The Department has posted new Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) for the H-1B, H-1B1 and E-3 Programs.
In November 2010, USCIS published a revised Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, which became effective on Dec. 23, 2010. Due to a number of inquiries regarding Part 6 of the Form I-129, "Certification Regarding the Release of Controlled Technology or Technical Data to Foreign Persons in the United States", USCIS advised petitioners that they would not be required to complete this section until Feb. 20, 2011. Petitions postmarked on or after Feb. 20, 2011, must complete Part 6 of the Form I-129.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) supports the efforts of immigration practitioners who volunteer to assist aliens at community events. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that, until further notice, DHS Disciplinary Counsel does not intend to initiate disciplinary proceedings against practitioners (attorneys and accredited representatives) based solely on the failure to submit a Notice of Entry of Appearance as Attorney or Accredited Representative (Form G-28) in relation to pro bono services provided at group assistance events.
I am an Australian citizen currently on a B2 that expires in Oct. I lodged I-539 application for extension in Aug and received I-797 receipt Aug 25.
I may have found an employer that will sponsor me on an E3 visa (Australians only). All I need is a letter of offer and a completed Labor Condition Application.
To apply for the E3 visa though, I need to leave the USA and visit a US consulate. I do not have my original I94 any more (I submitted it with my I-539) but I do have a copy of it. Once I get a letter of offer, I will travel to either Toronto Canada or home to Sydney Australia to apply for the visa.
Qo1. Can I still leave the USA without the original I94?
Qo2. In the event my E3 visa is denied, will I be able to re-enter the USA from Canada without the original I94, provided my stay in Canada is less than 30 days? (And how would this work if I take the trip up there after the expiration date of the original I94? Remembering that my B2 extension is pending)
Ans1. Yes. You should not need an original I-94 to travel out.
Ans2. You probably cannot reenter using a copy of the I-94. Not only that, your departure from USA renders your pending B application void (considered abandoned).
They way I see it, you have two choices. Wait for B extension before you go for E stamping. Or, go for E stamping bearing in mind the consequences of abandonment and reentry not assured.
I was approved for my OPT on February 2008 for a duration of one year. At that time, I was allowed to stay in US for 1 year while looking for job. On April, 2008, a new regulation came according to which a student on OPT can not stay in US without job for more than 90 days. I was not aware of this rule until end of September 2008. Now I have applied for dependent visa. My worry is that unknowingly I stayed for around 6 month without job when I was actually allowed for only three month.
I am worried that is this mistake going to affect my new visa approval? Is there anyway I can explain USCIS that it happened because I was not informed about this rule and I did not come across it.
Your best bet is to get your dependent visa stamp from a consulate as soon as possible. That should take care of any potential future problems.
In professions that require a license under State law (teacher, nurse, architect, physician), an H-1B cannot be submitted without the license. This is the general rule.
Nevertheless, where the license is delayed because the beneficiary does not yet have a Social Security Number, CIS may approve the petition for at least one year. We must, however, submit documentation from the licensing State agency confirming that the beneficiary has met all other requirements for the license (except providing a SSN) and that one will be issued as soon as the agency receives the SSN.
My friend was working for Company A and he shifted to Company B, three months back filing a new H1B, But his employer got a 6 page H1B query list, his employer is not revealing the query and is not in a position to respond.
Couple of questions, Can I switch back to Company A.
1. Does he need to file with DOL (or) USCIS that I am switching back to company A
2. If his H1B with company B is not approved, will it be a problem that I worked Company B for 3 months and has taken the pay?
Other Question is, Company A send a letter to INS saying that he is not working with Company any more (Company A employer is telling that he did not revoke the H1B but send a normal letter to INS), Can he still switch back to Company A???
If he can not join back Company A, Can he file a new H1B with another company, knowing the fact that he has a query on his H1B with Company B.
In my view, he cannot go back to company A without taking some additional steps.
Here, company A has revoked the H-1 (all that takes is a letter), they will need to reapply the H-1 and he should get a new visa stamp. He can also get an H-1 through another employer but will most probably need a visa stamp before he can start work. The existing query (RFE) should not normally interfere with any future applications unless the RFE contains some allegations of fraud or lack of qualifications related to your friend.
People (even lawyers, including me) find it difficult to keep the H-1 quota issues straight. I am giving the law here for reference and better understanding.
The Law
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AC21
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SEC. 103. SPECIAL RULE FOR UNIVERSITIES, RESEARCH FACILITIES, AND GRADUATE DEGREE RECIPIENTS; COUNTING RULES.
Section 214(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1184(g)) is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
I came to USA with an H1b Visa, my family's H4 visa was also issued with me. After coming to USA I transferred my H1b visa to new company and I got my transfer approved and I got a new H1b with new I-94, my question is whether they can travel with the old H4 or not?
If their visa is still valid, they can travel. Each time an H-1 holder changes jobs, the H-4 holders are NOT required to change their H-4, as long as the H-4 status (I-94) or visa is still valid. An action on H-4 is required only if the status (if within USA) or the visa (if traveling abroad or outside USA) is about to expire. Of course, if H-1 holder has been out of status even for one day, my answer would change.
My husband and I have our N400 petition pending for almost 18 months. We passed our interview in July 2007 and had our 2nd fingerprinting 2 weeks ago. We were also informed that we have been cleared from background check. We have to leave for an international assignment in December and would like to understand the steps we need to take so it does not impact/disrupt our naturalization process, in case we do not get called for oath by then.
Current economy is making lot of people sleepless. We have heard about a lot of layoffs around the state and nation. Could you please explain us what are the options we have, if a person with H1-B (6year extension) EAD and I-485 pending in this situation.
This is most certainly a very important topic and relevant for everyone. I will address the various issues raised in the relevant parts of the blog to make it possible for everyone to find the information applicable to their case.
Taking Promotion in future The current PERM filing is going to be done for the position "Dentist". In the future can she accept a promotion as "Dentist (Lead)" if offered by the company? Will it invalidate the green card application.
If we accept the promotion in future can we use the same PERM application without filing another PERM for "Dentist (Lead)" job (jobs are very similar) . She is now a "Dentist(Associate)" and job duties between associate dentist and lead dentist are 70% the same. The lead dentist will have additional duties like oversee day-to-day operations/Supervision.
Quote: Can I receive a promotion, extraordinary increase in salary or change in job location during the pendency of a labor certification based green card?
Here is a question from our community:
My husband and I have our N400 petition pending for almost 18 months. We passed our interview in July 2007 and had our 2nd fingerprinting 2 weeks ago. We were also informed that we have been cleared from background check. We have to leave for an international assignment in December and would like to understand the steps we need to take so it does not impact/disrupt our naturalization process, in case we do not get called for oath by then.
First of all, I wanted to thank all the members of this forum for their insight and support. This road did not feel as lonely as we all traveled it together.
Please click on the links of interest from the "Popular Information" menu.
I am on H-1B working in the IT industry. My wife has H4 EAD, and with the same status, she is working in the hospital as a Physical Therapist.
1. Can her employer file for GC while she is on H4 EAD status?
2. If she is eligible for NIW, could you please let me know if the PWD and PERM are both required if her employer file for GC?
3. Can she use my priority date to file an adjustment of status?
1. Absolutely
2. I doubt it.
3. No she cannot. That is one thing husband and wife cannot transfer to each other their priority date.
I am an international student currently of F-1 visa status and will be graduating in May-23. I have the below questions:
1. Can multiple companies / employers apply for H1-B on my behalf in this upcoming H1-B cap pool?
2. If yes, is there a possibility that the employers might get to know about this?
3. Should my name in the passport and birth certificate match exactly? My birth certificate has an abbreviation my last name but my passport has my complete last name.
When there is no connection between two companies, and they are not colluding to help somebody get an H-1B visa or increase their chances of getting selected in the H1B lottery, multiple companies can file. Interestingly, even different units within the same bigger company could file if they have a genuine need and not face any issues.
I am an LLM student on H4 (no EAD). My college offers paid and unpaid supervised externships (optional classes) for 2/3 credits as part of our course. Can I participate and work in an unpaid supervised externship on H4 without EAD?
Sure. I don't see any problem for you, the employer should watch out for themselves.
I wanted to say thank you Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna, P.C. for helping us with EB1A based immigration. The professionalism, constant guidance, and experience in dealing with attorney Rajiv and senior paralegal Diane is just commendable. Based on our experience, Rajiv is an expert in US immigration and his fact-based insights are very helpful to make informed decision.
1. The best part is that the initial assessment is FREE of charge unlike many law firms. This will help any one to take a decision based on his initial consultation. 2. Once Attorney Rajiv ji advises to move forward, he will spend enough time along with Diane to gather, conduct in depth analysis, validates against the criteria of USCIS and provide honest advice in the interest of time and cost involved. 3. Diane has drafted the petition amazingly with minute details and corresponding evidence, honestly, we were very impressed with the detailed work.
Thank you so much for your constant guidance, professional updates to the petition and continued support through out the I-140 process.
I appreciate the frank advice Mr.Khanna gave me. He could have taken on my case and made himself some money but he chose to tell me frankly that it was not worth pursuing the application at this stage. He also advised me on what alternative steps i should take instead. And he did it free of charge!