H1B MTR Pending For 4 Months - CPT option?


h1b MTR2016

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Hi All,

My cap subject H1B was denied this year. A motion to re-open was filed in early August. Since August, there have been no updates from USCIS. 

My OPT is valid only till Feb,2017. I'm not even sure how long I can wait for a decision ?My attorneys raised a service request last month. There has been no response from USCIS. 

 I'm thinking of applying for second masters to maintain F1 status while MTR is being processed. I read online that MTR case becomes void when I exit the country. I'm not keen on a second degree at all  since this will involve me enroling in shady universities that offer CPT. I guess there's increased scrutiny these days from USCIS for CPT to H1B case. I have a Masters degree from a top university. I don't want to jeopardize my career by enroling in such universities. But my H1B application was filed through a consulting company for a major client company. If I decide not to enroll in a CPT school, will that not impact my H1B application filed for a client company ? Should I bite the bullet and enrol in a first day CPT type shady school to continue working for the existing client?

Please suggest the best options for me at this stage. Thanks. 

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Should I bite the bullet and enroll in a first day CPT type shady school to continue working for the existing client?

That is the worst possible option after graduating from a top university. Don't ever think you can get away. If not now, USCIS can scrutinize you for your future H-1 extensions and GC process if you want to take up CPT from day 1 from a shady institution.

Better to consult a good immigration attorney for suggestions.

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So, you already know CPT is bad, why are you even thinking about it? Abuse of CPT would kill your career in the US.

Was your degree in a STEM field? If so, you can get a STEM OPT extension.

And an MTR is generally a waste of time and money. It would only help if there is new evidence that USCIS didn't have originally.  But what you "read online" about the MTR becoming void when you exit the country is simply wrong. Have you checked that with your lawyer? COS is not possible when you are abroad, because by definition, a person only has a status while in the US. But that has nothing to do with an H1 petition or MTR per se.

 

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9 hours ago, shekar11# said:

Should I bite the bullet and enroll in a first day CPT type shady school to continue working for the existing client?

That is the worst possible option after graduating from a top university. Don't ever think you can get away. If not now, USCIS can scrutinize you for your future H-1 extensions and GC process if you want to take up CPT from day 1 from a shady institution.

Better to consult a good immigration attorney for suggestions.

I understand the implications. I'm concerned because me not working at client side post OPT end date may make USCIS to check  with client whether work is available for me. I have submitted client letter for 2 years. Won't USCIS deny my MTR based on me not working at client side anymore post OPT end date? Are you saying not working is better than continuing to work at client side on CPT ?

I'm most concerned about this aspect. 

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7 hours ago, JoeF said:

So, you already know CPT is bad, why are you even thinking about it? Abuse of CPT would kill your career in the US.

Was your degree in a STEM field? If so, you can get a STEM OPT extension.

And an MTR is generally a waste of time and money. It would only help if there is new evidence that USCIS didn't have originally.  But what you "read online" about the MTR becoming void when you exit the country is simply wrong. Have you checked that with your lawyer? COS is not possible when you are abroad, because by definition, a person only has a status while in the US. But that has nothing to do with an H1 petition or MTR per se.

 

I graduated from a non-STEM program. So, I don't have any options.

My MTR was filed with new evidence. I do believe strongly my case was not adjudicated fairly. I'm hopeful of a positive decision. I just don't know when that will happen.  Thanks for clarifying about MTR. 

I understand the implications of CPT. I'm concerned because me not working at client side post OPT end date may make USCIS to check  with client whether work is available for me(Won't they?). I have submitted exhaustive documentation, including authorized client letter for 2 years of specialty work. Won't USCIS deny my MTR based on me not working at client side anymore post OPT end date(in case they open my file after my OPT ends and calls the client). What if my client says he does not work anymore?  

 

 

Are you saying not working at client side is better than working CPT, while my MTR is pending ? Won't USCIS say , 'You stopped working at client side after OPT. What's the guarantee you have specialized work for 2 years at that client?'  I'm most concerned about this aspect. 

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If you graduated from a top university, why did you even go with a consulting company?

There are career fairs at all good universities, where you could have talked with real companies, gotten an internship or real job with OPT.

IF you graduated from a top university, going with a consulting company already damaged your career. I sometimes interview people for our company, and if I see a resume from a graduate from a top university who worked at some consulting company, my first thought would be "what's wrong with this person?" A degree from a top university opens doors, but you closed the doors again by going to a consulting company...

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14 hours ago, h1b MTR2016 said:

I graduated from a non-STEM program. So, I don't have any options.

My MTR was filed with new evidence. I do believe strongly my case was not adjudicated fairly. I'm hopeful of a positive decision. I just don't know when that will happen.  Thanks for clarifying about MTR. 

I understand the implications of CPT. I'm concerned because me not working at client side post OPT end date may make USCIS to check  with client whether work is available for me(Won't they?). I have submitted exhaustive documentation, including authorized client letter for 2 years of specialty work. Won't USCIS deny my MTR based on me not working at client side anymore post OPT end date(in case they open my file after my OPT ends and calls the client). What if my client says he does not work anymore?  

 

 

Are you saying not working at client side is better than working CPT, while my MTR is pending ? Won't USCIS say , 'You stopped working at client side after OPT. What's the guarantee you have specialized work for 2 years at that client?'  I'm most concerned about this aspect. 

Yes. Not working is better than working on CPT. You should be good. You can explain saying that because your OPT expired, you had to stop working. Consult an attorney for more options. I had a similar issue back in 2008. My H-1 was approved after 7 months of applying MTR.

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If you can't work at the client site due to not having work authorization, that's different than not having the client anymore. USCIS understands that. As long as the client is ok with you taking a leave of absence until your work authorization is sorted out, there wouldn't be much issues.

The client letter is about "once the H1 is approved, here is the project the person would be working on." It is ok to not work on the project before the H1 is approved, people who have an H1 filed while not in the US would have that same situation. It is important that the project exists, and that you are going to start working on the project when the H1 is approved.

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6 hours ago, shekar11# said:

Yes. Not working is better than working on CPT. You should be good. You can explain saying that because your OPT expired, you had to stop working. Consult an attorney for more options. I had a similar issue back in 2008. My H-1 was approved after 7 months of applying MTR.

In your case, were you able to go back to your client after your H-1 approved. What if my client replaces me with someone else in the interim period after my OPT expires and I'm not able to go back when H1 is approved? My employer is saying H1B application was filed for specialty work at the client company. So, you have to continue working there after OPT on CPT. 

Also, since my status at the time of filing MTR was F1 OPT , won't USCIS evaluate my application based on my status at the time (OPT) not future (say CPT)? Does USCIS check my status at the time of approving MTR for change of status to H1B? What I have heard from people is CPT to H1B is an issue only if at the time of lottery, someone's status is CPT. There's minimal to no impact on MTR  if someone's status at the time of lottery was F1 OPT (E.g.: Mine) but at time of MTR was CPT. If H1B is approved, but change of status is denied, then Cos can be addressed by going for stamping in the home country. I'm not sure how true this is. I'm extremely stressed at this stage! Please advise.  

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5 hours ago, JoeF said:

If you can't work at the client site due to not having work authorization, that's different than not having the client anymore. USCIS understands that. As long as the client is ok with you taking a leave of absence until your work authorization is sorted out, there wouldn't be much issues.

The client letter is about "once the H1 is approved, here is the project the person would be working on." It is ok to not work on the project before the H1 is approved, people who have an H1 filed while not in the US would have that same situation. It is important that the project exists, and that you are going to start working on the project when the H1 is approved.

I understand your point. What if the client replaces me with someone else in the interim period while my MTR is pending? That is a possibility. I do have the client letter for 2 years. But no client would want anyone to delay the timelines of the project. Even if they do me a break, it would be difficult to tell them when I would get a decision on my case. 

Yes, client issued a letter in April for start date of 1st Oct. But the decision didn't go my way. The project is ongoing since January this year. I'm on OPT since. 

 

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On 12/9/2016 at 7:22 PM, h1b MTR2016 said:

I understand your point. What if the client replaces me with someone else in the interim period while my MTR is pending? That is a possibility. I do have the client letter for 2 years. But no client would want anyone to delay the timelines of the project. Even if they do me a break, it would be difficult to tell them when I would get a decision on my case. 

Yes, client issued a letter in April for start date of 1st Oct. But the decision didn't go my way. The project is ongoing since January this year. I'm on OPT since. 

 

You'd have to discuss that with the client. There may be a possibility to work remotely from abroad.

And it is very likely that an F1 for a fraud university that allows abuse of CPT would not get approved, anyway. It would be a permanent red mark in your file, and you'd lose your career as well.

 

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