REturned at POE - H4/I-94 Issue

S

singarb

Registered Users (C)
I need your help desperately in this case. This happened to my sister who was in H4 visa.

My sister and Brother-in-Law(BIL) got married in 2001. As BIL was in H1B, my sister got her H4 from chennai consulate and went on to U.S. to live with her husband.


As my BIL's H1B visa got expired he applied for renewal in 2002. During the renewal the employer forgot to include the wife's name i.e. H4 renewal was not applied.

To correct the problem my BIL applied for a new H4 visa from Washington DC. H4 visa got stamped in my sister's passport. Please note that it was only the visa that got stamped but the I-94 remained the old one.

She went for Driver /license and found that she needed to get a new I-94. So she contacted the INS and she was told that she has already overstayed inthe U.S and that she has to leave the country within 30 days.

After consulting with the lawyer, she came back to India and tried to contact the consulate regarding this. They did not respond and one official over the phone said that all she needed was to re-enter the U.S to get a new I-94.

So she went back to the U.S. expecting that she might be let in with a new I-94. But at the POE, she was not allowed to pass the immigration with the same reasons that her H4 visa (stamped in Washington) is invalid, because she should have got a Waiver H4 visa from the consulate.

Confused, Dazed and puzzled my sister is returning to India.

Has anyone come across this type of case. If so what needs to be done? Is there any immigration lawyer available in Chennai so that we can get consultation regarding this case.

As this is an urgent issue I request you to convey your suggestions ASAP.

Thanks.
 
Need your help desperately in this case. This happened to my sister who was in H4 visa.

My sister and Brother-in-Law (BIL) got married in 2001. As BIL was in H1B, my sister got her H4 from Chennai consulate and went on to U.S. to live with her husband.


As my BIL's H1B visa got expired he applied for renewal in 2002. During the renewal the employer forgot to include the wife's name i.e. H4 renewal was not applied.
------------- That was mistake of your BIL he should have told lawyer/employer to file H4 extension of your sister with form I-539. he could have also filed it with out any help from lawyer h4 extension is easy process
To correct the problem my BIL applied for a new H4 visa from Washington DC. H4 visa got stamped in my sister's passport. Please note that it was only the visa that got stamped but the I-94 remained the old one.
-------- She only got the visa stamp and DOS does NOT extend H4 status or extend I-94, only BCIS/USCIS extend the I-94 or status to remain in US

She went for Driver /license and found that she needed to get a new I-94.
----- It means that she had expired I-94 at that time
So she contacted the INS and she was told that she has already overstayed in the U.S and that she has to leave the country within 30 days.
------------ I suspect she stayed illegally more than 180 days after her I-94 expiry date, if it is true then 3 year bar started.
After consulting with the lawyer, she came back to India and tried to contact the consulate regarding this. They did not respond and one official over the phone said that all she needed was to re-enter the U.S to get a new I-94.
----------- As you wrote she consulted with lawyer what was told to her by lawyer?
So she went back to the U.S. expecting that she might be let in with a new I-94. But at the POE, she was not allowed to pass the immigration with the same reasons that her H4 visa (stamped in Washington) is invalid, because she should have got a Waiver H4 visa from the consulate.
------------- It seems they are correct because consulate informed DOS and her out of status or illegal say was in USCIS computer
Confused, Dazed and puzzled my sister is returning to India.

Has anyone come across this type of case. If so what needs to be done? Is there any immigration lawyer available in Chennai so that we can get consultation regarding this case.
------------- I think it is 3 year bar case, I don’t know any lawyer who deal with US Visa/ immigration issues and is in Chennai . I hope others may guide you.
Ask your BIL to contact Sheela Murthy she is the best for this kind of mess up and she regularly visit Chennai consulate also and she can advise if anything can be done now. Contact her www.murthy.com, if you or your BIL in NYC area then contact Cyrus Mehta www.cyrusmehta.com or our host Rajiv Khanna www.immigration.com

As this is an urgent issue I request you to convey your suggestions ASAP.
 
Thanks for your response.

When my sister contacted the immigration lawyer, they filed petition to stay in the U.S. and get her I-94 extended. They did not allow that, instead they gave her 60 days to leave the country and also said she may not be illeagally staying in the country as long as she goes out within that time period.


At the POE, the immigration officer asked my sister to get a WAIVER H4 visa from the home country. Do you know anything about the waiver h4 visa?


I have already emailed rajiv Kanna regarding this and i got an reply asked me to fix an appointment which i am going to do.

thanks.
Babu.
 
When you overstay your I-94, any valid visa stamped on the passport is automatically voided (even if it was an overstay less than 180 days). In such a case one needs a new visa stamp in the home country to re-enter. As pointed out, more than 180 days leads to 3 year bar, more than a year leads to a 10 year bar. Contacting a good attorney attorney is the right thing to do.
 
Do you guys of any attorney located in Chennai? I would like know that because this will be helpful in reapplying for the visa.


Do you know anything about a waiver h4 visa?
 
Ginnu, Raj1994

Please answer, what would be the solution if my sister did not overstay more than 180 days from her i-94 expiry. What would be the steps she need to take at Chennai consulate.

Should she produce all the related documents on her I-94 issues, invalid visa and the reasons for her overstay....

Is there any visa (Waiver H4 is new to me.....) called Waiver H4 visa issued at the consulate. Can she use the same form that we use for a regular H4 visa?

With all the necessary documents at hand, how long do you think this process may take place.

Please reply,
thanks.

My BIL is going to contact one of the lawyers you mentioned and i am just gathering as much information as possible.
 
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