Do I need change of status (COS)?

[akumar24]

I was on H4 when I came to this country.
I got converted to H-1B visa after 1 year and am in the process of resigning from my company. I have one week left from Monday.
1. Do I need to change my status through the I-539 form OR would I be automatically switched to H4 visa when my company cancels the H-1B?
2. If I do need to file the I-539, do I need to pay any fees? Also, can I file on my own?
3. If I do need to file the I-539, do I have any grace period after my visa is cancelled? (like 30 days)
4. If I wish to get back on to H-1B, do I need to go through the April lottery or can a company file my H-1B anytime during the year on the current allocation.

Thanks a lot for your time and response, in advance.

Regards,
AKumar

[raghvi]

I was on H4 when I came to this country.
I got converted to H-1B visa after 1 year and am in the process of resigning from my company. I have one week left from Monday.
1. Do I need to change my status through the I-539 form OR would I be automatically switched to H4 visa when my company cancels the H-1B?
2. If I do need to file the I-539, do I need to pay any fees? Also, can I file on my own?
3. If I do need to file the I-539, do I have any grace period after my visa is cancelled? (like 30 days)
4. If I wish to get back on to H-1B, do I need to go through the April lottery or can a company file my H-1B anytime during the year on the current allocation.

Thanks a lot for your time and response, in advance.

Regards,
AKumar

1. Yes you need to file I539 to convert from H4 to H1 before your last working day.
2. Yes there is a fee associated with it. I think it is $290. Yes you can file on your own.
3. No grace period as such. The moment you stop getting paid on H1 and if at that time you dont have a COS pending you would go out of status.
4. If you still have time left on the H1 , that is you have not spent 6 Years on H1 , then yes you can get back to H1 and you need not be part of April cap. The next employer can file a cap exempt petition at any point. The catch is that H1 to H4 can sometimes take few months, so if before your H1 to H4 gets approved if you want to move to H1 things can get complicated.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[akumar24]

Thank you for your time.