H1B visa expires before I-797 expires

[ak72377]

Dear Sir / Madam

My H1b Visa Stamped in the Passport expires on Mar 30 2010 but I-797 petition is valid till October 2010. So is there a possibility of going for re-stamping to extend the visa to say till the date the I-797 is valid?

Any info regarding the above is much appreciated.

Best Regards

Ak

[sk4ih]

Once you're in US, what matters is I-94 date.
If it's also expiring, then you have apply for extn of stay.
If you've I-94 past visa expiry date, no need to worry. You can stay up to I-94 expiry date.

[ak72377]

My I-94 and H1b stamped on the passport both expire on the same day (March 30 2010).


Is there any avenue / hope for applying for extension of h1b visa till the date the I-797 is valid (i.e. Oct 2010)? Any idea on the following questions: What are the list of documents required to extend the h1b visa and what is the filing deadline?

[txh1b]

Renew your passport and travel/return or file for a formal extension.

[abhayg4]

Hi ak72377,

There is no process of extension of H1 VISA (It is just for entering US).
You only extend your H1 petition or I-94 (which really controls till what time you can stay in US).

As your I-94 is getting expired in March'2010. So you need to file for an extension with USCIS through your company. I think you can start the process 3 months in Advance i.e. in Jan 2010 you can apply for an extension
(Normal process takes 2-3 months , Premium processing takes about 15-20 days).

Deadline for filing your extension basically is your I-94 expiry date , which means by March 2010 -USCIS should receive your papers for the extension , but please don;t wait till that time and apply for it maximum by Feb'2010.

Other option is if you are planning to go to India sometime before March '2010, then don;t file for an extension , just go and come back before March '2010 and at POE show ur I-797(validity till Oct'2010) and they will give you new I-94 till Oct'2010 and then you can file for an extension later sometime in Aug/Sep'2010.

Hope it helps.

Thanks and regards,
Abhay

[shervin143]

It is actually supposed to work this way. But there are lot of cases recently where the I-94 was issued only till the visa expiry date, even when you have a petition that is valid for a longer duration than the visa. Getting an extended I-94 beyond the visa expiry depends on the immigration officer.

Other option is if you are planning to go to India sometime before March '2010, then don;t file for an extension , just go and come back before March '2010 and at POE show ur I-797(validity till Oct'2010) and they will give you new I-94 till Oct'2010 and then you can file for an extension later sometime in Aug/Sep'2010.

[abhayg4]

Hi,

What Shervin has mentioned is TRUE , sometimes they give I-94 till the Visa expirt date (even if you show the extended I-797) , so in my previous post , for the second option i.e. going to india and coming back before March '2010-chances could be that they give you I-94 only till March '2010 at POE and then you have to apply for an extension immediately.

So , go to India only if it is necessary before March '2010.
Best solution for you is:

Apply for an extension By mid or end of Jan'2010 using Premiuim Processing and get you new approved I-797 with new extended I-94 and continue to stay till ur new I-94 end date.
However , you have to get a new H1 visa stamped in your Passport if you are going to India anytime after March'2010.

Thanks and regards,
Abhay

[ak72377]

Thanks to all for contributing to this post! I am much more clear on what I have to do next.