Job change with AC21

W

whats_in_name

Banned
Friends,

I am an I-485 applicant for last 200 days. My LC was done in VA because my GC sponsoring company is based there. But, since I joined this company I have been working and living in NJ. Last Friday I called my lawyer to talk about changing job on AC21 and he said

1. Avoid changing jobs between GC sponsoring unless there is a danger of loosing job
2. If at all you decide to change, find a job in VA so that the job goes with your LC

I have a very good rapport with my employer and the only reason I have even thinking about changing job is because there is absolutely no sub-contracting jobs available (at least in my area). I might be able to get a permanent job with the same job description and equal or more salary mentioned in the LC. Again unfortunately (or fortunately) I am getting permanent offers in the NJ area.

My question is do you think I can take a job in NJ though my LC was done in VA?

Please share your experience if you have changed job during I-485 in states other than your LC state.

Thanks in advance for your responses

WIN
 
you sound like you lived in Richmond for a while :D

I think your lawyer is being conservative. The absolute safest bet is not to change jobs at all but on the other hand how long will you put your life on hold ?

To my knowledge, there had been a couple of cases in Baltimore center where they put on hold the cases that involved change in geography (they have an extremely narrow interpretation of AC21). Those cases are being appealed, since the new memo does not put any geo restrictions, it is unlikely that any AC21 case will be denied just because the geography is different.

I suggest you get a second opinion from a couple of other lawfirms, I feel you should be okay.
 
I forgot to mention one more thing, I checked my LC and it says "The applicant will work at the above address (which is the GC sponsoring company address) and other geographical locations in the US"

Will this statement in the LC make a difference?

WIN
 
of course it does, it means your LC was not issued persuant to you sticking to a particular location (consulting firms where applicants have to travel to client site need to issue these type of LC). It means you are pretty much okay to change your job to anywhere without jeopardizing your LC.

Again - consult a couple of lawyers before diving in.
 
Thanks a lot waytoolong

I definitely will talk to some other lawyers to get their opinion.

Anyone else who can give me some suggestions or share experiences ?

WIN
 
If your LC mentions that " Any Geographical Area in US", you are fine. Most Attorneys mention this while preparing LC. I have the same issue and my new job is going to be in a different area and my Attorney says its no problem using AC21.
 
Hey PKSVS,

Thanks a lot for your response.

Could you please share some detail information about your application, how long you are in I-485 stage, where was your LC done, what does your LC say about geographical location, where will be your new employement etc.

Waiting for your response.

WIN
 
Where we can see the working location in LC approval...

Hi whats_in_name,

where u got the geographical information on ur LC? I can not able to locate as I hjave LC approval but not LC applicaiton. If I do not have LC application how to get information what was return there? any idea please help me. Thanks
 
My approved LC is for " CITY-A and other geographical area in US". City-A comes under Nebraska Center. Just before filing I-140 /I-485 concurrently I was relocated to CITY-B /Texas Center,so they filed my application in Texas Center based on my residence in Texas. I have an approved I-140 and its almost 1 year for my I-485 reciept.
I am now planning to join a similar job in CITY-C /Nebraska Center using AC-21.
I think that as long as you go by the rules you should be fine and of course your application should not be in Texas Center :-)
 
Thanks again PKSVS for sharing your LC information with me and others.

longwait02,

When your company applied for your LC, they filled out a form (I don’t remember the number) with all the details about company, job, applicant (you) etc. In this form they mention about where you are going to work, in my case they had written “at company address and other geographical location in the US”. This same form comes back to your attorney with official remarks (like reference number, priority date, signature etc) and a letter stating that LC is approved. My lawyer sent copies of the letter and the form to me. I did not pay close attention to all these details until I decided to change employer.

I hope I answered your question.

WIN
 
Thanks Whats_in_name, I Only got LC approval Letter..

so how we can check any other way what was written on my LC application? I am sure my employer/attoreny will not disclose that info. to me.
 
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