I-94 VALIDITY - urgent PLEASE

[kavi_nc]

HI everyone
My husband was on H-1 for company A and then switched employers in March 2004, and got an approval notice with a I-94 date of OCT 2006. He travelled to india last month and re-entered on the old visa that was still valid until NOV 2004. At the POE, the inspector stamped the 1-94 with an expiration date of November 2004 which is the validity of the old visa. He also made a note on the back of the 1-94 in the "Record of Changes" section the old company's name.
Our question is: What date determines his status in this country? Can he use the date on the approval notice (which is Oct 2006) or should he go by the date stamped by the officer at the POE (which is November 2004).
Any information regarding this will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.

 

[ginnu]

HI everyone
My husband was on H-1 for company A and then switched employers in March 2004, and got an approval notice with a I-94 date of OCT 2006. He travelled to india last month and re-entered on the old visa that was still valid until NOV 2004. At the POE, the inspector stamped the 1-94 with an expiration date of November 2004 which is the validity of the old visa. He also made a note on the back of the 1-94 in the "Record of Changes" section the old company's name.

----- your husband was supposed to show the Visa stamp from A AND the new H1 approval that is valid till OCT 2006 at POE and he was supposed to get I-94 till 2006. the I-94 that he got till NOV 2004 is valid if it is his latest I-94, if his H1 for new employer was approved AFTER his entry to US and he got I-94 attached with H1 apprioval then the latest I-94 is valid, LAST ACtion rules, I dont know if he got H1 transfer approval later after his entry to US or his enrty to US was after his H1 transfer was approved
Our question is: What date determines his status in this country? Can he use the date on the approval notice (which is Oct 2006) or should he go by the date stamped by the officer at the POE (which is November 2004).
Any information regarding this will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.

 

[kavi_nc]

thanks Ginnu for writing back. My husband got his H-1 approved before re-entry. now does that complicate matters ? Can he just go to a local INS office and ask for a corrected I-94 ? or does he have to go to India and his new h-1 stamped ?

 

[ginnu]

thanks Ginnu for writing back.
My husband got his H-1 approved before re-entry.
---- It means he did not show passport Visa stamp AND H1 Extension at POE, if it is true then his I-94 is valid only till November 2004, BUT if he has shown the New Approval AND H1 stamp then it is error of the officer at POE and he can go to same POE and can get I-94 corrected
now does that complicate matters ? Can he just go to a local INS office and ask for a corrected I-94 ?
or does he have to go to India and his new h-1 stamped ?
----- he oes not have to go to India, he can exit US go to Canada or Mexico and can get new I-94 valid till new H1 approval ( that should be done before his Visa stamp and I-94 expire in November)

For more info read:
To: Regional Directors
Service Center Directors
District Directors
From: William R. Yates /S/
Associate Director for Operations
Date: March 30, 2004
Re: I-94 Errors Issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
This memorandum provides guidance for cases in which CIS or Asylum offices issue an I-94
with erroneous information. Should an alien enter a USCIS district office and demonstrate to a CIS
officer that some information on an I-94 issued either by USCIS or an Asylum office is incorrect, the
officer shall provide the alien with a new I-94 with the correct information. Some examples of
errors can be a misspelled name or other data entry error at a Service Center, or, occasionally, an
incorrect date of admission. The officer must be clearly convinced from the alien’s statements and
the evidence presented that the I-94 was in fact issued in error and that neither the original error nor
the proposed correction involve deliberate deception or fraud on the part of the alien. If the officer is
not, the alien should be advised to file Form I-102.
This memo does not cover any I-94s issued by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).
Should an alien enter a CIS office and ask for a new I-94 based on an I-94 issued at a port-of-entry
or otherwise by CBP, the CIS officer should direct the alien to CBP in accordance with that agency’s
procedures.
This change will be incorporated into the Adjudicator’s Field Manual (AFM) in the near
future. Until such time as that change is affected, all officers should adhere to the guidance
contained in this memorandum.
This memorandum is intended solely for guiding USCIS personnel in performance of their
professional duties. It is not intended to be, and may not be relied upon, to create any right or
benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by any individual or other party in removal
proceedings, in litigation with the United States, or in any other form or manner.
HQOPRD 70/42.10
425 I Street, NW
Washington, DC 20536

 

[ishw]

Your husband is fine as long as he has a valid I-94. Please contact his compnay's attorney OR seek advice from Rajiv Khanna. He is extremely good. I did take advice from him one time when my company attorney did not do a good job.

or get in touch with local INS and find out what to do next.

regards

 

[kavi_nc]

I-94 validity - INS Atlanta experience

Hi Ginnu and Ishw
my husband went to the INS office in Atlanta this morning and explained the situation to them. They told him that all he has to do is to staple the I-94 from the H-1 approval notice (valid upto Oct 2006) to the 'white' card I-94 that was stamped valid upto Nov 2004 at the POE. They said that his status was determined by the I-94 on the approval notice and he will be considered as "extension of stay". Well, this came right out of the horse's mouth so, I guess we have to believe them.

 

[waitin_toolong]

i would have it in writing just to be safe, cause by law the last issued I-94 rules.
The local people often make mistakes.

 

[ginnu]

Hi Ginnu and Ishw
my husband went to the INS office in Atlanta this morning and explained the situation to them. They told him that all he has to do is to staple the I-94 from the H-1 approval notice (valid upto Oct 2006) to the 'white' card I-94 that was stamped valid upto Nov 2004 at the POE.

---FYI the immigration officer is NOT correct and they dont know the law and they are NOT lawyers, your husband Latest I-94 is valid till Nov 2004 that he got when he entered last time and that is LAST action and Last action rules for Status
They said that his status was determined by the I-94 on the approval notice and he will be considered as "extension of stay".
---- but after the extension of stay he was supposed to show passport Visa AND new H1b extension approval at POE so that he could get I-94 valid till 2006
Well, this came right out of the horse's mouth so, I guess we have to believe them.
---Belive them, nobody stops beliving them, did you take it writing from "Immigration officer" but they are WRONG and you will know later
**** talk to your lawyer and seek legal advice