Need an urgent clarification

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wonderfulboy

Registered Users (C)
Hi,

I need a clarification regarding my GC Process. I filed my green card with a small company when i was working with that company in a client place (May/2001). But my contract with the client is completed in July 2001. So i joined a different job (August/2001) but not through employer who sponsored by GC. From then i am in the same job. So i don't have paystubs with sponsoring employer and in 2002 October even my H1 is expired with sponsoring employer. I filed my I-140/485/EAD/AP in November 2002. My sponsoring employer supported me with future employment letter and financial documents of the company etc. i got my I-140 approval and EAD also.

But now from different i am hearing questions that i should have valid H1 with sponsoring employer. When i filed my 485 i have enclosed the latest paystubs of current employer different from sponsoring employer. For example if i get a RFE to provide latest pay stubs can i still enclose current employer paystubs?

Another concern is the job with current employer is not also quiet stable. I will be completing 180 days with 485 June 4th 2003.
What if i get a gap and don't have paystubs in between till i get my GC. Can anyone have gap without working during the final approval stage after I-140 is cleared? Can i really use AC21 for portability of my GC if at all required and transfer my GC process with another employer also.

I am totally confused with my situation. Can any one seriously help me in this situation.
 
You should contact a competent immigration attorney and seek professional opinion. Your case doesn't seem to be a straightforward AC21 case.
 
The rule of thumb is that one doesn't have to work for the GC-sponsored company until the GC is approved. The intention must be that the beneficiary must intent to join the GC-sponsored company upon GC approval. However with AC21, one may even relinquish that intention if 180 days passes for INS to adjudicate the case. There has always been a confusion as to when the 180 days starts for a concurrent I-140/I-485 filer because the concurrent filing law came after AC21.

During 485 filing, the beneficiary only needs to show valid status, valid employment with similar job duties & a comparable pay. Not necessarily with the GC-sponored company. However, the letter of intent to hire the beneficiary by the GC-sponored company is needed along with the job letter/paystubs from the current company.

Hope this helps.
 
mavishaka

hi mavishaka,

the basic thing is an employer with whom i started my GC process i am worked for him only for 2 months after labour is filed. Then i joined as full time of different company. I dont paystubs with sponsoring employer. Also last year H1B validiity of visa with sponsoring employer is also expired. Is it legal to continue with GC process? As i said i filed 485/EAD/AP/I-140 and i got EAD/AP/I140 approvals and gave finger prints also. Only concern is do i need to have valid H1 visa with that employer, paystubs if i have to show as part of any RFE and can i use AC21 after 180 days of 485 process to transfer 485 to another employer??
 
Upstate_NY,

As you told i have been told by my lawyer that i have to join the sponsoring employer after GC is approved in my case. i have to find out how do INS caluclates 180 days i mean from RD or from the day I-140 is approved i am not sure too. The sponsoring employer supported intent to hire letter and the companies financial documents when i filed 485 application. Also i have provided my current companies latest paystubs along with 485 application.

Your information definitely helped me.

Can you clarify this point what if i loose job with current employer and it took few months to get another job. But in between i don't have pay stubs. Can i start working on EAD with new job? Will the gap be a problem for INS to approve final 485?
 
During the I-485 process, the INS can request any additional info in the form of a RFE. Being unemployed for any period during the I-485 process is fine as long as the INS doesn't request paystubs for that period. If RFE is generated, normally INS asks for the most recent 1-6 months paystubs. You can do the math. But then again, you may be lucky and get the GC approval w/o RFE!

If you get laid off, quickly obtain a comparable job using the EAD. The key is that you should be employed in a similar job (as per the duties mentioned in the labor cert) for the entire or most of the I-485 period. This will convince the INS that you will not be a "public charge", sometime that the INS really looks into.

Good luck!
 
Update_NY,

Thanks for your response regarding the paystubs and the gap.
Can some one clarify whether i need to maintain the H1 status with the sponsoring employer though i am not really working with them. I am holding my H1 visa with my current employer. Also how serious is that we need to work with the sponsoring employer after the green card is approved. For example the green card will be issued for 10 years if i am not wrong. How are they going to validate whether the green card holder is working with the sponsoring employer immediately after the green card is approved?

Can some shed some light on this point?
 
Let me get this straight. You worked with company A and filed LC in May 2001. Then you left them and joined company B in July 2001. You concurrently filed 140 and 485 in Nov 2002. Company A provided supporting documentation for your 140 and 485. Your 140 is approved and you have completed your FP and have a valid EAD. Your H1 with Company A expired in Oct 2002. You now have a valid H-1 from Company B.

I bet you, your case is complicated enough to confuse any BCIS officer, so don't worry about it too much. They'll just play by the rules and considering that you have submitted supporting documents from company A (future job offer) there doesn't appear to be any obvious flaw in your application, from what I understand. Since you'll be completing 180 days soon you can take advantage of AC21. I presume the 180 day count starts from your 485 RD and not the 140 AD, considering that you filed concurrently.

Considering that your GC is based on a future job offer, BCIS would expect you to work with Company A after your GC approval, assuming you don't get an RFE. I don't know the exact repercussions of not doing so. That's why I said, seek the advice of a competent immigration attorney.

Hope that helps.
 
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