Any inherent risk in porting using AC21 ?

[prolific]

I currently work on EAD and am planning to file AC-21 and work directly for my prime vendor. I have been with my current (sponsoring) employer for 5 years now. My  EB2 PD is April 2009. My H1B term expired in May,2013 and I decided to forgo extending it any further mostly because both my spouse and I have an EAD, now valid till March 2015 based on a pending 485 application. My 485 application was filed in February,2012, has been pre-adjudicated and pending ever since with no RFEs. With the current timelines I do not anticipate my PD being current atleast till AUG/SEPT, 2014. I work as  sr. consultant in a specialised IT position with a relatively higher 3 digit billing rate. In the past few months, I have tried to negotiate (unsuccessfully) with my current employer to secure a higher and reasonable share of the billing rate. Now I've decided to move on and join the prime vendor using AC21. My questions are -

1. i.Is the employer or petitioner legally obligated to withdraw an approved I-140 application once the beneficiary leaves the organization - especially in cases where the I-140 has been approved since a long duration ( say two years) and 485 has been pending over 180 days?
ii.if yes, what is the purpose/technical reason/motive behind the petitioner withdrawing a I140 application post 180 days of I-485 application ?
iii.If there is a technical reason, can you link/quote that regulation ?

 

2. i. Does withdrawal of the I-140 always result into a RFE - either a request for an employment letter, NOID or NOIR Irrespective of whether an AC21 is filed or not ?
ii.Once an AC21 is filed, what is the chance of an NOID, NOIR or an employment letter RFE ?

 

3. Is there ANY inherent denial risk to the beneficary's I-485 application once an I-140 is withdrawn (post > 180 days of I-485 application pending) assuming a straight forward non-fradulent case ?

Just trying to check if there is ANY reason/risk I should not jump ships for or If the sponsoring employer can play a killjoy and create hurdles along the way

 

When I do file AC21, I plan to hire a good lawyer to take over representation of my case.

[cap-gap]

it is not mandatory to withdraw 140, but most legitimate employers do to avoid any liability.

 

If you don't file AC21 before that withdrawl, you'll get either RFE/NOID..

 

even after AC-21, there is reasonable RFE chance for an updated EVL, if the PD becomes current not right away but after several months..

[Belle]

1. No obligation. The only good reason is if the organization is small, and they can't show ability to pay for future I-140s unless they relieve themseves of obligation to pay on your I-140.

2. Less likely if you have filed an AC21 notification, but I would say, you are more likley to get an RFE then not.

3. The USCIS will look at your case to see if there was anything funny with it. If the case is solid, there is no reason to worry.

[prolific]

1. No obligation. The only good reason is if the organization is small, and they can't show ability to pay for future I-140s unless they relieve themseves of obligation to pay on your I-140.

2. Less likely if you have filed an AC21 notification, but I would say, you are more likley to get an RFE then not.

- Thanks Belle. What kind of a RFE is most common in such cases other than an employment letter (which would already be enclosed as part of AC21) ?  After filing AC21 notification, what is the practical probability of getting a NOID  ? I assume a NOID will be the worst case scenario

3. The USCIS will look at your case to see if there was anything funny with it. If the case is solid, there is no reason to worry.