Question details
I have a question on the unpaid leaves when outside USA while on H-1. I am on H-1 and recently went to India for stamping which was completed without any problem. I had paid vacation of 2 weeks, which I had already used and stayed in India for a month which is not going to be paid. My employer is saying these will be unpaid leaves and won't be running paychecks for these leaves and is mentioning that this won't be a problem in future as this is legal. I want to take legal opinion from you regarding what the law says in the above situation. <p>
1. If I am out of US on unpaid leaves and won't get paid, will there be any issues on my H-1 status in future for transfer or GC? <br>
2. If due to unpaid leave, W2 is less than the LCA, will it be a problem? If yes, what documentation we can show to USCIS to clarify to them why it’s less?
See clip from Attorney Rajiv S. Khanna's conference call video that addresses this question.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ujMQ79pgzX8#t=1516
FAQ Transcript
If you are on H-1, sometimes people ask me, I want to maintain status even though I am getting laid off. Can I be on unpaid leave and does maintain status?
I started my relationship with Rajiv and team from 2000. They were with me all the time from 2000 to 2006 for whole journey of 6 years in my green card processing.
Half way through my company changed its name forced to start all over again and then went with the many hick ups due to my employer ( a start up company) going up and down. Rajiv team was with me to help me to resolve the issues. Finally my green card is approved after 4 EAD extensions. Thanks for the advice and constant help from Rajiv's team. I could have lost this battle long back with out your help. Once again Thanks for making it happen