H1b Transfer question- Please reply urgently I need help

[neha2107]

Hi,

I am currently on the H1B Visa and have been laid off recently from my current company..My last date with my current employer is 7th May. In the mean time I have found a new employer and they had already filed my LCA on 17th of April and will be doing my H1b Visa transfer on PP. They are expecting to file my case by 1st or 2nd of may under premium processing. Can someone please help me with below questions.

a) Will I be ok and if they file my visa before my last day.
b) Also after they file and I get the receipt number... will I be ok to leave my current employer on 7th May and wait for 2 weeks to join the new employer as I need to relocate to new location.

Please help me with your suggestions.

Appreciate your time.

[Nattybone]

Hello, Neha.

Please find suggestions inline, below.

Cheers,

Hi,

I am currently on the H1B Visa and have been laid off recently from my current company..My last date with my current employer is 7th May. In the mean time I have found a new employer and they had already filed my LCA on 17th of April and will be doing my H1b Visa transfer on PP. They are expecting to file my case by 1st or 2nd of may under premium processing. Can someone please help me with below questions.

a) Will I be ok and if they file my visa before my last day. - Yes. It is ok to file for visa transfer before your last day. Actually, that is how it should be. On H1B visa, one cannot have gap in employment. So, one should not wait for an employment (on H1B) to get over to apply. This way, the payroll will stop running once the employment is over and subsequently the visa will go our of status.
b) Also after they file and I get the receipt number... will I be ok to leave my current employer on 7th May and wait for 2 weeks to join the new employer as I need to relocate to new location. - From what i understand, there should not be any gap in employment / payroll running on H1B visa. If your payroll is not run for these 2 weeks, (even for 1 day), you will be deemed out of status whenever USCIS finds this out. And they might discover this 1 year later. So, please do not have any gap in employment while on H1B visa.

Suggestion: If you want some time to move to a new location, while i would not suggest this, you could see if the new employer will still run your payroll while you are not working for these 2 weeks. You could pay them back or they could just allow you 2 weeks of no work pay. With many Desi IT consultancies the trend of paying the employer for running the payroll is rampant. However, i would not want to take chances with my H1B visa if i was in your place. So, in parallel, try to find a new place and DO NOT have gap in employment. I hope this helps. Wishing you luck.

Please help me with your suggestions.

Appreciate your time.