H-1 revalidation tracker in St.Louis/Washington

At last!!

Friends
After 9 weeks of waiting, today i have received my stamped passport! :) Iam glad that the wait is over.....Now iam off to Vacation.. :D

My hearty wishes to all those who have rcvd stamped passports..and Good Luck to all others who are playing the waiting game....

Thanks for all your support
 
customer service number

RSK1, mentioned he called the customer service. What is the customer service phone number?
Would they tell the status of my H1-B visa revalidation?

BTW, I sent my passport on Nov 12th for the revalidation. Got to book my air tickets.

thanks
 
Kiddo
Here is the DOS number for Status check..
(202) 663 1225 press 1 then 6 ...you can speak with DOS officer.

I think it's Mon thru Friday 8/9 AM to 5 PM (EST). This number is usually very busy and with some patience and luck you may speak with DOS officer!!

Best time to call them is in the morning around 9 AM

Hope it helps!!

Good Luck!!
 
Kiddo,

Keep your status updated. I have sent mine too on Nov. 11th. Planning to fly on 12th of January. When do you plan to fly?
 
hey guys,

how much time does it takes for revalidation now??

Also my GC is in process (applied for I-140) ...shud i mention that in the DS 157 form??
some said its risky bcoz the INS might reject the visa extension?? is it true? if so what are my options!!

Thanks
Jay
 
Technically Possibe but not seen yet

InRisk,

If you have filed for GC with an intention to immigrate and naturalize in USA, then you have to say yes to the question. Technically the visa officer has authority to deny H1 extension but I have not seen or come across any case where DOS has refused visa because the individual wanted to do GC. H1 visa can have dual intent (To work and to immigrate) unlike F1 visa where there cannot be any dual intent.

I was also in the same boat when I was applying for re-validation of H1 visa. I got my revalidated passport with visa stamp about 3 weeks back.

Just a point to note: If you don't plan to leave USA till you get your interview at your choice of US consulate in your home country then revalidation/extension of the visa is not required though you need to maintain your status by getting H1 exteneded from time to time.

Thanks.
 
thanks cp,

actually my visa stamping expirers march 2003...but i hav visa extended. so, say if i'm not going out of USA from now on do i still need to hav my stamping? or i can just hold my 797 ??

or say if i go to india is it better to hav my stamping in india??

thanks again!
 
Last edited by a moderator:
When can i apply for revalidation?

Hi,

My VISA is going to expire on 31st May 2003. When should i apply for the revalidation? can i apply in March 2003? keeping in mind that it is going to take at least 4-6 weeks to be precessed by the officer and by than i will qalify for the "60" days rule. or should i send my application on 1st of Apr. 2003?

please do reply!

thanks
 
khush:
I was planning to fly as early as possible in January - immediately after receiving the stamped passport.
 
Need help guys 'n gals and need fast

1. DO you send $100 and $75 seperate. If I have to send seperate how do you do that if you already had one made of $175 (I guess the answer to the second question would be easy from a post office)

2. I went to Fedex and they said that that they do not send to po box.
2.UPS said that they cant send a prepaid envelope
2.USPS says they can do all but their tracking # is not reliable and it takes two extra days each way.
Guys help me out. I have done enough running around and need the insight on how you guys have send it.

Thanks,
akela
 
Akela,

DO you send $100 and $75 seperate. If I have to send seperate how do you do that if you already had one made of $175 (I guess the answer to the second question would be easy from a post office)

Yes, they must be separate money orders/bank drafts etc since they both go into different accounts. However if multiple applicants are applying at the same time, then all the visa revalidation fees can be combined into one money order and all the reciprocity fees can be combined into another. However you should NOT combine visa fees and reciprocity fees into a single money order.


2. I went to Fedex and they said that that they do not send to po box.
2.UPS said that they cant send a prepaid envelope
2.USPS says they can do all but their tracking # is not reliable and it takes two extra days each way.
Guys help me out. I have done enough running around and need the insight on how you guys have send it.


If you use Fedex, you should NOT send to the PO box address. If you use Fedex, you should send to the below address. Even though the address has a box number, notice that it has a street address also. Fedex will have no problem sending to this address.

Courier Service,
US Department of State/Visa (Box 2099)
1005 Convention Plaza
St. Louis, MO 63101-1200
Fax: 202-663-1608

I think it is better to use Fedex rather than USPS or UPS, since Fedex guys pick up the passports directly from the Department of state in St. Louis and it is much faster than both USPS and UPS.It comes with a price tag though :). You should not take a chance with your passports, so I recommend sending it only using Fedex and not USPS or UPS.

Hope this helps ...

 
Can get visa stamp in India

InRisk,

As mentioned in my earlier posting, an individual doesn't need a revalidated visa if an individual doesn't plan to leave USA. An extended H1 (valid 1-797) with valid I-94 is all that is needed to maintain legal status in USa.

If you plan to visit India, you may get the visa re-validated from US Embassy/Consulate in India.

Thanks.
 
60 days period from day of receipt by DOS

Saxena,

You should send the completed application to DOS such that the receipt day by DOS is 60 days from the expiry date on your current visa.

You should send your completed application such that it reaches DOS after April 1st to be on safe side.

Thanks.
 
Any more approvals

Hello,
Please update if you have rcvd your stamped visa, with the DOS rcvd date in 3rd/last week of october.
Mine is 24th Oct and still waiting. No luck in trying to call them..always busy.
Telecom, did you get your passport?

Thanks
 
pre-paid and self-addressed envelop?

Hi to all,

I have one more question regarding sending a pre-paid envelope. The following question may sounds like stupid but I have no idea how to do it.

How do send a pre-paid and self-addressed envelop ( I will be using FedEx for sure)? What am I supposed to write for “From Address”? I think sometime passport comes back from Washington and you send your documents to St. Louis. Please help me with doubt.

Waiting for reply!!

thanks
 
Pre-paid envelope

Saxena,

The from address is not very important. You can put any address (St. Louis or any other). The final calculation of the fee is done on the scan done by the courier at the pick (Origin) place and the destination (and the type of FedEx service like overnight priority, 2 day etc).

Just make sure that the destination address is correct on the prepaid envelope. You can print the pre-paid airbill from the fedex.com website.

Good luck.
 
i've booked my tickets for 12 th of jan, my recd date was nov 11th.do you guys think i'll be able to receive my passport before that ? any suggestions?
 
hi all,

i sent our passports (h1 & h4) for stamping in oct last week. Recd at St. Louis on oct 29 th by fedex. still waiting.



However you should NOT combine visa fees and reciprocity fees into a single money order.

some one above said we should not combine these fees. But i combined them into one money order after seeing this statement from the ins site.


(7) There is a required $100 non-refundable fee for each machine readable visa. Payment may be made by bank draft, money order, or corporate check made to the order of the "U.S. Department of State." Cash or personal checks are not acceptable. In addition, certain nationalities must also pay a "reciprocity fee." The amount of these fees vary from country to country.<b> In the case of multiple applicants, payment of all fees may be consolidated in one check</b>.

may be in case of rejection, this (combining) would be a problem but i havent got any info from them till now (~ 8 weeks).

:confused:
 
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