I have valid stamped visa till March 2019 for location A(Los Angeles), but now currently I am in location B(San Francisco) for a new project.
H1B Location B Amendment Pending with USCIS - RFE
For Location B amendment has been filed on January 2018. Got RFE on March 2018 and RFE response has been filed on 7th of August 2018.
Currently the status is still pending with USCIS.
Travel to India while H1B Amendment Location B is pending
Now, I need to travel to India in December for 2-3 weeks. So my question is
1. H1B Amendment for Loc B is Denied before Travel to India - Do I need to be at Location A?
If my amended petition for location B is rejected before i start my journey to India–>Am i still allowed to travel or I have to be bodily present at Location A ?
2. H1B Amendment for Loc B is Denied While I am in India - Can I travel to Location B?
If my amended petition for location B is rejected while I am in India, can i still travel back to US in location B?Note , in this case my current project in location B is not valid anymore because of location amendment rejection.
3. H1B Amendment for Loc B is Denied While I am in India - Can I travel to Location A?
If my amended petition for location B is rejected while I am in India, can i still travel back to US in location A?
Note , in this case my current project in location B is not valid anymore because of location amendment rejection and I do not even have valid project documents for location A as well
There is no bodily requirement as such. The law says that you should be ''in status" at all times as stamped on your i94 which is H1B.
If your amendment gets denied, you will be considered “out of status” from denial date unless you can go back to earlier approved H1B and work as per that approval i.e. client or employer mentioned in that approval.
Travel while H1B Amendment is pending
Travelling is allowed. USCIS does not stop you from travel. The only thing is that you may face issues re-entering USA based on your current H1B approval status.
Admission at Port of entry can be denied if Amendment is denied
At the time of re-enter, you will have to present a valid H1B. If you are NOT going to work for employer B, you can be denied entry. This is high risk travel.
Locations do not make any difference. It’s the H1B approval that is looked at by immigration officer. If your approval is valid but you don’t have any project there and if they come to know about it at Port of entry, they will deny you entry.
Thanks Anil, for looking into my case. But I am more confused now
At the time of re-enter, you will have to present a valid H1B. If you are NOT going to work for employer B, you can be denied entry. This is high risk travel.–>If my location amendment is denied for location/client B am i supposed to work for them?
My stamped visa is for location A. If i don’t have any client but still employer is same,still i may face issue while entering in US?
Note, My client at location B is okay with me working remotely from location A if my amendment for location B is getting rejected.
But Am I supposed to work like that or should search new project or client at location A after entering US.
So in that case after denial of location B, If I get a project within 50 miles of radius from my approved amended petition (Location A) ,can i fly back to US or i need another amendment to be filed and approved/filed only?
You can work within the same MSA (metropolitan statistical area) without filing H1B amendment and when your H1B job profile has NOT changed materially.
I strongly suggest to NOT travel as you do not have the project with the client that your H1B is approved for. You may face issues at Port of entry.
Based on the thread "Travel outside USA while H1B Amendment is pending which is Similar to “Travel while H1B Extension is pending”, I thought I am falling under case 2 i.e
H1B Extension is DENIED while you are on travel outside USA
If the H1B application is denied while you are travelling, you can only re-enter USA if your existing H1B visa is still valid at the time of re-entry.
and was happy that I can go to India and comeback to US easily,But as per your reply seems like it is not that easy and there are challenges that may show up at port of entry.