Hello. My H1B will expire on Sept 30, 2018. Current employer A filed for H1B extension on Sept 1, 2018 and is currently under RFE.
We have to reply to RFE before December, 2018.
Now my question is can employer B file for an H1 transfer after Sept 30, 2018 i.e, after my I-94 expires and when current petition is under progress. ?
Yes, you can file H1B transfer after i94 expiry but your H1B extension application will become a bridge petition.
Bridge means that if you decide to join H1B transfer company without approval (which you might) as premium processing is current suspended, then the result of H2B extension will affect your H1b transfer result too.
So, be careful.
Related scenario:
Thanks for the quick reply. But the thing is if my current petition A gets denied I have to leave the country. So if I have another petition B (H1 transfer) it can be my backup. If A doesn’t get through I can work with B till B’s decision is out. What do you suggest at this point ?
You can work with H1B transfer but the chances are very HIGH that your H1B transfer will also be denied or would receive and RFE if your H1B extension is denied.
Remember, the rule is that bridge application should be approved for the bridged applications to receive a positive result.
If your H1B transfer is approved even after your H1B extension is denied, it will ONLY be approved with consular processing. This is simply because your i94 has expired at the time of applying H1B transfer.
This essentially means that you will have to go out of USA and get H1B stamped in your passport and then re-enter USA.
Okay. After applying for H1 transfer can I withdraw the current petition (H1 extension) to make sure H1 transfer result wont be affected. I believe answer is no as it is a bridge petition.
At this point my plan is to stay as long as possible (with valid status) so I can plan something somewhere else. Keeping in mind that whatever I’m doing now shouldn’t affect my future possibilities/entry to US.
Whatever you do after i94 expiry will be tied automatically to H1B extension result.
You can only escape it if H1B extension is approved before i94 expiry and you get new i94.