Stolen Passports with old Visas and old I-94s

[sudeerao]

Hi All,

Me and my wife lost our passports due to a auto burglary recently. Our Indian passports had our previous L visa stampings and the I-94s associated with it.

Now, our status has changed to H visa and we have the approval notices with new I-94s with it. We havent lost these new Approval notices and I-94s.

Should we still apply for a replacement of I-94s ? What is the step we should take to inform USCIS about our passport loss ? I think our new H visas are also associated with old passports, how do we inform them to rectify it ?

Please advice.

[sudeerao]

Please reply to me

Can somebody please reply on this ?

[shervin143]

Check these links. Remove the space between http:// and travel in the first link before copying it into the browser's address bar.

http:// travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_2009.html#Visa

https://www.immihelp.com/form-i-94/

[sudeerao]

Dear shervin,

Thanks for your reply. However, please note that my case is little different than this. I have not lost my approval notice and the I-94 attached to it. Please let me know if I still have to apply for new I-94.

[shervin143]

In that case, what do you mean by this?
Me and my wife lost our passports due to a auto burglary recently. Our Indian passports had our previous L visa stampings and the I-94s associated with it.

If my understanding is right, you will need to return all your I-94's to the airport officials before you leave the country (L1B I-94 + H1B I-94). The below link has the information on how to report a lost/stolen U.S visa.

http:// travel.state.gov/visa/temp/info/info_2009.html#Visa

[sudeerao]

Sorry for not being clear

We are no more on L Visa status. Our status was changed after we came here and we have the H1 approval notices and the I-94s with it. We have not yet got H visas stamped on our passports, because we are still in US.

But, we have our passports stolen.

My question is even though I have the approval notices and I-94s after the status change with me, since I have lost the passports, should we still apply for new I-94s for the H1s ? If I understand correctly, the I-797 & new I-94s are still tied to our old Passports. Please advice.

[shervin143]

Here is my understanding. You initially had a L1B stamped in your passport. You entered U.S in L1B and you had a L1B I-94 pinned to your passport. You applied for COS to H1B and that got approved (So you have a H1B petition with the I-94). Your passport got stolen with the old L1B I-94. Is that right?

If yes, then you are all good with your H1B I-94. It is advisable to return all the I-94's (In your case your L1B I-94 received at the POE and the H1B I-94 that came with the H1B approval notice) when you leave the country to have proper exit records. So it is just advisable to apply for a duplicate copy of the L1B I-94 if possible.

[sudeerao]

Hi Shervin,

Here is my understanding. You initially had a L1B stamped in your passport. You entered U.S in L1B and you had a L1B I-94 pinned to your passport. You applied for COS to H1B and that got approved (So you have a H1B petition with the I-94). Your passport got stolen with the old L1B I-94. Is that right?

Absolutely right !

I now understand clearly what you say. I was under the impression that the I-94 with H1B is a replacement to the old I-94 [with the L1], however, as per you, its an attachment.

Now, I have a query,

I saw the form I-102 to replace the I-94 does not have a section to specify new Passport number, in that case how do I notify USCIS about my passport change ? I need a clear way to notify USCIS about my passport loss and the change in my passport [after I get a new one]. I am not able to get that information anywhere on how to inform USCIS.

[shervin143]

I don't think it is required to inform USCIS about your new passport. Whenever the passport gets expired while in U.S, we apply for the renewal at the Indian embassy in U.S . Upon receiving the new passport, we don't inform that to USCIS. I think it is the same concept here. However, you need to report the lost visa. You can attach a cover letter containing the information of your new passport.

Report your Visa Lost/Stolen to the U.S. Embassy Abroad

Fax the Consular Section or Consul General at the Embassy abroad which issued your visa, to report it lost/stolen. Go to the Embassy Consular Section Website to locate the Fax number and contact information. Specifically state whether the visa was lost or stolen. Be sure to include your full name, date of birth, place of birth, address in the U.S., and an email address (if available). If you have a copy of the passport or visa, fax this to the Embassy or consular section. Otherwise, if known, report the category of visa, and the passport number from the lost/stolen visa. If you have already reported your visa lost/stolen to the U.S. Embassy abroad, and then you later find your misplaced visa, please note that the visas will be invalid for future travel to the U.S, and you must apply in person at the Embassy or Consulate abroad for a new visa.

[sudeerao]

thanks

Thank you very much Shervin,

I think you are right. I should be sending a cover letter along with the I-102 for my satisfaction.

Also need to perform the second step of informing US Embassy. I did send an email, which I received from their website. However, I havent received an reply. Will send the fax soon.

Thanks a lot.