Is H1B to L1A conversion possible?

[dinesh.saini]

Hello,

I am about to complete 6 years in US on H-1B visa without my parent company filing my paperwork for permanent residency. But in case I need to stay further, can L1A be filed for me without having to go out of the United States.

So 2 queries,

1) Is the above filing possible?

2) If yes, do I still need to take a break by moving out or can I continue to stay in the Unites States?

Responses will be appreciated.

Regards.

[Jatin_Chawla]

Dinesh,

In my opinion, your Change Of Status to L1A can be filed without you having to leave US. Since L1A is good for 7 years, you will get I-94 valid for another year. So, you dont need to leave US for stamping. One important thing to keep in mind: The only way a person is able to switch from H1B to L1A is to file the COS to L1A at least 6 months before the expiration of the H1B status

Also, you should be working in managerial capacity not only limited to supervision of employees but also performing duties related to operational and policy management.

Pls let me know if that helps or if you have any other questions.

-Jatin

[dinesh.saini]

Thanks for replying to my query Jatin.

Here is what I understood. If I get an L1A conversion, that means stay for another year which counts the 6 years spent on H-1B for the L1A being sought.

Another thing, if I travel out of US once L1A is approved, I must return with a stamped L1A before the completion of 7 years. Please confirm if that is correct. If yes, and when I return, immigration officers sometime give 3 years of I-94 date. So suppose I return on 15 Nov 2012 and I am given an I-94 date of 15 Nov 2015, am I good to continue to stay till that date despite expiry of my visa in 2013.

Thanks for your time and appreciate your response.

- Dinesh

[JoeF]

You can not stay past the 7 years, even in the unlikely case an officer gave you a wrong stamp. They will eventually find out and correct it, which means that if you stay longer, you would end up being illegal.

[dinesh.saini]

Thanks Joe.

[Jatin_Chawla]

Dinesh,

You will get an additional year if you CoS to L1A since that is for 7 years.

If you get your change of status approved and leave US and come back, then you would need to get L1A visa stamped in your passport.

If by mistake, you get I-94 for three more years, then you should still leave the country on completing 7 years.

Hope that helps.

-Jatin

[dinesh.saini]

Yes Jatin. This does help :) thanks a lot!

[ksribhas]

For you to be in the L category work visa , you need to have worked abroad for 1 CONTINOUS year in the immediate past 3 years in a related organization of your US organization .

Looks like you have been in the US for more than 3 years on the current H1 visa , so I guess shifting to L visa is not possible.

For it to be possible you need to go abroad and work on a child/subsidiary or related organization ofyour company for atlest 1 year and come back on the L visa ( you can actually come back on H visa at the time as the clock resets)

[paolo.lensi]

Hi, I came to US on H1 visa in Jan 2013, prior to that I was in India working for same employer as Director but the India company was not a subsidiary of the US company back then. In late, the US company acquired the India entity. Is it possible to convert to L1A? Also, can I go back to India and work for the India company and apply as L1A while H1 is still active?