competing activity only as far as a separate agreement provides, while article 100 requires employees to keep secret any information whose disclosure could harm the employer.
Without a separate non-competition agreement the Code does not forbid other work, but never for a competitor and never with your employer's information.
First: Find out whether you ever signed an umowa o zakazie konkurencji, and read what your confidentiality clause covers.
Portugal: blocking a second job needs an objective reason
Likely fine
Article 129 of the Código do Trabalho has, since 2023, prohibited employers from obstructing another professional activity unless there is an objective ground such as safety or professional secrecy; the duty of loyalty, meaning no competition and no disclosure, still applies.
In Portugal an employer cannot simply stop you from taking robot training work, but the duties not to compete and not to disclose still bind you.
First: If your employer raises an objection, ask it to name the objective ground.
A US employer can usually limit what you do outside work
Check this clause
Employment in every state but Montana is presumed to be at will, so an employer can end it for nearly any reason that is not itself illegal. No federal law grants a general right to hold a second job, and beyond protecting the use of legal products, only a handful of states (California, Colorado, North Dakota, and New York in part) protect lawful off-duty activity.
A private employer can generally restrict paid robot training work on the side, such as filming tasks at home or remote teleoperation shifts, unless a state law or your contract says otherwise, so its policy and the papers you signed come first.
First: Before you take a shift or a filming project, read your employer's policies on outside work, conflicts of interest and confidentiality and anything you signed, and get an unclear rule answered in writing.
Under Labor Code 96(k) the Labor Commissioner hears claims for lost wages from workers demoted, suspended or fired over lawful conduct in their own hours away from the employer's premises, and section 98.6 prohibits retaliation for it, with civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation.
Robot training work you do in your own hours, off your employer's premises and without its equipment, is generally protected. A valid confidentiality, conflict of interest or invention clause still applies.
First: Read your employer's outside work and conflict of interest policy. If it objects anyway, contact the California Labor Commissioner before you drop the work or change anything.
New York protects unpaid leisure and politics, not a paid side job
Check this clause
Labor Law 201-d forbids discrimination over lawful political activity and over recreational activity outside working hours, and it defines recreational activity as leisure the employee is not paid for. Activity that creates a material conflict of interest with the employer's business is not protected.
Robot training work pays, so it most likely falls outside this protection, and in New York your employer's policy and your contract settle the question.
First: Your employer's outside employment and conflict of interest policy, plus anything you signed, is what to read before the first task.
Colorado forbids firing over lawful off-duty activity
Likely fine
C.R.S. 24-34-402.5 makes it an unfair employment practice to fire someone for lawful activity away from the employer's premises in nonworking hours, unless the restriction ties to a bona fide occupational requirement or the employee's particular duties, or is needed to avoid a conflict of interest or the appearance of one.
Robot training work done away from your employer's premises is usually protected in Colorado. Your employer can still act if it creates a real or apparent conflict with your job, for example when you work for a robotics or self-driving company yourself.
First: Picture how a manager would see the work next to your job; if it could read as a conflict, check the conflict of interest policy first.
North Dakota covers lawful activity away from work
Likely fine
Under Century Code 14-02.4-03 it is a discriminatory practice to fire or otherwise penalize an employee for lawful activity off the employer's premises in nonworking hours, unless that activity directly conflicts with the employer's essential business interests.
In your free time the work is generally protected, as long as it does not clash directly with the interests your employer's business rests on.
First: Steer clear of work that competes with what your employer mainly does.
Washington: lower earners cannot be barred from a second job
Likely fine
RCW 49.62.070 stops an employer from restricting an employee who earns under twice the state minimum hourly wage from taking another job, working as an independent contractor or being self-employed. At the 2026 minimum of $17.13, the threshold is $34.26 an hour. The exceptions cover safety, the employer's reasonable scheduling and the duty of loyalty.
If you earn under that figure, your employer cannot simply forbid paid robot training work. If you earn more, this law does not help and your employer's policy governs.
First: Check your hourly pay against $34.26, then look in your employer's policy for safety, scheduling or conflict limits.
Non-competes are a state question, not a federal one
Check this clause
A court set aside the FTC's 2024 rule banning non-competes, and the FTC abandoned its appeals on 5 September 2025. It now looks at non-competes one case at a time, and a February 2026 notice took the rule out of the federal regulations.
Whether a non-compete matters depends on your state and your contract. Non-competes are usually about joining a competitor: robot training work for a robotics or self-driving company rarely competes with a hospital or a bank, but it can if you already work in robotics, cars, drones or logistics.
First: Read exactly what your non-compete restricts, then find your state's rule below.
California: a non-compete is void wherever you signed it
Likely fine
Business and Professions Code 16600 voids any contract that keeps a person from a lawful profession, trade or business, and section 16600.5 makes such contracts unenforceable regardless of where or when they were signed, with a right to sue over them.
In California a non-compete cannot stop paid robot training work. Confidentiality and invention clauses are separate and still bind you.
First: If an employer points to a non-compete, cite section 16600.5, and get advice before signing anything new.
Minnesota Statutes 181.988 makes covenants not to compete void and unenforceable, with exceptions only for the sale or dissolution of a business. Confidentiality agreements are left untouched.
A Minnesota non-compete signed since July 2023 cannot keep you from paid robot training work. Confidentiality and invention terms still bind you.
First: Check your agreement for confidentiality and invention terms: the ban leaves those in place.
North Dakota voids contracts that hold back a trade
Likely fine
Century Code 9-08-06 voids any contract that keeps a person from a lawful profession, trade or business, except when a business is sold or a partnership is dissolved.
An ordinary employment non-compete is void in North Dakota and cannot keep you from paid robot training work.
First: Check any confidentiality or invention clauses: this section does not touch them.
Oklahoma lets you work in the same line of business
Likely fine
Under 15 O.S. 219A, a person who agreed not to compete may still work in the same or a similar business, provided they do not solicit the former employer's established customers. A contract term that says otherwise is void.
An Oklahoma non-compete cannot block robot training work. A ban on soliciting customers can still apply.
First: Keep your employer's customers out of the robot training work.
Colorado: a non-compete needs a high salary and a written notice
Check this clause
C.R.S. 8-2-113 voids non-competes except for highly paid workers ($130,014 for 2026), and then only to protect trade secrets and with a signed notice. Non-competes for physicians are void, and since 6 August 2025 the limits reach other health professionals too.
Under the pay line, a non-compete cannot bind you. Over it, it still seldom blocks robot training work unless your employer competes with the company you would work for.
First: Compare your annual pay with the line, and check whether you were given the signed notice the law requires.
Washington non-competes: a pay threshold now, a full ban from 2027
Check this clause
A Washington non-compete is void unless the worker earns over $126,858.83 in 2026 ($317,147.09 for independent contractors). ESHB 1155, signed on 23 March 2026, makes non-competes void at any pay from 30 June 2027.
Today a non-compete binds only Washington's highest earners, and from the middle of 2027 it binds almost no one.
First: If your contract has a non-compete, compare your pay with the threshold and ask whether the robot training work competes with your employer.
Wyoming voids most non-competes made since July 2025
Likely fine
W.S. 1-23-108 voids non-competes that restrict a person's right to be paid for their labor, with exceptions for the sale of a business, trade secrets, recovery of training costs, and executive and management staff. It covers contracts made from 1 July 2025.
Unless you are executive or management staff, a non-compete signed since July 2025 cannot stop robot training work. Contracts signed earlier are unaffected.
First: Look at the date on your agreement and whether your job counts as executive or management staff.
The Illinois Freedom to Work Act forbids non-competes for employees earning $75,000 a year or less, and non-solicitation clauses for those earning under $45,000. Confidentiality and invention clauses are outside the Act.
At $75,000 or less, a non-compete cannot bind you. Above that, it seldom blocks robot training work unless your employer is a direct competitor of the company hiring you.
First: Compare your yearly pay with the $75,000 line and read what the covenant restricts.
Massachusetts caps non-competes at 12 months and requires pay
Check this clause
The Massachusetts Noncompetition Agreement Act limits non-competes to 12 months, requires garden leave pay or other agreed consideration, and forbids them for nonexempt employees, students, and anyone terminated without cause or laid off. It does not cover confidentiality or invention agreements.
A Massachusetts non-compete is hard to enforce and seldom stands in the way of robot training work. Confidentiality and invention terms still bind you.
First: See whether your agreement pays garden leave, how long it lasts, and whether you are an exempt employee.
California: what you create in your own time belongs to you
Likely fine
Labor Code 2870 bars an agreement from making you assign an invention you developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secrets, unless it relates to the employer's business or research or comes out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time with your own phone, camera or computer is generally not your employer's, unless it relates to its business. The robot training employer's own terms usually give the recordings and data to that employer or its client.
First: Your invention agreement should carry a section 2870 notice; do the work in your own hours, on equipment you own.
Washington: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
RCW 49.44.140 confines invention clauses to work that relates directly to the employer's business or comes out of work done for it; what you invent entirely in your own time, without its equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secrets, stays yours.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a Washington employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
Minnesota: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
Under Minnesota Statutes 181.78, an invention clause cannot reach an invention developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facility or trade secrets, unless it relates directly to the employer's business or research, or comes out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a Minnesota employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
Illinois: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
The Employee Patent Act (765 ILCS 1060/2) makes an invention clause void for inventions developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secrets, unless they relate to its business or research or come out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a Illinois employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
North Carolina: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
Under G.S. 66-57.1 an invention clause cannot be enforced against inventions developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facility or trade secrets, unless they relate to its business or research or come out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a North Carolina employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
Delaware: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
Under 19 Del. C. 805, an invention clause does not cover an invention developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facility or trade secrets, unless it relates to its business or research or comes out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a Delaware employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
Kansas: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
K.S.A. 44-130 makes invention clauses void for inventions made entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secrets, and the employer must tell you so in writing.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a Kansas employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
New Jersey: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
Since 2018, N.J.S.A. 34:1B-265 keeps an invention clause from covering an invention developed entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or information, unless it relates to its business or research or comes out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a New Jersey employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
New York: what you create in your own time stays yours
Likely fine
Labor Law 203-f (2023) keeps an invention clause from covering an invention made entirely in your own time without the employer's equipment, supplies, facilities or trade secrets, unless it relates to its business or research or comes out of your work for it.
Robot training work done in your own time, with your own phone, camera or computer, is generally beyond what a New York employer can claim, unless it relates to its business.
First: Watch for invention clause wording that claims whatever is "related to" the employer's business, and do the work on your own equipment, outside its hours.
Utah protects work done in your own time, with a wide idea of "related"
Check this clause
Utah Code 34-39-3 confines invention clauses to employment inventions, and 34-39-2 defines those to include anything related to the employer's industry or trade or to its current or anticipated business or research.
If your employer is in robotics, automotive, drones or AI, robot training work in your own time could land on its side of the line. In an unrelated industry you are generally protected.
First: Set your employer's industry beside what the robot training work involves, and read your invention agreement.
Nevada has no own-time protection, so your contract decides
Check this clause
Under NRS 600.500, patentable inventions and trade secrets that an employee creates while doing the job, and that relate directly to that job, belong to the employer unless a written agreement says something different. Nevada has no law that cancels broader invention clauses.
The statute does not reach separate own-time work, but a broadly written contract clause can.
First: Read your invention clause carefully, above all any "related to the business" or "all work" wording.
Must FINRA-registered staff report robot training work to their firm?
FINRA Rule 3270 bars a registered person from working as an employee or independent contractor for anyone else, or being paid for an outside business activity, without giving their firm written notice in advance. The firm then decides whether to allow it and on what terms. If you are FINRA-registered, paid robot training work is an outside business activity under today's rule, so your firm must have written notice before you start.
Does an H-1B visa allow robot training work on the side?
An H-1B worker may be employed only by the petitioner that obtained the status (8 CFR 274a.12(b)(9)). Work for any other employer needs that employer's own H-1B petition, and unauthorized work counts as a failure to maintain status. On an H-1B, any robot training work beyond your sponsor's, from a 1099 filming project to a second employee job, needs that company to file its own H-1B petition for you; doing it without one endangers your status.
How is contractor pay from robot training taxed when I also earn a salary?
Contract profit is subject to self-employment tax of 15.3% (12.4% for Social Security, 2.9% for Medicare) on 92.35% of net earnings, once they reach $400. Your salary uses up the 2026 Social Security wage base of $184,500 first, and half of the tax can be deducted. As a 1099 contractor, each $1,000 of net robot training profit carries roughly $141 of self-employment tax, plus income tax at your rate; an employee job withholds these for you instead. With wages over $184,500, only the Medicare part applies. Nobody withholds tax from contractor payments. For 2026 the estimated tax dates are April 15, June 15 and September 15, 2026 and January 15, 2027. Or you can file a new W-4 with your main employer to withhold more, which counts as paid evenly across the year. You avoid a penalty by paying in at least 90% of this year's tax or 100% of last year's (110% if your income was above $150,000). If you have a salary, more withholding from your paycheck is usually the easiest route, even late in the year. For contract income starting now, the next quarterly date is January 15, 2027.
Is the contract text I paste stored anywhere?
Not unless you ask for it. What you paste is read a single time by an AI model that our platform provider runs on our behalf, then discarded. Your answers travel in the page's address, which means the result can be bookmarked or sent to someone. Signed in, you can save a check to your workspace, and the clauses and their reading are saved with it only when you tick that box. The details are in our privacy policy.
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