Recording available for March 15 Conference Call

[monica1]

Recording available for download for March 15 Conference Call.
http://www.immigration.com/free-community-conference-calls

----------------------------------------------------
Conference Dial-in: 1-712-432-3066
Conference Code: 531023
Topic: General Immigration Related Questions
Start Time: 12:30PM, EST
End Time: 1:30 PM, EST
NEXT CALL DATE: March 29, 2011

-----------------------------------------------------
NOTE: This call does not mean that we have agreed to represent you or that there is an attorney-client relationship between us. This is merely a community service. You should discuss the specifics of your case with the attorney representing you.

 

[cnebit]

Hi Rajiv,

My question is about the on-line DV-2013 application form. More precisely, I forgot to write my middle name in application.

For example:

James David Smith (in a passport)
James Smith (in this way, I wrote in form without a middle name )

Question is, it may be an issue at the interview. (Of course if my entry will be selected and I will be invited to interview in embassy) Is this a mistake, will disqualify my application? And what can I do in this situation?

my topic on the forum "showthread.php?547230-Forgot-to-write-a-middle-name-in-dv2013-on-line-application"

 

[mahesh_w]

Immigration for Parents I485 RFE Question

Hello Rajiv
I am sponsoring my parents for their GC. They are currently in the USA with me.
I have an RFE for their birth certificate, which I do not have since they are born in 1937-42 time frame.

The RFE para asks for 2 things -

- original letter from authority saying certificate is not avail - This I have and will send to them

- secondary evidence if birth certificate is not avail - my issue here is that they do not say if I need to send original or copies of secondary evidence - I have their school leaving certificates and sworn, notorised affidavits from close relatives - so I am a bit weary to send all originals and loose them

So should I send them copies of secondary evidence (can additionally notarize the copes in US here if need be) or should i send them the originals?

I called the number on the RFE a few times till I finally got a response to send original affidavits but copies of school certs but I am still uncertain as getting an RFE is just adding delay and is always scary !!

Thanks for your time.

 

[immi_IMG]

pending H1 extension and using AP

Hello Rajiv,

Filed for i485 when earlier H1 expired and H1 extension was pending (H1 extension filed on time).
Recieved AP and EAD.

H1 expired on 09/20/2011 and filed for H1 extension on 09/06/2011 and I485 was filed on 12/24/2011.

My questions are:
1) can I safely travel on AP while H1 extension is pending and earlier H1 expired?
2) will I be abandoning pending H1 extension if I travel out of the country on AP ?
3) does pending H1 extension impact I485 process ( I am seeing people with a later priority Date than mine are getting 485 approvals)
4) if H1 extension is approved while I am out of country, can I use AP to come back and still work on H1

your answers are highly appreciated

 

[rahulgopaljoshi]

H1 Transfer while H1 Extension Pending

Background - I am currently working as a full-time employee with my company (direct employer - employee relationship) on H1-B. My current H1-B expires on May 15, 2012. My employer has already filed for an extension (first extension) in middle of Feb 2012, and we have received the I 797 towards acceptance of that. I also have filed I 539 for the extension of status of my wife (H4) along with my own extension (we sent I-129 and I - 539 along with all documentation together) and also got I 797 towards acceptance of that as well. (I had done an H1-B transfer in the past, when I started working for my current employer around 2.5 years back)


Question: - If for some reason I wanted to change my employer to a different one (with Employer - Direct Client model), would it be a good idea to initiate an H1-B transfer while the final decision on H1-B extension is still pending ? Any specific caveats or dark areas ? I am not intending to travel to my home country in the recent future or go out of US to any other country.

 

[swe82]

bearing of H1 extension pending on I485 approval?

Filed for I485 while my h1 extension was pending.

filed H1 extension on 09/23/2011(earlier h1 expired on 09/30/2011) and 485 on 01/04/2012.

My H1 extension is still pending and I am working based on pending H1 ext.
I have approved EAD too.

My question is....
1) as of 03/23/2012 my h1 extension will be pending for more than 180 days and what will happen to my 485 if my H1 gets denied after 180 days?
2) if h1 gets denied , was I legally working since 09/30/2011?
3) does H1 extension decision affect 485 approval?

Please let me know

 

[bobbasic2002]

Unemployment on GC

Hello Rajiv-ji,

I got my GC in July of 2010. I was recently laid-off by my GC sponsoring employer.

1) How long can a GC holder be without a job? How soon do I have to find a job? Do I have to find a job within 30-60 days?

2) Also, can a GC holder apply for unemployment? Does that constitute public charge? Will applying for unemployment hinder naturalization?

Thank you for your help.

Bobby

 

[ajaxs108]

Urgent question regarding filing a new H1 from India, after a gap of one year --

Hi Rajeev,

Following is a short summary of my current situation --

1) I left from USA to India on August 22nd, 2011, at that time I had an H1b Visa until November 27th, 2011 .
2) When I went for stamping, I was not granted stamping and after 4 months they closed the case because the visa had expired.
3) When I came to India, I thought I would give a gap of one year and according to the rule, I can be granted a fresh H1b visa after that, hence since August 22nd, 2011 I have stayed in India and not visited USA.

QUESTION -- As per my knowledge, the H1b filing process starts on April 1st, 2012, but the entry in US can be made in October 2012 right?? My main question is which of the two options can I go for:

A) Whether I can file the new H1b on April 1, 2012, based on the fact that I would be entering USA in October 2012 ( I think , the company filing my H1b would put the start date of my employment as October 1, 2012, which would be more than a year, since I left USA on August 22nd, 2011)

B) or Can I file the new H1b, only after August 22nd, 2012 (since that would be exactly one year since I left USA) ??


Also for filing the new H1, does the USCIS require a Work Order from client these days?? If my entry date is October 1 , 2012 and if I am filing H1b visa on April 1, 2011, which company or client would give me a work order for starting work after 6 months. By the way, I have worked in USA for 7 yrs before on H1 visa and have a Masters from USA. I had filed Labor Certification (Green Card, EB2), last year, through a company in July 22, 2011.

 

[NikhilC]

H1B to Dependent Transfer & Back to H1B

Hello Rajiv,

I came to the US from India in 2008 for my Masters on an F-1 visa. I worked while in school for an engineering company for a year on my F-1 CPT (curricular practical training). After graduating I started working with a company in New Jersey as an engineering project manager on my F-1 OPT (optional practical training). My company went ahead and sponsored my H1-B visa in October 2011. I have since been working on an H1-B. I recently got married and my wife lives in California and is also on an H1-B visa. I have recently been thinking of starting my company back in India but also want to keep my foot in the US so that I can visit my wife often and also be able to explore prospective business opportunities in the US. The company my wife works with will be applying for her Green Card this year.

1) I wanted to know what my options are in terms of transferring my H1B visa to a dependent H4 visa?
2) Would this be easy to do and can I get the visa transfer done while being in the US?
3) How difficult will it be to get the stamping done once the visa is transferred?
4) In the event that I lose my job, do I have enough time to do this transfer? or do I have to be in status and working while doing this transfer?
5) How much time does the transfer process take?
6) Also, how easy will it be to transfer H-4 back to H1-B?
7) Is there any other visa I need to consider which would be more lucrative in my situation?

Regards,
Nikhil

 

[dsm918]

Hi Rajiv:

A little background on the case. My wife's priority date became current in Feb 2012 bulletin and her 485/765 and I131 were all applied on Feb 1st. Fingerprinting is complete and we are waiting on EAD/AP. I am a dependent on her application. My wife had changed jobs within the same company last year on Oct 2011 and at the time per the lawyers no amendment was needed since the location/job description was basically the same.. However, in January this year, while preparing for the I485, the company lawyers realized that they should have filed a amendment when she had switched jobs last year. Even though the job was basically the same and so was the location, the payroll was different and they had missed that.

The current status is that they have prepared the new H1b application and filed for the LCA yesterday. They expect to get a reply from DOL on the LCA within 7-10 days and as soon as they get that, they will file the amendment. It will be cutting it very close to 180 days (March 30).

If you take 180 days from Oct 3rd 2011, that would mean that she has until March 30th to correct this to be able to use Section 245k.

My questions are:

1) For 180 days per 245K, is it counted as 180 days or less OR does it need to be less than 180 days (179 days). 180 days makes it March 30th whereas 179 days makes it March 29th. Reason I am asking is because it might end up being that close

2) Does she need approval on the new H1b before the 180 days OR does the amendment just need to be filed before 180 days?

3) In all likelihood the approval won't happen before March 30th even though the amendment would have filed before that under premium processing.
Does she need to stop working on or before March 30 even if the amendment has been filed or can she continue working once the amendment has been filed? If she continues working while the amendment is pending, will that time be counted towards the 180 days or does the "Out of Status" time count only until she had filed for the amendment?

4) Does she need a physical receipt of the filed amendment on or before March 30 (180days) to continue working?

5) Once the approval has been received, does that new H1B need to sent to USCIS for the 485?

6) Is section 245k something that only needs to be invoked if USCIS denies the 485 on basis of being "out of status" or is it something that will be used either ways. In other words, does it come into play only in the case of a denial/RFE??

7) How does this amendment impact the 485 process? I am a little confused on this whole situation. Any advise on the path forward would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks.