Travel while h1b amendment is in progress

1

Hello,

I am planning to travel to india but my h1b amendment will be filed soon.
I am planning to leave as soon as the amendment is filed.
I do not have a valid visa stamp but have a valid i797 till may 2022 next year.

My plan is to travel as soon as my amendment is filed and wait for my approval receipt to come as i will be filing it in premium processing and then take a dropbox appointment and submit new approval notice. Is that something doable?

Can i travel as soon as my amendment is filed or should wait for the approval to come and then travel to avoid any complications?

While my h1b amendment is in progress, can i still submit docs on my previous 797 and return back with an approved amendment notice to get a new i94 with revised dates?

Would it make sense to not do premium processing as it would take several months to process while i can travel and get a stamp based on my old approval while i continue with the new job based on amendment filing?

Thank you very much for your help on this matter.

2

Yes. This is in fact recommended so that your visa can be approved with 3 years validity provided your amended H1B is also valid for 3 years.

Answered above.

Yes, however your visa will be issued with same validity as your current I797.

This is for you to decide.

3

Thank you Kalpesh.

My company lawyer first agreed to let me travel while H1b amendment is pending but now they have made a U-turn saying that if I travel while H1b amendment is in progress, there are chances that my petition would be cancelled or rejected as I have left the country. Is there any merit in this argument? I am sensing that they just want to avoid the paperwork hassle so they have decided for me not to go but certainly they agreed to it earlier.

4

Generally change of status applications are considered abandoned if one leaves the country (due to the fact that change of status can be only applied/processed if the person is present in the US). Extension of status or amendments should not be impacted if the beneficiary travel outside of the US though USCIS expects the beneficiary to be present in the US when extension of status application is approved.

That said, you should follow the advice from your lawyer. You can do PP, and travel once approved.