Valid Visa and I797 till 2004; PP expiring ; I-94 stamped till PP expiry

[dharambirmarwaha]

I am in a weird situation and talking to INS has made it worse as officers has suggested different procedures.

I797 : Valid till Feb 2004
Visa in PP : Valid till Feb 2004
PP Expires : July 2003
Entered US : April 2002
I94 D/S : July 2003

I entered US on an H1-B visa in April 2002. The visa issued to me was valid till Feb 2004 but by passport was expiring in July 2003. The Inspector at POE sais that she could not stamp my I-94 till Feb 2004 as the passport is expiring in July 2003. So she stamped the I-94 till July 2003. She said that I should get a new passport well before this one expires and take the old passport,new passport, I-797 and I-94 to the local INS office. They will issue me a new I-94 for a minimal charge and the process is very straight forward.

Now that I have a new passport i wanted to confirm the procedure so i called up INS.

Call 1
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INS officer says that I have to file an I102 and submit it with all the above mentioned docs at the local office. They will give me a new I-94.

Call 2
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INS officer says that since my visa is H1-B my employer has to file an I-129 and request for an extension of stay.

Has anybody had this problem before? If yes please advise what procedure did you follow? Any advise from Jim and other knowledgeable people of the forum are also welcome.

Thanks.

 

[jaxen]

File I102 at local INS office with both passports, old I94 and approval notice. Alternatively, travel outside US before July 2003 and get a new I94. Dont have to file I129.