H4 to H1 - Couldnt start due to pregnancy related issues

[lizaabraham]

Hi,

I would like to get some opinion about the best legal thing to do in my current situation.

I've been in the United States for the last 2 years on H4 visa. My husband is working here on H1b. We live on the west coast. Also his GC is in process. My husband's visa(along with my H4) got extended on September 2012 and it is valid till 2015. But it hasn't been stamped yet.

I got a job in 2012 and my employer applied for my H1b. I finally got my H1b approved on January 23rd 2013(Got an RFE in between). I was supposed to join the company in Virginia as soon as I got my visa approved.

But around January first week I discovered I was pregnant. Since it was an unplanned pregnancy(I was looking forward to working again), I was really depressed. Also my husband and I didn't want me to stay away from family during this time. So we requested my employer to give us some time to join. We wanted to take some time and decide as to what to do. Now we are thinking about joining the company if they have the option to work from home(now they are willing to consider that) for some time. I haven't received any pay slips so far since I haven't started working as yet.

1. I would like to know if I can join the company and start working without any issues. It has been almost 2 months since I got my H1 approved.

2. Am I considered out of status? I think I can get the required documents stating that it was an unplanned pregnancy, if required. Also I have disucssed with my gynaecologist about the depression and whether we need to consult a specialist. But since we still feel that it is not of utmost need, we haven't consulted any specialist as yet.

3. Should I consider switching to H4 even if my company says that I can work from home?

4. Should I get my H4 stamped from India now? Would I face any issues if I file I-539? I don't want any issues to arise during the later stages of my pregnancy.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you in advance.

[omshiv]

I dont know why would you be in a depression..as a matter of fact you guys should be happy that you are blessed with a child...Strange!!

you should also feel lucky as your employer is allowing you to work from home!!

for your question, yes you can start work without any issues.