L to H trasfer within US for same employer

[laxmi4dice]

Hello ,

Current I am working on L1B through employer A and I have valid Visa and I94 till April 2014, My 5 yrs of physical stay is completing around Aug 1st 2013.
Now my employer is planning to apply for H1 B in April 2013 .

1.Before Aug 1st 2013 if my H1B approved anytime ,Can I continue to work for same employer without leaving the country by applying COS from L to H with the approval notice and receipt number.or Do I need to leave the country after my physical stay completes and get stamped on H1B before entering US.

I heard from one of my friend saying I can stay in US and continue with same employer once my H1B approved before my L1B physical stay completes.

Can anyone suggest me?

[raghvi]

Hello ,

Current I am working on L1B through employer A and I have valid Visa and I94 till April 2014, My 5 yrs of physical stay is completing around Aug 1st 2013.
Now my employer is planning to apply for H1 B in April 2013 .

1.Before Aug 1st 2013 if my H1B approved anytime ,Can I continue to work for same employer without leaving the country by applying COS from L to H with the approval notice and receipt number.or Do I need to leave the country after my physical stay completes and get stamped on H1B before entering US.

I heard from one of my friend saying I can stay in US and continue with same employer once my H1B approved before my L1B physical stay completes.

Can anyone suggest me?

That would have been possible if you had an approved H1 petition in last 6 years.

A fresh H1 can start only from 01-Oct-2013. Since your 5 year stay on L1 is completing in Aug 1 2013, and new H1 cant start till 01-Oct-2013 you will have to leave US on or before 01-August-2013 , get H1 stamped outside US and re enter on or around 01-Oct-2013 if H1 approved. Also, since L1+H1 combined can only be for 6 years, your new H1 will most probably be valid for only 1 Year, that is, if it starts from 01-Oct-2013 it can only be valid till 01-Oct-2014. Post 01-Oct-2014 you will have to stay out of US for one full year in order to be eligible for fresh L1/H1.

To avoid stay outside from Aug-Oct 2013 You can try to convert L1B to L1A if you hold a managerial post, as L1A can be valid for 7 Years. But its subject to approval and you should do so as premium processing as you have time only till August 2013 to get it approved.

To stay beyond 6 years, start your GC processing immediately. If your labor and PERM is applied 1 Year before your 6th Year stay completion you can potentially seek extension of H1 beyond 6th Year. But even in this scenario you still need to leave US for the August 2013 - Oct 2013 period.

So here are your options:
1. If you don't want to leave US from Aug-2013 till Oct-2013 then converting to L1A is the only option.
2. If you leave and come back on H1 in Oct 2013, in order to stay beyond 6th Year GC processing ASAP is the only option.

This is my opinion not legal advice.