Am I eligible for H1B Cap Exempt if I have expired H1B petitition that is unstamped

[Mohan Krishnan]

I had a H1B approved in October 2006. I went for the visa stamping at the US Consulate in Singapore in June 2007. Visa was refused and I was given one year time to again appear for the visa interview with the following additional documents from the H1B sponsor company - 1) IRS Tax Form 4056T and 2) a signed letter from the prospective client giving the job details. It was mentioned that the visa application will expire if I did not provide the required details within one year of visa interview date. Since I was working on another project elsewhere, I could not submit the documents.

Now, if I would like to apply again for H1B visa, is there any possibility that I could use my previous H1B approval from October 2007 for consideration under H1B Cap Exempt. Or is there any other way I could use my previous approval to my advantage if I were to try for a new H1B in April 2017.

Thanks & Regards,

Mohan

[raghvi]

I had a H1B approved in October 2006. I went for the visa stamping at the US Consulate in Singapore in June 2007. Visa was refused and I was given one year time to again appear for the visa interview with the following additional documents from the H1B sponsor company - 1) IRS Tax Form 4056T and 2) a signed letter from the prospective client giving the job details. It was mentioned that the visa application will expire if I did not provide the required details within one year of visa interview date. Since I was working on another project elsewhere, I could not submit the documents.

Now, if I would like to apply again for H1B visa, is there any possibility that I could use my previous H1B approval from October 2007 for consideration under H1B Cap Exempt. Or is there any other way I could use my previous approval to my advantage if I were to try for a new H1B in April 2017.

Thanks & Regards,

Mohan

A petition is considered cap exempt for 6 Years from filing year or 6 Years from last held valid H1 status, provided 6 Years in H1 status in US has not been exhausted. Your petition was filed more than 6 Years back and you were not in H1 status in last 6 Years, so you would not be cap exempt.

This is my opinion not legal advice.