Originally Posted by
Ben and Jerry
OK, but your described situation really only applies to very few people. In all the other cases it is considered work, and that will get you denied entry.
Simply put, you may have actually been lucky. If the immigration officer you encountered was a little less versed in the rules, or just stricter, you could also have been denied entry and you would not have been able to appeal that decision.
I would have thought that this is a very common situation. The majority of people I know who travel to the US for business go into the office in the US for several days, work from that office and then go home at the end of the week. A month or two later they'll return and do the same thing. Of course, they are on the payroll of a UK company (either the parent or the subsidiary) and have been doing it like that for years. Not to say that it is relevant, but the US staff will do the same thing in reverse. I know for a fact that they don't have work visas, because they are not going to be employed in the US and I understand that the US Embassy would not grant a work visa for such a circumstance for the same reason.