F2 - H4 Conversion

[sai4262]

Hello,
I need some advice on my case below:

I am currently on F1 CPT status (Graduating next year so visa is currently active) and my wife is on F2 status living here in US. Both of us got through the h1 lottery this year (Mine is Change of Status and wife's is consular processing) and our applications are currently in process. I will get my h1b decision in the next 2 weeks since it is a premium processing. If I get an approval by October 5th, my wife will immediately lose her F2 status because I didn't file for her H4 application. We cannot travel outside USA right now so home country stamping is not an option for her. Here are my questions:
1) What are my options to keep my wife's status active if my H1 is approved?
2) If I need to file for her H4 visa, how much time do we have to do that before her stay becomes illegal?
3) Will the H4 application effect her H1 application in anyway (be it approved for consular processing or denied)?

Appreciate if you can provide some suggestions or share your experience if you or someone you know had the same situation. Thanks

 

[whitemimauz3]

Your F1 is effective until 09/30 and if your H-1B approves it will be effective 10/01.

The moment your H-1B kicks in, she ceases to be on F2 whether or not her H-1B approves.


you can file H-4 I-539 to take her from F2 to H4 based on your H-1B approval & in future whenever she chooses to start working on H-1B she needs to step out side US for H-1B visa stamping and re-enter, either way it is consular processing, she would just have H-1B approval but no status change.

You need to be careful of last action rule between all of these filings.

 

[sai4262]

Thank you very much for your response. I am working with my employer to file her H4 as soon as I can while I am waiting for my H1b decision, but is there a risk if the application reaches USCIS after September 30th or Oct 1st? Will she be in trouble?

Also, the current H4 approval wait time is 3-4 months, I hope she can legally stay here while her H4 application is in process even though her F2 expires.