Need help on J1waiver 90-day rule

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posadas

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:) Hi! I'm so glad I found this forum. I've been reading thorugh it and I know that many of you have been thorugh the waiver process and your experienced advice will be greatly appreciated.

My situation is this: I got my waiver(I797) to work in a HPSA in California approved on Dec. '04 where it states that I should commence work within 90 days. I got my H1B (I-129 change of status) approved on January '05 with a valid date starting July 12, '05 as I won't be finishing residency until June 30th. Clearly July is way beyond 90 days from Dec. or Jan. (I'm not even sure whether the 90 days start on the date of waiver approval or H1B approval).

So for those who were in the same boat as I am now, my questions are:
1. Do you think going beyond the 90 days will put me into trouble in the future? Say when applying for GC or worse yet, will my waiver be invalidated?
2. As I have been approved for a change of status here in the U.S., do I have to have an H1B visa stamped on my passport just to make my further working here legal or is having I-94 card enough already?

Thank you very much for your help in advance! :) I've called the USCIS and have talked to a lawyer (he talked to me for less than 5 minutes yet I was charged $125 for the phone consultation!). Both think that I should have the start date changed if possible just to comply with the 90-day rule (my present position allows me to leave earlier than June 30th if needed), however, based on what I've been reading thorugh this forum, the 90-day rule may not have to be followed. I really want to stay with my present job until June to finish my obligations.
 
Thanks, J1victim. I've been so worried lately as the people I know here seem to put too much weight on the 90-day rule.
 
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If this year of residency is not required for your boards, then you should be looking out for your interests. You don't want to fall foul of a powerful Federal agency like the Department of Homeland Security just to keep you program director happy.
 
I just want to post an update of my situation as this might be helpful to other people out there in my same situation and also seeking answers:

I actually talked to the J1-waiver coordinator of the state where I got the waiver (California) recently and she said that I should not be concerned about this 90-day rule as it happens all the time and that I should not go into trouble because of this.
 
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