The IIconics struggling with visa problems after WWE release
Former WWE Women's Tag Team Champions The IIconics - Jessica McKay (Billie Kay) and Cassie Lee (Peyton Royce) - were released by the company back in April.
During a recent episode of Oral Sessions with Renee Paquette, the duo said they're dealing with another major problem — namely, they can't work in the US because of an issue with their visas.
The problem stems from the fact that neither woman has a green card, and their previous visas were contingent on their employment with their visa sponsor - in this case, WWE. Without either, neither star can legally work in the US.
“We’re so excited; we have all this freedom and so many ideas," Cassie Lee told Paquette. "But pump the brakes because we can’t do any of it.”
“People are like, ‘What are [you] going to do now?’ Well, nothing, because I can’t legally work in the country and people think that you apply for the green card and it comes in the mail” - Jessica McKay.
For those unfamiliar, a green card is a form of identification that signifies a non-US citizen has a permanent residence in the country. It's basically the last step before gaining full citizenship.
The IIconics know a familiar face in AEW
Cassie Lee is married to AEW's Shawn Spears, who has previously stated that he would love to have The IIconics in the company. Spears, however, isn't a US citizen (he's Canadian). As a result, Lee could get Canadian citizenship, which, in this case, isn't really any help.
“This stuff takes years and we’ve been through the wringer with this, getting stuff denied and switching the process because of the pandemic. It keeps backing up, year after year. We’re almost there, but almost there could still be a year away” - Cassie Lee.
The IIconics were released on April 15th, meaning the 90-day non-compete clauses in their contracts would expire on July 14th. After that, they would be free to sign with any company that wants them, be it AEW, IMPACT, or a multitude of other choices.
(H/T to SEScoops for the transcription)