H1-B transfer close to i-94 expiry or after i94 expiry

H1B extension filed with Company A

My H1B visa is getting expired on May 10th. Both i-797 and i-94 expiry dates are May 10th too.

I am currently on notice period (last working day is May 6th) for company A.

  1. Company A has filed for H1-B extension under regular processing and it is still pending decision.

    Since I have already resigned for company A, can I stay in the US after May 10th under their extension petition?

H1B transfer with Company B - Not filed yet

I have accepted a job offer from company B and joining date is supposed to be May 16th if H1B is apporved by that date.

Company B is going to file H1-B transfer under premium processing.
Currently Company B has filed for LCA and still waiting for approval.

  1. Can company B upgrade company A’s extension petition to premium processing?

  2. If company B cannot submit H1-B petition before May 10th, should I have to leave the country or since LCA process is already started before my visa expiry, am I allowed to stay in the country legally?

  3. Assuming Company A withdraws extension petition by May 9th (after my exit on May 6), and then Company B files transfer petition on May 14th, then does this impact Transfer approval?

Please suggest.

H1B extension filed with Company A

  1. If your last day with Company A is May 6th AND you are not joining your new employer on May 7th immediately, you are actually un-necessarily adding some ‘out of status’ days to your name.

    Company A has to withdraw your H1B petition as soon as you leave them.

    I would strongly recommend to JOIN the new employer as soon as possible and preferable immediately after leaving Company A.
    Try to negotiate with your Company A and stay with them for a little longer and preferably until your transfer is finally approved.

H1B transfer with Company B - Not filed yet

  1. No, Company B cannot upgrade Company A’s petition to premium.

  2. LCA does not give you the right to stay in USA. The H1B Transfer/Extension application has to be filed before i94 expiry to stay within USA.

  3. Yes, it does affect your approval. Since, you had NO valid status when company B filed your petition and your i94 already expired, transfer will be approved with consular processing. i.e. you will have to leave USA, het new visa at consulate and re-enter USA.

Hi,

I am planning to do an H1 transfer very close to i94 expiry but before it has expired. Can I join the new employer after the transfer is approved which will probably happen after i94 has expired. Extension is in progress from current employer.

Hi @Tru2020

Please read above and other scenarios for H1B Transfer while extension is pending have been discussed here.

Hello Anil,
Thank you for sharing the link. I am in a similar situation as well. A quick clarification though -

The article says:

If your current i94 is valid, you can transfer H1B when the extension is in progress as the pending extension will not become a bridge.
You can switch employer after i94 expiry but your pending extension application will become a bridge petition

Does the ‘switch employer’ here refer to filing a H1 transfer or joining the company itself?

My H1 transfer was applied on August 4th. My current i94 expired on August 5th ( extension in progress) and the H1 transfer got approved a day after the i94 expiry, on August 6th.

Does this quality as a bridge scenario? or is the only criteria that the transfer should have been filed before the i94 expiry and it doesn’t matter if the i94 expires when the approval comes through?

The extension with my current employer is through normal processing and it may take a month or so more. Hence i am skeptical if the pending extension will still be considered a bridge.

Thank you!!

2 Likes

If your H1B Transfer is approved, then nothing else matters.

Thank you Anil for the clarification!

@Anil_Gupta : Please need your input here.
My Visa expiry is Sep 30 and I-94 expiry is Oct 10. Can a new employer file H1B before I-94 expiry? LCA is filed today. Not sure if employer can file H1B before Sep 30. Please advise.
Also, spouse company is planning to apply for H4 before sep30. Wanted to know best options to go forward with.

Hi @ADN

The best option is to apply H1B transfer before i797 expiry date. If not possible, then before i94 expiry should be okay too.

H1B 6 years end on 30-Sept-2020

I-94 expiry is 10-Oct-2020 (since there will be a 10 days grace period)

I-140 is approved 2 years back

Employer is not renewing the H1B but got a new job offer.

Question –

Does the new employer have to file H1B transfer before I797 expiry i.e. 30-Sept-2020 or it can be filed before I-94 expiry i.e. 10-Oct-2020?
To make sure that there is no need to go out of country to get stamped before starting working for new employer.

@Anil_Gupta
Hello Anil,
I need your help. My case is

  1. I94 is going to expire on 18Nov and extension is pending with USCIS for employer1

  2. New employer employer2 is filing transfer and extension in premium and he will file before i94 expire.

  3. Suppose, if I get approval for transfer and extension after 18Nov.

  4. Will it be fine to join employer2 ?

  5. If I serve notice after getting approval after 18Nov and later employer1 revoke my pending extension, will that notice period be considered as out of status or that will be legal as employer1 will pay me for that notice period as well.

Thanks
odba

@immiquestion can you please share what you did in your case? Did USCIS consider your case as bridge?

If not done already, upgrade to premium processing.

Ok.

Yes.

If your transfer is applied before your current I94 expiry, and later your employer revokes after you left ( which is what they have to do by law), you are good.

For more info about different scenarios, refer the below link by Anil. All explained very clearly.