Urgent help needed !!! Got fired on H1B ! How to save my current status on H1B

[rahulKapoor5]

Hi ,

I am on H1B . I got fired yesterday . What can I do to save my current status on H1B before I find an employer to hold my visa . Can I convert my visa to another visa ?
Please advise ASAP on how to manage this situation.


Thanks,
Rahul.

[cyanide]

Hi ,

I am on H1B . I got fired yesterday . What can I do to save my current status on H1B before I find an employer to hold my visa . Can I convert my visa to another visa ?
Please advise ASAP on how to manage this situation.


Thanks,
Rahul.

depends on your current employer, were you contracting or FTE? If you were contracting, then you can actually talk to your employer to not revoke your H1 until you find a new employer. Most of the desi employers will wait.
But if you got fired from a FT position, then you will have upto 60 days. Write to your HR asking how long your current H1 is going to be valid.
You shld be able to get a H1 transfer immediately as lot of employers are willing to do H1 transfer these days.

Don't be tensed.

[rahulKapoor5]

I was on FT position with a desi company . But they say they would initiate revokation . Since I am not on their payroll currently , and since I need time to find an employer should I go back to India and find an employer ? In this case , can I come back as soon as I find a new job .

OR

Can I convert my visa to any other visa ? Which option is more advisable?

[cyanide]

It all depends on your employer, ask your employer how many days you have before your H1B is revoked. As far as my knowledge goes, the day you are terminated and your payroll is not running, that means you are out of status. Below are some of the things you can do.... i have prioritized it.

> Talk to other desi employers and get a H1 transfer initiated ASAP, keep your resume floating in parallel and try to get a confirmation. This will help in H1 transfer.
> Talk to your employer and see if he can run your payroll until you find another position and pay him the money for it (some employers do it).
> If neither of these work, then you can always transfer to a F1 (student) or B1, B2(Visitor/Business) visa's. Once you get on any of these VISA's, you can always come back on H1 once you find a job.

I am not going to list the option of going back to India, as you don't have to do that.

Ideally, if your employer initiates the H1B revoking process, USCIS will take months to process it and until it is processed, your out of status won't be official. So I am sure you have a lot of time to get your H1 transfer, work hard on it. Don't relax. You should be fine.

[happybuddha]

But if you got fired from a FT position, then you will have upto 60 days.

Says who ?
When is your I94 valid upto ?
You are out of status from the day the payroll stops running. The only option without a premium processing transfer is to leave the country. And you have to initiate that immediately. A few days of immediate out of status should not matter. You will also need to mention that you were living out of status for every future visa application.
An employer, by law, is required to buy you a plane ticket to your home country when you are fired on H1.

[cyanide]

I agree with happyBuddha's comment.
Sorry about the 60 day comment.

Like I mentioned in the 2nd comment, the day your payroll stops, you are out of status.

~cyanide.

[swiss]

But when is he officially "off payroll"?

Says who ?
You are out of status from the day the payroll stops running.

Like I mentioned in the 2nd comment, the day your payroll stops, you are out of status.

I know its been a long while, hope you can help still. Can you explain this part? I read that an employer has to prove "bona fide" termination before he can legally stop paying an H-1B. Does that not mean that it doesn't matter to you status when he stops paying you (As you say above), it matters when he is allowed to stop paying you, which would not be before he has initiated the three steps the DOL says are necessary for a bona fide termination.

DOL website says (http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/complian...whdfs62i.htm):

"When does the obligation to pay for nonproductive time stop?
Payment for nonproductive time is not required after a bona fide termination of employment. The best evidence of such termination is the employer's notification to the USCIS that:
* The employment relationship has been terminated;
* The Petition should be cancelled; and
* The employee has been provided with payment for transportation home where required by USCIS regulations."

Please tell me if I'm wrong?