L-1 Visa

Options for Nonimmigrant Workers Following Termination of Employment

Release Date 

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is providing information for nonimmigrant workers whose employment has terminated, either voluntarily or involuntarily. These workers may have several options for remaining in the United States in a period of authorized stay based on existing rules and regulations.

What happens if I get laid off while holding a work visa (H-1B, L-1, etc.)?

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Immigration Law

Can I change my status from B-1/B-2 to H-1B, L-1, F-1?

Question details

I have worked in the U.S. under L-1\H-1B from June-2015 to March-2020. I have been in India since the last 2 and half years (Not working for any US based company). Now I have got Job offer from a US company and the H-1B I-797 petition is approved. I have a previous employer's H-1B Visa stamp (which expired last month) in my current passport, and B1/B2 Visa stamp(got in 2013 and valid till Sep-2023) in my older passport. I also have approved I-140 (EB2) from my previous employer.

My Question is due to the high wait time for Visa appointments, in worst case, if I can not secure a visa appointment anywhere close to joining date, can I travel to the US with a valid B-1/B-2 Visa and approved I-797 and later change status to H-1B and join the job? If yes, would it impact the GC process in future?
 

Video URL
FAQ Transcript

I would strongly recommend against it. I think you would do a lot better trying to get an H-1B Visa stamping in a third country. People are going to places like Singapore, Hong Kong and Maldives. Look around India and you might be able to make an appointment. 
 

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Note: Unless the context shows otherwise, all answers here were provided by Rajiv and were compiled and reported by our editorial team from comments, blog and community calls on immigration.com. Where transcribed from audio/video, a verbatim transcript is provided. Therefore, it may not conform to the written grammatical or syntactical form.

Recording of October 13, 2022, Free US Immigration Community Conference Call with Rajiv (Every Other Thursday)

Discussion Topics:

FAQ: Can I change my status from B-1/B-2 to H-1B, L-1, F-1?|| Can an H-1B holder open an LLC in the US and employ their spouse on H-4 EAD? || Parents staying in or traveling to the U.S. while their green card petition is pending? || Volunteer work on an H-1B visa || Deportation when a permanent resident is involved in Shoplifting || 7th year H-1B extension with pending PERM

L-1A individual visa interview waiver

Question details

I had L-1B individual visa which was rejected during the extension process about 2 years back and my company filed fresh L-1A individual petition after I came back to India which is approved now. Does my case for L-1A individual visa qualifies for visa waiver? Note that : I also had H1-B denial after it was picked in lottery in RFE process before L-1B was approved.

It appears that you may not qualify for an interview waiver because you had an H one B denial that was never overcome.

FAQ Transcript

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Note: Unless the context shows otherwise, all answers here were provided by Rajiv and were compiled and reported by our editorial team from comments, blog and community calls on immigration.com. Where transcribed from audio/video, a verbatim transcript is provided. Therefore, it may not conform to the written grammatical or syntactical form.

Are you eligible to become a naturalized US citizen?

Question details

1. My Son was born in February 2020 in the USA, where my wife is on an F1 visa working on OPT. Due to the Covid19 pandemic, I couldn't meet my son for two years. Kindly suggest to me the way forward to meet my son and wife. I also tried to travel on a tourist visa and F1 Visa. Unfortunately, I got both rejections. I'm an Indian taxpayer and an IT employee. 

2. My brother is a US citizen, and he applied for our mother's green card. Everything is clear, all paperwork is done, but due to the pandemic, we are waiting for the interview date from March 2021. Do you have any information on how we get the date or how much time it will take?

3. My daughter is in Dallas, US, and under medical treatment. She is there with an IN40 visa. As a father, I want to be there during her medical urgency. How can I get a visa now to be with her in the US?

4. I am a US citizen currently in India. I am traveling back to the States in mid-February for two months and want to take my Indian-citizen senior citizen mother with me for that duration. Her last US tourist visa expired eight years ago. (She has an active Schengen visa on her passport) Is there a way she can get a short-term two-month visa to the US?

5. I stayed outside of the US for more than two years because of COVID-19. Am I eligible for naturalization? I came to the USA in August 2016.

 

*Please note that the queries have been put together and edited by the Economic Times to address similar questions at once and that the answers are clear and relevant to the audience.

1. My Son was born in February 2020 in the USA, where my wife is on an F1 visa working on OPT. Due to the Covid19 pandemic, I couldn't meet my son for two years. Kindly suggest to me the way forward to meet my son and wife. I also tried to travel on a tourist visa and F1 Visa. Unfortunately, I got both rejections. I'm an Indian taxpayer and an IT employee. 

FAQ Transcript

Note: For the NRI readers, The Economic Times has started an immigration helpdesk. A team of experts which includes Rajiv S. Khanna will address the most pressing issues. Please see the link below.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/migrate/nri-helpdesk-who-is-eligible-to-become-a-naturalized-us- citizen/articleshow/89116038.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst

Impact of subordinate employees outside the U.S. or in third countries on L-1A and EB-1 petitions

Question details

I was on L-1A and later switched to H-4 EAD 3 years back (working with the same Indian multinational company for 15+ years). I manage a large team here in the USA, and some of my reportees are in the U.K. Since the H-4 EAD extension is taking time, my company plans to move me to Canada for one year. As per the plan, I will be back to the USA on an L-1A visa, and then the company will file for my green card in the EB-1C category. I don't have any team in Canada, and I will mainly manage the same U.S. and U.K. team from Canada.

 

Video URL
FAQ Transcript

The USCIS will consider the broad range of your duties within the business context, including employees being supervised and managed in countries other than the USA (or Canada). In our experience, the USCIS looks at whether the benefit of the work you perform with your dispersed team flows to the petitioning employer and the corporate group, department, or division within the L-1/EB-1C equity/control relationship. But, of course, your particular facts need to be examined in context. So have your lawyers look at them very carefully.

Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.

Visa Stamping for L-2

Question details

I am on an L-1 visa, and I am working in the U.S.. My wife is outside the U.S. Her L-2 visa has expired. We want to get an appointment somewhere to get visa stamping together. I cannot travel without an appointment, or else I will be stuck and will not return to the U.S. without visa stamping. The embassy has not opened for more than a year now, and she is stuck, so how can we get appointments? Can this be an emergency appointment case?

 

We do not have enough information about your case, but generically, it appears that your wife may have the option to go through the dropbox process. Please look into that. Also, emergency appointments are just that: reserved for an emergency. Most consulates are not likely to entertain such a request unless there is a real emergency.

FAQ Transcript

Note: Where transcribed from audio/video, this is a verbatim transcript of the referenced audio/video media delivered as oral communication, and, therefore, may not conform to written grammatical or syntactical form.