Current status when H4 approved after H1B approval, H4 withdrawal request pending

USA H1B
71

@Swathi1

What happened on your case? We are in the same situation now

72

Hi, Its based on the approval dates please wait for approval copy

73

Our h1 b approved dec3rd and h4 approved on Dec8th.

Do you know what will happen in this case?

Thanks

74

Hi, is this first time H1 or H1 transfer??

Also have you requested for H4 withdrawal??

75

This is the 1st h1 and we didn’t requested withdrawal
My lawyer said let’s withdraw once we receive H1 approval letter.

Meanwhile we got our H4 approval.

76

Goutham,

I understand how difficult it is to be in this situation.

We cant decide anything without the approval copy

You may need to wait for approval copy everything depends on the dates mentioned on approval copy

I hope you receive them soon

77

I applied for h4 and H4 EAD application in March 2021 as my f1 visa was expiring in October 2021. My h4 application was still pending. So, my company applied h1 for me and h1 visa got approved by end of November 2021.

I applied for withdrawing my pending h4 and H4 EAD. Two days ago, I got h4 and H4 approval notice with EAD card in the mail.

Will USCIS withdraw my h4 now even if it’s approved (not a pending application anymore)? Am I going to be out of status?

I would really appreciate your thoughts on this.

78

So if I understand correctly, at some point before Oct 2021, you had two change of status applications, a) F1 to H1B and b) F1 to H4/EAD.

What is the effective start date on H1B and H4 I-797?

1 Like
79

Thank you for the reply!

My h1 was approved on 18th November 2021 (effective start date of 1st December 2021).
I sent the withdrawal letter for my pending h4 and H4 ead in December. My h4 and H4 EAD got approved on 25th January 2021(start date 20th January 2021).

Are they going to withdraw my h4 even if it’s approved now?

80

Sorry h4 and H4 EAD approved on 20th January 2022.

81

Based on last action rule, you should be on H4 status now. However your F1 to H4 was approved after you switched to H1B so technically you weren’t in F1 status when your F1 to H4 was approved with effective start date of 20th Jan’22 so I am not sure if the approval of F1 to H4 COS will mean anything.

Consult your employer’s immigration lawyer and follow their advice.

2 Likes
82

Yes, it’s confusing! My lawyer said I am on h4 and they have applied for h4 withdrawal when I got my h1b approved. I need to go to India to get my h1b stamp if my h4 gets revoked.

I am working for university. So, I have also informed them and according to OISSS, my h4 is because of an error (I was already on h1 by then). At this point, I am really not sure what to do.

Thank you for the reply!

83

If you are ok being on H4 status, you can talk to USCIS agent via Emma the chatbot and have them ignore the H4 withdrawal letter.

1 Like
84

I didn’t know I can do that! Thank you so much for your help. I will try that now.

86

Did you send the H4 withdraw request?

89

You should consult an attorney for a legal advice.

This is a public forum and people just share their knowledge and understanding based on their experience. It should not be considered a legal advice.

If USCIS has issued a new i94 with H4 classification, then I am afraid that your status may have changed to H4. You can obviously challenge it but then it depends on how much you want to play around it.

Talk to your attorney and they will suggest the next steps.

1 Like
90

Hi sweta,
Im in the same situation. Did you try talking to uscis agent to ignore the withdrawl application?
How did you solve this situation?

91

Hi,
I was on h1b
I applied for h4/ead COS in February 2022.
I got laid off in March first week. New employer filed h1b transfer/extension on April last week Sent
Withdrawl of my h4/ead application on april 3rd week
H4/ead got approved on May first week.
Is there any possibility of uscis withdraws my h4/ead application?
What happens if they withdraw my application will be out of status from day 1?

92

Hi @Sweta_Patel

My wife is in same situation as well. Can you tell us how did it go with USCIS requesting them to ignore the withdrawal letter?

93

I went back to India and got my H-1b visa stamping done.

A few days ago I got a mail from USCIS that they have reopened my H4 visa case. I am not sure why. Basically there is nothing we can do to cancel the withdrawal request. Because they will eventually work on it.