H4 to H1 transfer for a new company

[ariesb2b]

I am working in US on H1B visa and my wife is here on H4B on leave from her company(in india) right now. Her H1B was filed this year and she was selected in the lottery, so post October she will have a valid H1 visa also. Now i have following questions:

1. Her H4b is valid till 30 sep 2015 and h1b will be valid from 1st oct 2015. Can she get visa transfer here itself or does she has to travel to home country and come back on h1?
2. Is it possible to switch companies here without even starting for the company(sponser) that filed your visa? or can we hop to a new company only after a valid visa stamp.
3. If she leaves her company right now, will her H1B be still valid? We have the EAC number, can we get the petition via that?

[shervin143]

1. Her H4b is valid till 30 sep 2015 and h1b will be valid from 1st oct 2015. Can she get visa transfer here itself or does she has to travel to home country and come back on h1?
>>> Not sure what you mean by visa transfer. There is no such thing as visa transfer. H1B petition can be transferred from one employer to another. If the H1B was filed as a change of status (COS) from H4, then your wife's status will change to H1B as of Oct 1st and she should be working and getting paid from Oct 1st to maintain the H1B status.

2. Is it possible to switch companies here without even starting for the company(sponser) that filed your visa?
>>> It depends on whether the H1B gets approved for COS or consular process. If it gets approved as a COS, then your wife should be working for the H1B employer as of the H1B effective date to maintain the H1B status. If not, she will go out of status on H1B and a transfer is not possible. If the H1B gets approved for consular process, then she cannot work for the H1B employer unless she leaves the country and return back in H1B visa.

or can we hop to a new company only after a valid visa stamp.
>>> Visa stamping has nothing to do with a H1B transfer. Visa is only needed to enter U.S in a specific status.

3. If she leaves her company right now, will her H1B be still valid?
>>> No. If the H1B is revoked prior to its effective date, then she will loose the CAP and then a transfer is not possible. You will have to wait until next April to file a new H1B petition under a new CAP.

We have the EAC number, can we get the petition via that?
>>> No. H1B is employer's petition. They won't send it to you.

[ariesb2b]

Thanks for the information.
Her H1B was raised via her employer via consular process, so as i understood she has to re-enter US after getting her visa stamped after 1st October to start working. And once she is here (with stamped h1b visa), only then petition can be transferred to another employer.
So for the first time, she has to travel from her current employer only and petition cannot be transferred before that.

[shervin143]

Not really. Irrespective of whether she is inside U.S or outside U.S, the transfer to a new employer can be filed after Oct 1st (After the new CAP becomes effective). Filing a transfer to a new employer prior to the CAP becomes effective can result in an RFE.

Thanks for the information.
Her H1B was raised via her employer via consular process, so as i understood she has to re-enter US after getting her visa stamped after 1st October to start working. And once she is here (with stamped h1b visa), only then petition can be transferred to another employer.
So for the first time, she has to travel from her current employer only and petition cannot be transferred before that.