7th year extension

[tech70]

hi,

My H1 will be expired on march'06.Will be able to file an extension depending on my labour or i-140(365 days).

Does this new rule,( Omnibus Bill Signed ) affect people who are applying for extension.

Thanks in advance.

 

[sept1604]

Hi tech70,

What is the new rule (Omnibus Bill Signed) you are talking about?
As far as I know, you should be able to file H1 extensions.

 

[tech70]

thanks for the reply .


You can extend your H-1B status even beyond maximum 6 years of authorized stay, provided you have an employment based greencard petition filed on your behalf in an either EB1, EB2 or EB3 categories and you are not eligible to file your Adjustment of Status application only because you are from a country for which priority date is not current, which is usually the case with applicants from India or China.

 

[tech70]

September 2, 2004
US issues new rules for H-1B visas
A clarification from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service states that an H-1B visa holder may file for a seventh year extension only if the labour certification application, on the basis of which the visa will be issued, has been pending for a year.

The requirement for a pending application will mean inconvenience for those applying and eligible for an extension. At present, an applicant can file an extension request up to six months before the expiry of the six years (the maximum period allowed on the visa). However, as per the USCIS memo, the H-1B visa holder can now apply for the extension only after the labour certification has been pending for a year. In effect, this means that the labour certification application will have to be filed at the end of the fifth year to be eligible to be considered for a seventh year extension.

As per law, it would seem that there is no requirement for the labour certification application to be pending for more than 365 days. The American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act, allows an H-1B visa holder to a seventh year extension, provided the labour certification application or an I-140 petition was 365 days prior to the sixth year. It would seem that the USCIS had accepted that there was no need for the certification application to be pending for more than 365 days - a position it has since reversed.