Applying for H1b without going to home county; travelling without H1b stamped

[drqamarahmad]

Dear all,

I am in a bit of a pickle in regards to the visa issue. I am a doctor currently in the process of getting a medical residency here in the US. My citizenship is Pakistan and I am currently on B1/B2 visa, and my visa expires on March 21st, 2015. I am going to be applying for hospital programs that sponsor H1b, and hopefully I'll get it. Unfortunately, the so called 'Match' day where I get to know which hospital I'll be working is also 21st of March, 2015 i.e the last day of my visa is the same as my date to get a definitive answer of where I matched. With that much of background, here are the issues I am facing. I promise I won't take much of your time.

1. As I know, I cannot get the H1b stamped within the US. I can stay there on a legal status, but then I'll be stuck (residency is around 3 years) and won't be able to travel outside. I desperately will need to travel somewhere in the next year for personal reasons. I have heard that travelling to Pakistan to get it stamped is a bit risky, since they may deny the visa. How true is this? You have all seen the recent news, and I don't know if the US consulate in Pakistan may deny the visa for any reason or put it to processing and I miss the deadline to start residency.

2. Is there any way I can get my passport stamped anywhere else like Canada/Mexico?

3. If I opt to stay in the USA, can I get any sort of document that will allow me travel and return to US even though my passport isn't stamped?

4. My visa expires on the same day as the results day as I mentioned above. Can I apply for extension of my i-94 so that at least I am in the legal status till the hospital begins the H1b sponsorship process? (assuming I enter US somewhere in October, they will give me an i-94 till March-April 2015 I believe)

5. Any other advice you guys can give me for my problem?

Please, can anyone clear these issues for me? I have to take really important decisions and this will help me a lot.

Thank you so much. My utmost regards to everyone!
QA, M.D

 

[newacct]

2. I think so. At least it used to be possible; not sure about now.
3. No (except for travel less than 30 days to only Canada or Mexico).
4. I am a little confused about this. Your "visa" is only for entry has nothing to do with your duration of stay in the U.S., which is determined by your I-94. Once you enter, the "visa" is irrelevant. You could apply for an extension of status, but your reason doesn't seem like a legitimate reason for extending B2 status (staying so you can change to another status). Also, H1b status starts on October 1 (except exempt organizations like non-profit or schools), so it is unlikely you will be able to extend it until that time. You not only need to remain in status until they "begin the H1b sponsorship process", but until H1b status starts.

You could enter before your visa expires, in March 2015, and if you get 6 months of duration of stay that will get you to September 2015, but it's still short of October 1. You could apply for extension of stay but I doubt the H1b status can start if you are pending extension of status at that time or it gets denied.

 

[drqamarahmad]

Thank you for replying.
4. The hospitals are exempt from H1b cap. They can order what we call an 'H1B' expedited form. So waiting till October isnt a problem. I have friends that got H1b in June itself.

Can anyone please elaborate more on #2? I.e stamping it from Canada/Mexico?

Thanks once again!

 

[newacct]

4. The hospitals are exempt from H1b cap. They can order what we call an 'H1B' expedited form. So waiting till October isnt a problem. I have friends that got H1b in June itself.

Okay but I still think you should enter the U.S. later than October so that when your H1b is approved you can still be within your duration of stay.