Question On H1b Grace period

[swetha1982]

I am presently on H1b grace period , which ends on June 3rd. But I have valid I-94 till Jan 2021. So after june 3rd , will be out of status and leave country.

What will my siutaion after H1b grace period?

[User099]

You will be out of status unless you find a new job and file a new H1.

[gopalakrishnach]

Within 60 days you need to have H1B petition with USCIS. If that happens you can be in USA and work until 240 days after your I94 expiry since you have a valid petition before I94 expired. If you do not have H1B petition before 60 days you cannot stay in USA.

[A_P_]

On 4/20/2020 at 4:39 PM, swetha1982 said:

I am presently on H1b grace period , which ends on June 3rd. But I have valid I-94 till Jan 2021. So after june 3rd , will be out of status and leave country.

What will my siutaion after H1b grace period?

1. If you find a new job and your new employer applies for your H-1B (Change Of Status) before June 3rd, you can start working for your new employer as soon as you get the receipt notice.
2. If you can't find a new employer who can apply your H-1B (COS) before June 3rd, you can still stay in the US until your I-94 expires (Which is Jan-2021). You'll be 'Out Of Status' after June 3rd but not 'Unlawfully present in the US' since you have valid I-94. So, you can stay in the US and can find a new employer; but employer can only apply for your H-1B (Consular Process) and you can't start working until you get the approval and new stamp in your passport. So, you'll have to go out of country and come back with new H-1B visa with new H-1B approval. Please note that you'll only start acquiring 'unlawfully presence in the US' days after your I-94 expires. You just can't apply for any visa as a COS (e.g. form H1 to H1, form H1 to F1, from H1 to B1/B2 etc. scenarios)  while you're in the US after June 3rd since you'll be out of status by then.

Edited April 22, 2020 by A_P_

[JoeF]

Being out of status makes the person illegal. The time towards a ban only starts with I-94 expiration, but being out of status still means the person is illegal.

[User099]

On 4/21/2020 at 9:47 PM, A_P_ said:

1. If you find a new job and your new employer applies for your H-1B (Change Of Status) before June 3rd, you can start working for your new employer as soon as you get the receipt notice.
2. If you can't find a new employer who can apply your H-1B (COS) before June 3rd, you can still stay in the US until your I-94 expires (Which is Jan-2021). You'll be 'Out Of Status' after June 3rd but not 'Unlawfully present in the US' since you have valid I-94. So, you can stay in the US and can find a new employer; but employer can only apply for your H-1B (Consular Process) and you can't start working until you get the approval and new stamp in your passport. So, you'll have to go out of country and come back with new H-1B visa with new H-1B approval. Please note that you'll only start acquiring 'unlawfully presence in the US' days after your I-94 expires. You just can't apply for any visa as a COS (e.g. form H1 to H1, form H1 to F1, from H1 to B1/B2 etc. scenarios)  while you're in the US after June 3rd since you'll be out of status by then.

This is not right. After 60 days she will be Out of status and her Unlawful presence will kick in. She SHOULD NOT stay beyond 60 days if she cant find a new job or file a COS to B2. 

[A_P_]

On 4/21/2020 at 10:06 PM, JoeF said:

Being out of status makes the person illegal. The time towards a ban only starts with I-94 expiration, but being out of status still means the person is illegal.

That is only true for certain visa categories like student visa (F1, J1 etc.) where your I-94 tied to your status. For example, when you're on F-1 visa, your I-94 expires as soon as you're out-of-status.

But when you're on H-1B visa, your I-94 is not tied to your status. After you're out-of-status on H-1B, your involvement in certain activities like study, work etc. are illegal but 'Your stay in the US' is not illegal or unlawful.

Staying in the US is only considered illegal after your I-94 expired.

[JoeF]

15 minutes ago, A_P_ said:

That is only true for certain visa categories like student visa (F1, J1 etc.) where your I-94 tied to your status. For example, when you're on F-1 visa, your I-94 expires as soon as you're out-of-status.

But when you're on H-1B visa, your I-94 is not tied to your status. After you're out-of-status on H-1B, your involvement in certain activities like study, work etc. are illegal but 'Your stay in the US' is not illegal or unlawful.

Staying in the US is only considered illegal after your I-94 expired.

No, you are wrong. First, students usually have D/S, i.e., no specific date on their I-94s.

You are out of status if you don't fulfill the requirements of your status. That does make you illegal. You don't have the time towards a ban starting until the I-94 expires, but being out if status does mean you are illegal.

Also note that men under the age of 32 who are out of status are required by law to register for Selective Services. There is only an exception for men who are in valid non-immigrant status.

[A_P_]

4 hours ago, User099 said:

This is not right. After 60 days she will be Out of status and her Unlawful presence will kick in. She SHOULD NOT stay beyond 60 days if she cant find a new job or file a COS to B2. 

A person is out-of-status as soon as he/she stop working or laid off. 60 days are grace period, during this period you can apply for H-1B or any other visa as a change of status. Unlawful presence will kick in only after I-94 expires. On H-1B visa, I-94 is not tied to your status.

 

[newacct]

1 hour ago, A_P_ said:

That is only true for certain visa categories like student visa (F1, J1 etc.) where your I-94 tied to your status. For example, when you're on F-1 visa, your I-94 expires as soon as you're out-of-status.

But when you're on H-1B visa, your I-94 is not tied to your status. After you're out-of-status on H-1B, your involvement in certain activities like study, work etc. are illegal but 'Your stay in the US' is not illegal or unlawful.

Staying in the US is only considered illegal after your I-94 expired.

What JoeF said is correct. If you are on H1b and stop working, after the grace period you are out of status and deportable. That is generally described as "illegal", even if you are not accruing "unlawful presence" for the purposes of the ban.

Edited April 23, 2020 by newacct

[A_P_]

2 hours ago, JoeF said:

No, you are wrong. First, students usually have D/S, i.e., no specific date on their I-94s.

Correct. Students have D/S (Depends on Status) on their I-94 expiration date section. So, as soon as they're out-of-status, their I-94 expires and their stay is considered illegal (They start acquiring Unlawful Presence Days).

2 hours ago, JoeF said:

You are out of status if you don't fulfill the requirements of your status. That does make you illegal. You don't have the time towards a ban starting until the I-94 expires, but being out if status does mean you are illegal.

Yes, you are out-of-status if you don't fulfill the requirements of your status BUT your stay doesn't consider illegal. Your stay in the US is only considered illegal after your I-94 expires.

 

Someone very close was in the same situation in 2018. I'm not the immigration expert but we've consulted three(3) different immigration attorneys at that time. 🙂

[User099]

19 hours ago, A_P_ said:

A person is out-of-status as soon as he/she stop working or laid off. 60 days are grace period, during this period you can apply for H-1B or any other visa as a change of status. Unlawful presence will kick in only after I-94 expires. On H-1B visa, I-94 is not tied to your status.

 

I don't think you understand so I will not waste my time. But what you said is not correct. 

[A_P_]

On 4/24/2020 at 7:11 AM, User099 said:

I don't think you understand so I will not waste my time. But what you said is not correct. 

1. You said, "After 60 days she will be Out of status" -- A person is out of status as soon he/she is out of job (Not after 60 days! 🙂) 60 days time is a grace period only.
2. You said, "her Unlawful presence will kick in." -- Unlawful presence (180 days time towards a ban) only start after your I-94 expires. Please see JoeF's post above.

I don't want to 'Correct' you. Just want to share correct information here. 🙂

[User099]

19 hours ago, A_P_ said:

1. You said, "After 60 days she will be Out of status" -- A person is out of status as soon he/she is out of job (Not after 60 days! 🙂) 60 days time is a grace period only.
2. You said, "her Unlawful presence will kick in." -- Unlawful presence (180 days time towards a ban) only start after your I-94 expires. Please see JoeF's post above.

I don't want to 'Correct' you. Just want to share correct information here. 🙂

Not having a job and just having a I94 on H1 will not help you. Any immigration attorney will be able to tell you that. You have 60 days after job loss and if you can't find a job its best to leave the country or move to another status.