F1 Reinstatement. IMP Questions - Please Help!

DevP15

New Member
Hello Rajiv - I have a series of questions on my situation. Please allow me to give you a brief background..
1. Entered US on a F1 visa in 2011 for Masters.
2. Graduated in April 2013
3. Worked on OPT for an IT consulting firm as a Business Analyst
4. My employer applied for H1B on April 1st 2014
5. Got an RFE May 10th 2014. Responded to RFE in July. My Cap gap I-20 expired on Sep 30th 2014.
6. Got a notice about the rejection of my H1b on Oct 24th 2014. Received my H1b denial notice on Nov 2nd from USCIS.
7. My job ended in August 2014

As soon as I came to know about my H1b denial, I started applying for schools to be on status. Got admission in mid November and in an attempt to transfer my SEVIS from my previous school to the new school, I was told that my SEVIS is completed and I have to apply for a reinstatement(I-539). My new school applied for the reinstatement on
Nov 20th 2014. My F1 visa stamping is good until 2016.

The following are my questions:

1. What would be my current status?
2. Per USCIS, I-539 processing times is about 3 to 4 months. Would I be in trouble?
3. I got my admission for Winter 2015(Jan). Can I start my classes? My university said I can go to classes but cannot work. Is this correct?
4. I read online, I cant be out of status for more than 60 days. Is this true?
5. If I am out of status for more than 180 days, I have to leave the country and cant re-enter for at least 3 years. Is this true? My biggest worry is..If my reinstatement takes more time and if it actually crosses 180 days, would I be in trouble?

OR Do you suggest me to leave the country and re-enter in Jan or just wait for my reinstatement ? If I leave, do I have to get a visa stamping again even though I have my F1 stamped until 2016.

Please advice!! Thanks in advance.
 
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