Question about Unused H1B petition

[SpiritofEden]

Hi,

I have an approved H1B petition from 2016. I never used the H1B and never got it stamped as I had to return to my home country before the visa came into effect that year. So I've basically never used it. The expiry date on that petition is stated as September 30, 2019. Will I be able to use it post September 30th? There is a 6 year rule with the H1B where they are cap exempt for 6 years from the date the petition is approved. I wanted to know if that same 6 year rule applies to unused or "uninitiated" petitions as well? Please advise as I cannot find any resources online about this. Thank you!

[rinkudikku]

As far as i know those 6 yrs are the max duration that you can stay in US while on the approved H1b. But since you didn't even used it so you do have those 6 yrs intact. Not sure if the validity of the visa will still be there.
if September 30 2019 is the expiry date you may apply new petition before it and can get it stamped to be able to work in US.