Change Of Status - H4 to H1B

[praveenagarwal]

Hi,

Me and my wife both are in US right now. I am on H1B (valid till Dec,2017 and can be extended till Dec,2020) and she is on H4.  I want to file COS for my wife (H4 to H1B) next year (April 2017). She got an employer who is willing to file COS for her. But my concerns are as follows :

1. As she is filing her H1B for the first time, will COS undergo through lottery(65k Cap) or there is no cap for COS?
2. If she want to visit India Feb,2017 for 4/5 Months will that impact her chances to get her H1B?

Any response would be much appreciated.

Thanks
Praveen

[JoeF]

First, you can't file her H1, an employer can.

Second, if she hasn't had an H1 before, it of course goes through the lottery.

Third, travel abroad has no influence on this.