F1 to H4 COS and H4EAD pending, Will H4 EAD be abandoned?

#1

Hi,

F1 OPT valid for 2 months

I’m currently on F1 OPT, which will be expiring in next 2 months.

F1 to H4, H4 EAD pending with USCIS

I applied for Change of status fro F1 to H4 and H4ead application together in July 2018, but current wait times at Vermont center for the COS to H4 is 12-15 months. I need to g back to my home country for an urgent matter.

Will H4 EAD be abandoned with Travel outside USA?

Once I leave the US, my COS application will become void, but what will happen to my H4ead application?
Do i need to file for a fresh application for H4ead?
If so, will it cause any issues, since I already have an application pending with USCIS?

#2

Hi @gaurna

H4 COS will be abandoned, H4 EAD will be pending

Your H4 COS will be automatically abandoned by USCIS once you leave USA.

Since, your H4 EAD is dependent on your valid H4 status, the H4 EAD cannot be approved without it.

So, even though your H4 EAD application will not be abandoned like H4 COS, it will receive an RFE (Request for Evidence) to prove H4.

If you are in USA at the time you receive RFE, you can respond to RFE with the documents requested and still keep your H4 EAD application active and relevant.

There is a possibility that your H4 EAD is rejected without even issuing RFE as per the new USCIS rule.

It depends on the USCIS consultant who works on your case.

If you want, you can explicitly withdraw your current H4 EAD application and file for a new one when you are back in USA.

Your choice.

#3

Thanks Anil,

Do need to explicitly withdraw previous application? Can I have 2 valid active applications for H4ead pending at the same time?

#4

You can have as many parallel applications as you want but it is not going to help you.
You will be un-necessarily complicating things for youself.

It does not cost anything to file for withdrawal. So, it is better you do if you have plans to abandon your H4 status or you can just let H4 EAD keep going.