URGENT - TWO I797s and H1B STAMPING DILEMMA

J

jagdeep123

New Member
Hello All,
I have an appointment next week in Vancouver Canada, and have a strange issue at hand:

I cam to US as an F1, got my degree and job. I am on my second I 797 and have never got a H1B visa stamped before.

Now, I have my latest original I797(with copies of I129/LCA) and related papers in hand, but have only a copy of my older I797/I129/LCA (the original was in file with my company and they cannot find the original).

Is having the original of latest I797, and copy of the older one enough to get a first time H1B visa?

Please advise.
 
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Hello jagdeep123,
In general, the consular officer will request you to show your current (latest) I-797/I-129/LCA as your request is to get that stamped in your passport. But they can request you to show your previous H1B as you moved from F1 to H1 last time. That might cause some curiosity to the officer to see your previous one.

Assuming that you are with the same company - Its better, why can't you consult to your company attorney about this case. I think they can prepare you in the best possible way in such scenarios, as this is clearly your company's fault & not yours. In general the applicant has to have all I-797 originals with them.

Don't panic. Talk with the attorney & post your experience after your visa approval.

Best of luck
________________________________________________________
Not a legal advice - Just suggestions.
 
Thanks for the advise Ramsaiin. I am getting in touch with the lawyer.
Has anyone else had a similar experience?
thanks,
Jagdeep
 
I was exactly in the same sitaution as you. The only difference is that I have the original 797(1st H1b). But I did not have copy of i129 (1st H1b). I just got visa stamped at Nogales, Mexico on Oct 27. They just asked for my present 797. Almost all questions asked by the interviewer were related to present job. The interviewer just asked a a couple of questions to verify that I wasn't out of status at any point of time. The only documents interviewer looked at were my resume and current job description.

I don't think you need the original copy of your old 797. If you have a photocopy then it should be certainly sufficient to prove that you maintained a valid status what you were staying in US.
 
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