I made $200K and PayPal locked my account

Thanks, i have called paypal 1000 times today.

Why does someone always write this? PayPal is regulated to exactly the same degree a merchant account from a bank is. Their contracts are essentially identical, mirroring PayPal's own agreements with the banks that underwrite their accounts (Wells Fargo and JP Morgan Chase). Banks suspend merchant accounts and freeze their money for the same reasons and for the same periods of time, and no regulation stops them from doing so. In many countries, PayPal is considered a bank. In the US, it is licensed and regulated as a money transmitter in all 50 states.

Concur with javajosh's recommendation to find a California/USA-based lawyer for help. Advice from semi-anonymous strangers in internet forums is worth what you pay for it.

Generally, in the search for a lawyer, you get to talk to many (without charge) for 15-45 minutes each. You may be surprised how widely their estimations of the issues vary -- the law is the law, right? -- but you'll learn something from each conversation, and perhaps find someone you trust with your concerns. Also, legal confidentiality means that even if you've messed up on some tax/immigration/work-authorization/business things, talking with them honestly doesn't mean you've made any admissions that get back to the authorities (unless and until with their advice you decide that's the best course).

If a student in the US, your educational institution may also have a legal aid clinic.

You can probably get an 'ITIN', the equivalent to a Social Security Number for non-domestic individuals/entities who need an SSN-like number for tax/financial reporting purposes. See...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Individual_Taxpayer_Identificat...

...and the related IRS pages. And again, just getting the number isn't admitting to anything or any tax liability. However, it then will be used by financial institutions (like PayPal) to maintain their internal and government-required reporting requirements. Separate from just tax issues, amounts in the tens-of-thousands (and sometimes less) are subject to reporting to control money-laundering from large-scale illegal activities.

I'm unclear as to whether you mean "Flabbergasted" that it's worth more, or flabbergasted that it's a good amount?

If you mean "worth more" - well, maybe, but at the same time, you can only make as much as the market will yield.

If you mean "worth less" - $200K over six months is OK, but not great if you realize that there will be likely six month period (one year periods?) where revenue will be very low.

It's very boom/bust, and the $200K made here needs to go a long, long way. All in all, you would probably (more than 50% of the time) make more money providing desktop support than trying to sell software (or games) as an independent entrepreneur.

Of course, some times, you hit it big, and it makes all the sweat and toil worthwhile.

An International Student is unlikely to have a visa that allows them to start a company in the US.