On bench, no pay stubs.. concerned!!

N

Namrata Chaudhary

New Member
Hi all,
    I am on bench for the past 2 months but still employed with the same employer who started my gc. Since he pays me hourly, he doesn\'t pay me bench time so i have no pay stubs since June. I last worked until the end of May. My big question is, if i get RFE from INS on recent pay stubs, will they deny me a gc for lack of them? My employer will give a letter saying i am still employed but since i don\'t have a project, i don\'t know what salary he will mention on the letter. I am very anxious and any help will be greatly appreciated. What are my options at this point? I have pay stubs until May. My details:
PD - Sep 99
ND - Nov 22, 2000
FP - Feb 20, 2001
EB2/RIR/India

Thanks,
Nami
 
You have 90 days to respond to an RFE

That may not be the solution to your problem...but at least you may have time to fix your situation.
 
No Title

Can you not ask your employer to pay you temporarily .. atleast as much as is stated in your Labor clearance, until you get your GC, say for 3 months .. because by & large INS has been asking for paystubs for 3 months & make sure that you\'ll reimburse him .. maybe sign a contract that for the salary paid to you during bench .. you\'ll make good that amount as soon as he finds a project for you .. Just thinking aloud ..
 
Here is wha I will suggest

When u work on hourly basis. Do not take all the money from ur employer. Keep some reserve for this kind of situation.

  I mean suppose ur hourly rate is $70. That means 160*70=11200 per month. Fix ur salary at $70000 per year / or $5833 per month. This way u save (11200-5833-(15% expenses ) ) = $4000 ( approx ) per month. Even if u work 6-8 months in a year the employer can pay u for whole year.
  
 Also, for doing above u need to have a good understanding with ur employer and u both hv to beleive on each other. Ur concern is genuine. VSC favourable RFE is last 3 pay slips and letter from the employer.
 
No Title

But Rajiv .. this guy is already on bench .. If he\'s made a provision as you suggested, ,which by the way is an excellent suggestion, he\'d be home free
 
What is the chance of getting employment related RFE

There are a couple of ways of dealing with such a situation as I believe. One solution is to ask your employer to keep paying you the same salary and you give back the amount to him either beforehand or after whichever is convenient. This way both you and the employer are safe. What you lose is the tax component which is the price you pay for the favour.

The second alternative in case the employer does not agree to the above proposal is to show as many days as allowed as the time on sick leave, legal bench time, etc allowed by INS.

If the bench period exceeds the allowable limit, I am not sure what this is but guessing that not more than a month, the only alternative is to change the job. If this is not possible, work with a friendly company and do the same as in the second alternative, pay the money and be paid back as salary. You are allowed to change jobs after 6 months and you have to submit a new employment letter from this ocmpany.

Do not worry as tyhe chance of getting RFE is less. I do not know what probability we can expect. However it is always advisable to plan beforehand for safety\'s sake.

Finally, I am in the same situation and this is my plan.

Wish you good luck

Sudhir
 
Wait

If ND is Nov 2000 - this is August more than 6 months - this person could take the EAD and work for a different employer and not worry about RFE because of AC21 guidelines.
 
No Title

That is true, however in this uncertain market conditions what is the guarantee of finding a job before a RFE situation occurs. Especially when this person\'s ND is Nov 2000 and presently VSC is looking into Oct 2000 cases.

To avoid later repercussions, atleast start identifying a company that can support you even if it is at a cost. Best situation is if this company is your sponsoring company.
 
No Title

Thank you all very much for your replies. It is so nice to see people trying to help each other out. Like somebody said, since my ND is pretty close to maybe being adjucated, I don\'t want to risk changing companies since the new employer may fire me and my current one has been very nice about it - 2 months on bench and he still has not fired me. I think I will try to work something out with him and in the meanwhile keep looking for projects. Last but not the least, pray that I don\'t get RFE from INS!! :) By the way, I had got an RFE while in the I-140 stage, what is the possibility/probability of getting RFE again in I-485 stage? Thanks again folks.
 
Question for Nami, Sudhir

What is the rate of pay mentioned in your Labor Certification? Is that hourly or annual?
 
unpaid leave??

I am also in the same situation. Does it help if the company gives a letter stating that I am on unpaid leave for a certain period ?? Also, is there any restriction on the length of that period ?? Anyone! please help.
 
a letter from your emolyer stating

I had been told that even you are on bench without pay during 485 adjudication, you are still eligible for GC as long as your employer could provide a letter stating that you are still with the company and will back to pay roll as soon as there is opening. I don\'t want to provide false info here and thus I thionk we\'d better consult with an experinced lawyer who is very familiar with the immigration law.
 
No Title

I would be in a similar situation too. But what i did was my previous 3 month salaries i had taken as an advance and not salary. As when I am on bench my employer is paying me with regular paystub and the advance is deducted.
Ofcourse this is advance planning as I anticipate my app this month or next month.
For you its better tthat you pay your taxes and get your paystubs.
OR ask your emp to pay u regular salary and return him the salary amt and later when u get a project take the same amt as advance in lieu of reg salary.
 
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