My wife will applying for H1b, shud i apply for L1 or H4 as i intend to do MS?

[vipinTousa]

Hi My wife will be applying for her h1b next year, I want to do my MS in USA, so should i apply for F1 visa or h4 visa for better chances to go to USA and which visa would be easier to convert to H1b?

[Nattybone]

Hi My wife will be applying for her h1b next year, I want to do my MS in USA, so should i apply for L1 visa or h4 visa for better chances to go to USA and which visa would be easier to convert to H1b?

Hello, Vipin.

By applying, you meant applying for F1 visa or L1? You cannot apply for L1 like that, without an employer.

Cheers,

[vipinTousa]

Thanx for the reply..sorry i meant F1
Just wanted to know the best option ie whether to apply for the F1 visa or H4 visa when my wife gets her h1b
as i intend to do MS, also which visa wud b easier to convert to H1b later

[Nattybone]

Thanx for the reply..sorry i meant F1

Hello, Vipin.

On F1, you will end up spending the University Fee (which would be a decent amount of money). And, you will have to follow the class schedule, regulations laid down by the University.

On H4, you have no tension of paying any university to maintain status. As long as your wife's H1B is fine, you are good.

Switching to H1
From H4 - It is a little tricky, as you cannot work on H4. So, someone has to willing to hire and sponsor you without having to see you work. But, if you are in technical field, like Programming etc. a lot of companies will be willing to hire you and sponsor you from H4. If you are not a technical person, then it could be tricky to get H1 sponsored.

From F1 - While you will spend money, but F1 allows you OPT/CPT. So, while working for a good company on CPT/OPT, you could ask them if they will sponsor your H1B.

Many people (spouses of H1) do this as well, they are on H4, they go to some small university and get enrolled and do a change of status to F1. Then they take land a job and take CPT from the University. During this time, they ask their employer to sponsor their H1B. Once you are working, the employer has less reservations in filing for H1B, compared to when you are not working.

As i mentioned earlier, if you are a technical person, like Database Administrator, Programmer, a lot of companies will be willing to sponsor your H1B from H4.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

[vipinTousa]

Hello, Vipin.

On F1, you will end up spending the University Fee (which would be a decent amount of money). And, you will have to follow the class schedule, regulations laid down by the University.

On H4, you have no tension of paying any university to maintain status. As long as your wife's H1B is fine, you are good.

Switching to H1
From H4 - It is a little tricky, as you cannot work on H4. So, someone has to willing to hire and sponsor you without having to see you work. But, if you are in technical field, like Programming etc. a lot of companies will be willing to hire you and sponsor you from H4. If you are not a technical person, then it could be tricky to get H1 sponsored.

From F1 - While you will spend money, but F1 allows you OPT/CPT. So, while working for a good company on CPT/OPT, you could ask them if they will sponsor your H1B.

Many people (spouses of H1) do this as well, they are on H4, they go to some small university and get enrolled and do a change of status to F1. Then they take land a job and take CPT from the University. During this time, they ask their employer to sponsor their H1B. Once you are working, the employer has less reservations in filing for H1B, compared to when you are not working.

As i mentioned earlier, if you are a technical person, like Database Administrator, Programmer, a lot of companies will be willing to sponsor your H1B from H4.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Thanx a ton again..its given me a better understanding now

[vipinTousa]

Thanx a ton again..its given me a better understanding now

Now shud i do my GRE/TOEFL in india or is there an option to do it in USA when im on my H4 visa

[Nattybone]

Now shud i do my GRE/TOEFL in india or is there an option to do it in USA when im on my H4 visa

Hello, Vipin.

You should be able to be able to give these exams from USA. Do read up a little bit on this online, as i have little knowledge on this. But, on the face of it, it should be allowed, that is how so many people are able to change status inside the USA.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

[kadkhiq81]

My wife will applying for H1b, shud i apply for L1 or H4 as i intend to do MS?

GRE/TOFEL exams can take up anywhere in the world!!