In status?

O

origin72

Registered Users (C)
Hello,

Its been a pleasure going through your site which gave me a lot of information. However, I have a basic but important question regarding in status / out of status.

I was working with company X on H-1 and my wife came to US on an H-4. Now, I have transferred my H-1 to company Y and wife has also got her H-1 (change of status) with company Y.

My questions are:

1. Can we send both our passports for visa stamping to DC?

2. If she travels anywhere out of US, would she at that point need to stamp her passport with the new H-1 visa?

3. My wife has not been able to get an opportunity for a project (4 months now) since she got her H-1. Are there chances of being out of status on these grounds?

Thanks a ton!
 
No Title

My questions are:

1. Can we send both our passports for visa stamping to DC?

If you already have a H-1B stamped on your passport you can send your passport for revalidation at St. Louis. Probably, your wife would have to travel outside the country to get her passport stamped if she doiesn;t have her passport stamped with the H-1B.

2. If she travels anywhere out of US, would she at that point need to stamp her passport with the new H-1 visa?

Yes.

3. My wife has not been able to get an opportunity for a project (4 months now) since she got her H-1. Are there chances of being out of status on these grounds?
Is she on payroll?? If she is not employed yet she might be out of status.
 
No Title

Hi,

Could you please tell me on what grounds she could be out of status?

1. She got her H-1 in Nov / Dec 2001 and is not yet on payroll because of no project opportunity. How do I find out her status?

2. I believe if she is on vacation from the time she joined till now then the company would not run the payroll for her. Is there a way to retain her status if she has gone out of status?

3. If I do have to transfer her status from H-1 to H-4 what do I need to do (I have my new employer\'s approval notice but havent stamped my passport yet)

Appreciate your time and replies.

Thanks!
 
No Title

Could you please tell me on what grounds she could be out of status?

1. She got her H-1 in Nov / Dec 2001 and is not yet on payroll because of no project opportunity. How do I find out her status?

** This is a very contentious issue and is subject of intense debate. It depends upon how the INS views it. Upon attaining H-1B status a person has a limited number of days to join duty. She can be argued to be on unpaid leave, but that cannot continue forever. If you feel it is getting too far, then it is better to change her over to H-4.

2. I believe if she is on vacation from the time she joined till now then the company would not run the payroll for her. Is there a way to retain her status if she has gone out of status?

***No way to retain status except to find a project and start getting paychecks. The paychecks are one of the ways to prove in case of a query that she was maintaining status during the period.

3. If I do have to transfer her status from H-1 to H-4 what do I need to do (I have my new employer\'s approval notice but havent stamped my passport yet)

*** You could file I-539 to change her status to H-4 along with all necessary documents.

Appreciate your time and replies
 
No Title

Thanks Debasis..One more question.

If my wife starts her project in some time and starts getting paychecks, would the fact that she was on no pay / unpaid leave be apparent or a problem as far as her status is concerned in the future?

Thanks a lot, again!
 
No paycheck means out of status

Till the time your wife gets project & starts getting her paycheck she could no longer be called out of status. Also the rule also says if you are out of status for more than 2 months it is adviced to change status.

In addition, if you think your wife can get project & come on payroll again,good for you guys. In this case you do not worry about her past of being out of status, then just move on.
 
No Title

Ok, lets say I change her status to H-4 and then realise that there is an opening, is it as simple to change the status back to H-1 or does it mean having to file for a fresh H-1 again?
Thanks.....
 
No Title

Why don\'t you wait till I-485 application (considering you would eventually apply) and your wife can start work after getting EAD.
Arn
 
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