Question on H-4 visa appointment at HYD

[Viswa777]

Hi,
I am on H-1 B and has a valid I-797 till 2013 but my H-1 Visa expired in 2008 and my wife's H-4 visa got expired in Feb'08 as well. And, now she is planning to travel alone to India while i'm in U.S and trying to set up for Visa appt at HYD.
When trying to make an appt on VFS:
First I chose the option,
An Indian citizen resident in the US.
Then it asks:-
Are you applying for the same class of visa which is currently valid or has expired within the past 12 months? Yes/No.

In my case it is No as both of our Visa's have expired 2 years ago,so should it be considered renewal of H-4 or New H-4?

2)Do i need to get my H-1 Visa stamped for her H-4 stamping?

3)Does she need to take my original I-797 (with my I-94) or a copy is fine. If she requires to carry the original ,can i keep my I-94 from my original I-797?


Thanks
-Rao

[sk4ih]

1) New Visa. There is nothing like visa renewal.
2) No
3) Though original is advisable, copy should be enogh. You must keep I-94.

[Viswa777]

Thank you for your reply.But the New VFS website states the following:-

VISA RENEWAL CATEGORY INFORMATION - Please Read Carefully.
Visa renewal appointments are available to visa applicants who:

Have the same class of U.S. visa which is still valid or that has expired less than 12 months from the scheduled date of interview.
Wish to apply for the same visa class (e.g. had an H1 work visa, now applying again for an H1 work visa)
Are Indian nationals (hold Indian passports)
Are resident in the New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai or Hyderabad consular districts (Applicants attending the interview at the U.S. Consulate, Kolkata do not have an option to select the option for visa renewal. They may opt for a regular interview).

The following applicants do NOT qualify for appointments in the visa renewal category:

Applicants who have never had a US visa.
Applicants who have a U.S. visa that expired more than 12 months ago.
Applicants whose last valid visa has been either cancelled or revoked.
Applicants applying for a different visa class (e.g. had a F1 student visa, now applying for a H1 work visa).
Non Indian passport holders
Applicants applying at the U.S. Consulate in Kolkata.
First time H4 or L2 applicants over 18 years of age. (If you have recently married an H1b or L1 visa holder but have never had a visa interview for an H4 visa or L2 visa, you may not schedule in the renewal category.)
Applicants applying for more than one visa at the same time (e.g. F and B1/B2).
Applicants applying for entertainment/performance visas(P3 category).
Applicants applying for unskilled worker visas (H2b category).
Applicants who have lost their previous passports that had the valid / expired US visa.

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In my case the two highlighted are true which fall under both the category.So please clarify is it Yes/No.

[abhayg4]

Hi Viswa777,

Answer should be NO -because H4 visa expired more than 12 months ago.

Frankly speaking- there is no difference in both the categories i.e. New or visa renewal.
VO will have the same rules/questions/cross-checking for both visa categories.
Only difference which I saw was the availability of the appointment dates.

You don;t require H1 stamping.

Its better you give her the ORIGINAL I-797 (if it is not required by you for any other thing in US)
PLEASE TAKE THE I-94 from I-797 and staple it to your Passport before giving the original to her.
This I-94 needs to be returned when YOU go out of US.Make sure she submits her own I-94 while going out.

Thanks and Regards,
Abhay