L1B extn to COS to H4

[deepak_pathania]

My Wife Company has filed L1B extension for her and my company has files H1B extension for me. Now we want to bring my wife on dependent . Is it possible for me to file COS for my wife when my H1 extension is filed.

1) Do I need to file COS from L1B extension to H4 Extension ?

2) Do I need to file COS from L1B extension to H4 ?

3) Can I file COS for my wife when my company has filed H1 Extension

[kabkaba]

From reading all your posts I understand that you and your wife are in a complicated status situation.
Why don't you tell of the exact situation and what you both want to achieve? Instead of saying 'can I do ...' can you rephrase the questions as 'what should I do to achieve ...'? People may be able to better advise you that way.
Also, there is no need to create new threads each time. The responder can that way keep track of your entire situation.
From what I understand both you and your wife are in the US. Have your I-94's expired? I-94's are received either at POE or they come with approval notices.
Does your wife want to quit her job? Is she working right now? Is she an employee of the L1 company right now?

[deepak_pathania]

Thanks for your suggestion kabkaba, You understood correctly. We are in complex situation so everyday we think of some new way and everyday I am posting new questions. let me summarize my whole situation again and then may be experts can advice us

1) I am on H1B visa .and my Visa is expiring on 12th Feb,2012. My company is going to file my H1B extension petition by 30th Oct,2011

2) My Wife is on L1B . Her company filed L1B extn on 8th Aug,2011. Her L1B visa expired on 2nd Sept,2011 (I-94 also expired on 2nd Sept 2011 ) . Her company told her that she can stay in USA for another six months until she gets approval or rejection so she is still in USA waiting for L1B Extension status. She has not recieved any approval or rejection notice.

3) On 26th Aug, we were blessed with a baby and she got 16 weeks maternity Leave from her company so she has leave till 10th Dec. We do not want to travel back to our Country until our baby is 8-9 month old as flight will be anywhere between 16-24 hrs nd it will be very uncomfortable for him so we are exploring possible ways to stay in USA. but due to our Visa conditions, situation has become very complex.

We thought of some possible scenarios but not sure whether they are legal or not. I request experts to feel free to give us any advice which can help us.


1. May be I can file COS for her i.e from L1B extn to H4. One doubt I have here is that is it legal to file COS for her when my company has already filed H1B extn for me.


2. Is there anyway she can stay in USA even after L1B extension rejection

3. is it possible to file visitor visa for her from USA if her L1B extension is rejected

Bottomline : My wife needs to stay in USA until our baby is 7-8 month old

[shervin143]

Since her I-94 has already expired, and her L1B is extension is pending, the only available option at this time is to file a COS from L1B to H4 as a "bridge" petition based on her pending L1B extension. Search and read about the posts that discusses about bridging. In a bridge petition, all the petitions should get approved. If her L1B extension is denied, so will her H4 extension since the bridge has technically broken.

If the L1B extension comes after the H4 approval, then her status will change to L1B and she need to work to maintain the status. If L1B extension comes first and then the H4 approval, then she is good. If H4 approval comes first and the L1B gets rejected, then the bridge will break and she will need to leave the country and return back in H4 visa.

If any of these petitions get approved with a new I-94, then her stay is legal. If not, then the time spend in U.S after the I-94 expiry date is considered as illegal stay. So it is not advisable to wait for 6 months for the L1B extension. If you can, upgrade it to premium and get the result within 15 days.

Thanks for your suggestion kabkaba, You understood correctly. We are in complex situation so everyday we think of some new way and everyday I am posting new questions. let me summarize my whole situation again and then may be experts can advice us

1) I am on H1B visa .and my Visa is expiring on 12th Feb,2012. My company is going to file my H1B extension petition by 30th Oct,2011

2) My Wife is on L1B . Her company filed L1B extn on 8th Aug,2011. Her L1B visa expired on 2nd Sept,2011 (I-94 also expired on 2nd Sept 2011 ) . Her company told her that she can stay in USA for another six months until she gets approval or rejection so she is still in USA waiting for L1B Extension status. She has not recieved any approval or rejection notice.

3) On 26th Aug, we were blessed with a baby and she got 16 weeks maternity Leave from her company so she has leave till 10th Dec. We do not want to travel back to our Country until our baby is 8-9 month old as flight will be anywhere between 16-24 hrs nd it will be very uncomfortable for him so we are exploring possible ways to stay in USA. but due to our Visa conditions, situation has become very complex.

We thought of some possible scenarios but not sure whether they are legal or not. I request experts to feel free to give us any advice which can help us.


1. May be I can file COS for her i.e from L1B extn to H4. One doubt I have here is that is it legal to file COS for her when my company has already filed H1B extn for me.


2. Is there anyway she can stay in USA even after L1B extension rejection

3. is it possible to file visitor visa for her from USA if her L1B extension is rejected

Bottomline : My wife needs to stay in USA until our baby is 7-8 month old

[kabkaba]

The main problem I think is because you want extended leave after Dec 10, 2011. Right? Your wife does not want to quit the job, does she? Can the company approve leave (possibly without pay) after Dec 10?