H1B marrying an American!

[ayushi]

Hi,

I am on H1B right now and planning on marrying an American citizen. Do I still need to maintain my H1 status after marrying him and keep working on my Green Card filed by my employer until I get the Permanent Resident status?

 

[JoeF]

Your US citizen spouse can file an I-130 for you, and at the same time, you can file an I-485 and EAD. Once you have the EAD, you don't need the H1 anymore. The EAD allows you to work anywhere.

 

[ayushi]

Thanks for replying Joef!

Would you know how much time does it take to get EAD? Also, does this mean that I should not stop my current GC process that my employer has initiated until I get my EAD?

-Ayushi

 

[pontevecchio]

The EAD should take 3-6 months to arrive.  Till then you may like to work for the H1 sponsor. Infractions by the spouses of American Citizens are forgiven as a rule and hence once your AOS is on file you can stop working. Your current GC process is not relevant and informing or not informing the employer has no relevance.

[ayushi]

Thanks a lot to reply my questions! I have a few more :)

After the wedding,  am I good to travel internationally before I get my EAD or I will have to wait until I get that? Also, if it is fine for me to travel before I get my EAD, do I need to get the Visa stamping done as I changed my employer in 2017 and never got the stamping done.

-Ayushi

[pontevecchio]

EAD is irrelevant to travel. But yes, it is a combined EAD/AP card and you should wait for that before travel. It is of course possible to return on H1 status even with an AOS on file and if you have valid H1 stamp from any employer, you can return on that visa and the latest H1 petition approval.