H1B to H4 COS pending when filed in 60 day grace, file H1B again?

USA H1B
1

I have a unique situation, my wife was on H1B valid until Jan 2022 , she lost her job end of May 2019, with in 60 days grace period (July 2019) she filled transfer of H1B to H4 & H4EAD.

Now in month of August she is getting offer from multiple employer. They are proposing filling H1B transfer from H1B, not H4 to H1B , and in that process they are mentioning she may get H1B approval without I-94… what does it mean… ??

Q1) H1 with out I94 what does it mean?

Q2) She can work on Newly approved H1 without I94 OR she need to go out of country first and get H1b stamped before starting a new position.

Q3) Also, as she is currently out of job and received 2 offers, can we accept both offers…and which ever H1b is approved we can join that , in the best case scenario, if both are approved we can opt for one of those two. Is my assumption correct?

2

Hi @Amit_Agrawal

H1B approval without i94 means that it is approved with consular processing. This simply means that she will have to go out of US, get a new H1B visa stamp in passport and then come back to US using H1B visa.

She cannot start work on H1B until a new i94 is issued with H1B status.

You can file as many H1B transfer as you want and can choose to join any one company in case of multiple approvals.

3

Thank you Anil for a quick reply, your forum is really helpful… we also came to know looks like my wife’s previous employer forgot to revoke her H1B… it is still looking approved/active status… will it make difference in the above case ?

4

Hi @Amit_Agrawal

It won’t make any difference to your case.

5

Hi Anil, Thank you for your help…in continuation with above email trail and mentioned scenario-

My Wife’s employer will file for H1B in premium processing (it may take a week, corporate attorney have there own process), Just in case if we get RFE on H1B to wait for pending H4 approval or H1B approval with counselor processing w/o I94, Then in that case we need to wait for visa stamping appointment wait time of 45-60 days.This may cause employer revoke the offer

To avoid the long wait times, Should we parallel schedule and take visa appointment/stamping date in India for H4 stamping & as soon as H1B is filled based on H1B receipt date , also can we take another appointment for H4 stamping in INDIA… this will save us atleast 20-25 days… i am willing to lose $200 on each appointment just in case if visa is approved w/o any issue… but we wanted to be prepared for worst case scenario.

Or if you have any better options, can you please recommend here…

Thank you so much… much much appreciated

6

Hi @Amit_Agrawal

You are trying to mix too many things at same time. I suggest to do one thing at a time.

Do not schedule appointments for different types of visa types at same time. I would not suggest doing it.

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7

Thank you for your reply… ill wait as you suggested… will keep you posted…

Thanks
Amit

8

Company A has filed my H1b which was approved and active from Oct 1st 2020. I was laid off from company A on August (due to covid).

Company B is going to file my H1 transfer on Oct 1st. If I file for H1 to H4 COS on Nov 15th (still within the gap period)

Will my H1 registration number still be valid and will I be exempt from the H1B quota for the next 6 years?

Will I be subjected to counseling when I transfer from H1 to H4?

10

Hi @Amit_Agrawal - can you please share what happened eventually with you wife’s case? I am in the same boat and any information would be helpful.

Thanks
A

11

Vipasha, Anim

She waited for H4 and H4EAD approval… once we got EAD… she resumed working

1 Like
13

Hi Everyone. I am in an interesting state currently. I have H1B with company A & I140 approved with company B, my wife have H1B & I140approved with company C, I quit my job with Company A to have a break to reinvent myself. Now I am on 60 day grace period, to get a job and retain my H1B, So I started applying H4 on my wife’s H1B with Company C. If I get a job with company X after a week of applying for my H4 visa. Can I request company X to apply for H1B visa and join the company just after getting H1B receipt? what are my options?