H Visa

L1B to H1

Question details

I am working in US with L1B Visa from company A, now I have my H1 petition approved from the same company had applied to me before I had L1B. Now is it possible for me to change my Visa status from L1B to H1, if yes then what are the situations under which I will be able to change as I am planning to change the company.

You will need to apply for an H-1 through the employer you wish to join. You should be able to apply for a change of status as a part of that process.

USCIS Continues to Accept FY 2011 H-1B Petitions

 U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced it continues to accept H-1B nonimmigrant petitions subject to the Fiscal Year 2011 (FY 2011) cap. USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received for both the 65,000 general cap and the 20,000 U.S. master’s degree or higher educational exemption.

USCIS has received approximately 13,500 H-1B petitions counting toward the 65,000 cap. The agency has received approximately 5,600 petitions for individuals with advanced degrees.

H-1B Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 Cap Season

The H-1B Program

U.S. businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields, such as scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.

For more information about the H-1B program, see the link to the left under temporary workers for H-1B Specialty Occupations, DOD Cooperative Research and Development Project Workers, and Fashion Models.

Extension of Post-Completion Optional Practical Training (OPT) and F-1 Status for Eligible Students under the H-1B Cap-Gap Regulations

Introduction

These Questions & Answers address the automatic extension of F-1 student status in the United States for certain students with pending or approved H-1B petitions (indicating a request for change of status from F-1 to H-1B) for an employment start date of Oct. 1, 2010 under the Fiscal Year (FY) 2011 H-1B cap.

Questions & Answers

Q: What is the H-1B cap?

A: The cap is the congressionally-mandated limit on the number of individuals who may be granted initial H-1B status or visas during each fiscal year. For FY 2011, the cap is 65,000.

G-4 to H1B

Question details

1. I'm on a G4 and have an offer to move to a US based company in a management role. They have offered to file for an H1B in the next few days on premium processing. Although premimum processing requires 15 days or so for an approval, the visa stamping does not happen until October 2010. That's too long to wait to move. What are my options to transition more smoothly from G4 to H1B?

2. Can they apply for a GC after I have an H1B approval?

If you are subject to the quota, I cannot think of how you can start earlier than 1st October, unless you have unique skills or circumstances. Once on H-1, you are like anyone else. Your green card can be filed because you would already have waived your privileges and immunities.

H1B- denial

Question details

I was approved for an H1B by USCIS There is a new I-160 form, electronic to the previous form. I want to be able to travel to my home country during this working period, but I have to go home to get it stamped. Could I still be denied the visa even though I obtained my H1B?

Grant of H-1 approval by USCIS is absolutely no guarantee that a visa will also be granted.

EB-1 Visa Processing for medical doctors

Question details

I am working towards filing under EB-1 green card, currently on H-1B. Is there a certain number of publications in peer reviewed journals, presentations at international meetings that would make the application more likely to go through than not?

Number of publications, impact factor of journals and number of citations - that is what they look at these days.

Outstanding researcher

Question details

I'm a researcher at a university and I will probably try to apply for EB1, Outstanding Researcher. I'm currently on an H-1 (since Oct. 2007). Are there certain stages in the process in which I won't be able to travel outside the US?

I cannot think of any stage at which you cannot travel. Good luck!

Quickest way to get a GC

Question details

I was a resident physician on the H1B visa.. Prior to completing residency, I got the EAD(my husband , a pharmacist had applied for a Green card through his company). That was in 2006 and we have since made no progress as the EB3 numbers are not current. I did not renew my H1B after the initial 3 years because I could work with the EAD. Would I get a GC faster if I start my own application or should we keep waiting? Can both of us have seperate applications without one affecting the other? Are we better off just waiting?

Generally speaking, where there is a choice, we always file multiple green card applications for spouses.