My situation:
1st H1B in US from Company A October 2006 stamped on passport expired April 2011.
April 2010 filed H1B with company B. Left company A and joined B.
June 2010: H1B denied for company B
August 2010: appeal to H1B and a new H1B is filed.
USCIS held second H1B in lieu of appeal decision.
Till today both applications are pending.
February 2011: H1B filed by company C.
March 2011: H1B denied for company C.
April 2011: filed for H4 change of status before I94 expiry in April.
April 2011: H4 approved with new I94.
April 2011: Another H1filed by company C.
June 2011: H1B approved with new I94 with extension based on approved I140 from company A.
Problem:
H1B out of status from June 2010 to April 2011.
No unlawful presence as no gap in I94s.
Priority date from company A is April 2008. Hoping to maintain this date with company C.
Before I 485 (possibly in a year), need to go out of US and come back using Auto Visa Revalidation so that the last date of entry can be stamped and for I-485 they will check the status after last entry.
Could out of status be a problem at port of entry while using AVR?
Do the immigration officer check that I was out of status at some point or they are only interested in that I am maintaining the status currently? Please note: they will be looking at the visa stamped on my passport which expired April 2011. But this visa was canceled by company A in May 2010. Then they will look at the H4 and then change of status from H4 to H1 in June 2011.
How can I get new I-94?
Will I get date of last entry stamped on passport? If not, is there a way to get it.
I spoke with my immigration lawyers and "nunc pro tunc" is not viable in my case. Visa stamping is a huge risk. AVR seems to be the best option so far.
1st H1B in US from Company A October 2006 stamped on passport expired April 2011.
April 2010 filed H1B with company B. Left company A and joined B.
June 2010: H1B denied for company B
August 2010: appeal to H1B and a new H1B is filed.
USCIS held second H1B in lieu of appeal decision.
Till today both applications are pending.
February 2011: H1B filed by company C.
March 2011: H1B denied for company C.
April 2011: filed for H4 change of status before I94 expiry in April.
April 2011: H4 approved with new I94.
April 2011: Another H1filed by company C.
June 2011: H1B approved with new I94 with extension based on approved I140 from company A.
Problem:
H1B out of status from June 2010 to April 2011.
No unlawful presence as no gap in I94s.
Priority date from company A is April 2008. Hoping to maintain this date with company C.
Before I 485 (possibly in a year), need to go out of US and come back using Auto Visa Revalidation so that the last date of entry can be stamped and for I-485 they will check the status after last entry.
Could out of status be a problem at port of entry while using AVR?
Do the immigration officer check that I was out of status at some point or they are only interested in that I am maintaining the status currently? Please note: they will be looking at the visa stamped on my passport which expired April 2011. But this visa was canceled by company A in May 2010. Then they will look at the H4 and then change of status from H4 to H1 in June 2011.
How can I get new I-94?
Will I get date of last entry stamped on passport? If not, is there a way to get it.
I spoke with my immigration lawyers and "nunc pro tunc" is not viable in my case. Visa stamping is a huge risk. AVR seems to be the best option so far.