J1 (HRR) - F1 (no HRR) - H1 possible ?

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nt7272

Registered Users (C)
I came here with my J1 and 2 years of HRR a few years back. Last summer, when I was done with my master's degree, I went back to my country and changed my visa to F1 (for PhD). On my F1, there is no HRR stated there.

Now, there is a company that's willing to sponsor my H1. I am wondering if I can do so without serving my 2 year HRR. I am right now in the US. I just need an H1 in order to work for in the US for a couple of years. I don't plan to apply for green card, and don't plan to go back to my country for a while.

Thanks for your help.
 
F-1 never has HRR. Just J-1. Until you get a waiver or spend two years in your country, you cannot get H1B visa.

What status are you in right now? you may be eligible to change status to H1, but not get the visa. However, if your status expires long before Oct 1, it may not be feasible.
 
I've met 2 people over these couple of months who were on their h-1b who apparently were still subject to hrr.

I guess sometimes it flies.
 
LucyMo,

I am on F1. I don't understand your answer. You said that I may be eligible to change my status to H1, but may not get an H1B visa. What difference does it make (H1 vs. H1B visa) ?
 
since you are in F-1 status, you can change your STATUS to H1B. That's the loophole. You cannot change your status to H1b directly from J-1 with HRR.

However, you are still not eligible to get H1B visa at the consulate. So, you have to stay in the States until your H1 runs out or until you get a waiver.
 
LucyMo, thanks a lot for your answer.

Is it sure that I can change my status from F1 to H1B by doing it inside the US (i.e. the immigration officer has no ground to reject this), or is it only a "loophole" that only few people are able to take advantage of due to some officers' oversight ?
 
Lucy:

Is this the loophole that you are talking about?
I got it from other thread. The general opinion there is that it is against the rules to adjust to h1 when u have HRR.

The J-1 question in the I-129 form is the following:

Is the beneficiary of this petition a J-1 nonimmigrant alien who received a waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement described in section 214 (l)(1)(B) or (C) of the Act?

Now, the answer to this question would be "No" if the beneficiary of the petition never had a J-1 visa before. The answer would also be "No" if the beneficiary is a previous J-1 holder without a waiver. The answer is only "Yes" if the beneficiary is a previous J-1 visa holder who got a waiver.

So, the answer can be "No" in several different situations. So, this question alone is not sufficient to determine whether the beneficiary never had a J-1 before or had a J-1 but did not get a waiver. They should have probably added a few more follow-up questions here, like whether the beneficiary ever had a J-1 visa in the past.

http://immigrationportal.com/showthread.php?t=233067&page=2
 
read the actual law as well. It says pretty much: "those in J-1 status with HRR can't change status to H1". It doesn't say: "if you are an F-1 holder, but you had J-1 in the past which made you subject to HRR, you cannot change status". It's all in the wording.
 
Lucy and rest, thanks a lot for the info on this.
I am in the similar situation J1 (one year high school)=>F-1 (undergrad and Masters 5.5 years)=>F-1 (OPT) currently. Working for decent sized corporation leader in their sector. The lawyer of the company tells me I need a waiver before getting H-1. I say: "no you can file, there is no question that asks "has he ever been" in I-129". I filed NO based waiver 2 weeks ago but it may get shut down or not come in on time because DOS was the funding agency (not Fullbright). (I got NO letter no sweat, waiver review people should already have it).

What can I do if the waiver is shut down and the lawyer refuses to file I-129. Does the act of filing itself (while providing all the information correctly) constitute any type of fraud? I have another lawyer who agrees with you and said he would file it for me, but the company doesn't work with his firm.
Is it in my best interest to initiate IGA waiver right now just in case? As you know such a waiver would involve me bugging some managers at the company. While they are pretty nice and would probably do it (write supporting letter etc.) I do not want to do it unless necessary.

Thanks in advance.
 
frontera said:
Lucy:

Is this the loophole that you are talking about?
I got it from other thread. The general opinion there is that it is against the rules to adjust to h1 when u have HRR.

The J-1 question in the I-129 form is the following:

Is the beneficiary of this petition a J-1 nonimmigrant alien who received a waiver of the two-year foreign residency requirement described in section 214 (l)(1)(B) or (C) of the Act?

Now, the answer to this question would be "No" if the beneficiary of the petition never had a J-1 visa before. The answer would also be "No" if the beneficiary is a previous J-1 holder without a waiver. The answer is only "Yes" if the beneficiary is a previous J-1 visa holder who got a waiver.

So, the answer can be "No" in several different situations. So, this question alone is not sufficient to determine whether the beneficiary never had a J-1 before or had a J-1 but did not get a waiver. They should have probably added a few more follow-up questions here, like whether the beneficiary ever had a J-1 visa in the past.

http://immigrationportal.com/showthread.php?t=233067&page=2
Click to expand...

INA 248 dictates change of status.
It did not say the restriction on changing status from 3 yr HRR J1 to other status.
Only case which is mentioned for 2yr HRR J1's ineligibility to COS is based on INA 212, i.e. those who is overstaying more than 180 days.
So, this loophole might be real.

Sec. 248. [8 U.S.C. 1258] 2/ (a) The Secretary of Homeland Security may, under such conditions as he may prescribe, authorize a change from any nonimmigrant classification to any other nonimmigrant classification in the case of any alien lawfully admitted to the United States as a nonimmigrant who is continuing to maintain that status and who is not inadmissible under section 212(a)(9)(B)(i) (or whose inadmissibility under such section is waived under section 212(a)(9)(B)(v)) , 1/ except 2/ (subject to subsection (b)) in the case of-

(1) an alien classified as a nonimmigrant under subparagraph (C), (D), (K), or (S) of section 101(a)(15) ,

(2) an alien classified as a nonimmigrant under subparagraph (J) of section 101(a)(15) who came to the United States or acquired such classification in order to receive graduate medical education or training,

(3) an alien (other than an alien described in paragraph (2)) classified as a nonimmigrant under subparagraph (J) of section 101(a)(15) who is subject to the two-year foreign residence requirement of section 212(e) and has not received a waiver thereof, unless such alien applies to have the alien's classification changed from classification under subparagraph (J) of section 101(a)(15) to a classification under subparagraph (A) or (G) of such section, and
 
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