F1 OPT expired, got RFE on H1.

[skanti]

Hi,

I applied my H1 3'rd week of july and got an RFE early this week. My OPT expired last week of july 2011, and the sevis is expiring last week of september. I want to join some school and transfer my sevis incase my H1 gets rejected, but i don't know if my H1 will be approved or denied after i reply to the RFE. Here is my question:

If i apply some school for spring 2012 incase my H1 gets denied(may be by end of october), how does the sevis system work? Since my current sevis will be expired last week of september, do i need to go out of US and get my visa stamped again?

I also nee some suggestion from you guys. I can transfer my sevis to some school next week, and then answer the RFE waiting for my H1 but i will be wasting around 6000$ in tution fee if my H1 gets approved next month. What's the best thing i can do in this situation?

I would rather prefer to apply for spring 2012 if incase my H1 gets denied next month, but i'm not sure how the sevis works. If i had to go out of the country to get the visa stamped after my sevis expires, its really a pain to go through the whole process.

Please suggest...

[stuladh0]

Hi,

I am in the same situation. My OPT is expiring on 09/30/2011. My lawyer told me that I cannot work after 09/30/2011 until my H-1B gets approved. However, I can stay in the country legally until I get a decision but cannot work.

I got a RFE earlier this month and my lawyer will send out a reply by next week. As it takes 14 days to process a RFE reply under Premium Processing, I will probably not get a decision before 10/01/2011.

1. In case, you are not enrolled in a college with a valid I-20 and your H-1B gets denied, you will have to leave the country immediately.

2. In case, your H-1 does get approved, and you are not maintaining a valid F-1 status at that time, you will have to get an H-1B stamped at the US Consulate and return to the US before you start working. You have to maintain F-1 status, if not, USCIS will not grant you a change of status from F-1 to H-1B. You will remain in F-1 grace period until 11/30/2011. If your H-1 gets approved before 11/30/2011, you should not have any problem with the change of status.

3. If you enroll for Spring 2012, your classes will start in January 2012. Colleges can only issue an I-20 upto 30 days before the classes start i.e. Dec 2011. This might be a little risky, since your grace period ends on 11/30/2011, at that point, you will be become out of status.

In my situation, I have a Bachelors degree and I am thinking about getting a Masters degree. I am starting my Masters degree in 10/03/2011 which I will be doing regardless of the decision of H-1B, as well as to maintain my F-1 status in case my H-1B gets denied.

[skanti]

Stuladh0, thanks for the reply.

My lawyer will be replying the RFE in the next couple of weeks. So, may be i will get the H1 approval/denied decision in november because my H1 is regular processing. Since my OPT expired in last week of July and sevis expires next week, i will still be in status while my H1 is pending. But, do i have to go out of US and get my visa stamped before i start working incase my H1 is approved?

Also if my H1 gets denied may be lately in november, there will be a 60 day grace period right. So, can i apply for some school in spring 2012 which start in december and then apply for reinstate/COS in the 60 day grace period?