It's a special type of payment, often called an honorarium, which is to defray the cost and inconvenience a visiting academic incurs in order to perform a volun

It's a special type of payment, often called an honorarium, which is to defray the cost and inconvenience a visiting academic incurs in order to perform a voluntary service for their host institution (e.g. participating in a colloquium). The academic is already generally fully employed at their own institution. (N.B. TAMU chooses to call them speaker fees and travel reimbursements, which might be the cause of some of the drama though I doubt it.) https://f2.washington.edu/fm/globalsupport/honorarium-payments-foreign-nationals https://f2.washington.edu/fm/globalsupport/honorarium-paymen... Note in particular that the VWB (Visa Waiver - Business) encompasses this type of payment.