I-94 expired: H1B - F2

[kewl_guy]

My 3 yr H1B period finished on 02/13. My employer declined to apply for my extension for the 2nd 3 year term = laid off. My I-94 date also has an expiry date of 02/13. I had job interviews this week, none of which have been finalized. I was thinking if I got job opportunity, then we can apply for H1B transfer directly.

My spouse is currently a student at one of the US universities on F1. We are planning to apply for H1B to F2 change of status. We will apply on 02/18 for change of status.

Does the 5 day I-94 period matter? I understand the rule about I-94 expiry and leaving the country....

but is USCIS so particular about I-94 expiry dates? Have there been cases where approval was done in the past in similar circumstances? What are our chances of getting approved for change of status?

My oversight of I-94 was due to my thought of the grace period of 2 months after visa expires.

[Attorney_11]

The dates of validity of an I-94 are very important, as they reflect the period and circumstances of an nonimmigrant individual's presence in the United States. Generally, a change of status filed after an individual's authorized period of stay has expired is not permitted by law to be granted absent the existence of extraordinary circumstances outside of the control of the nonimmigrant which prompts the USCIS officer to exercise favorable discretion to change the status of the nonimmigrant notwithstanding them being out of status. This is an extraordinary remedy, and is not always granted. It is helpful to discuss this with a qualified immigration attorney.

[kewl_guy]

Thank you for your support. I received approval letter from USCIS.

I applied for change of status from H1 to F2, approved on March 14th. Our receipt date by USCIS is Feb. 25th. The problem now: H1 expired on feb 13th. Our receipt date is Feb 25th. Approval date on the approval letter is March 14th. Will that be a problem?

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I have a job offer from a university. I haven't applied for H1B because the human resources is delaying sending me official letter. If I apply for H1B now, will the gap between H1 and F2 be a problem? Will the USCIS even notice that discrepancy?

Thank you.