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What a long, strange trip it's been...
I've been an H1-B beneficiary since 2003.
In 2008, an LCA was filed in preparation for filing an I-140 petition for a green card. That LCA was subject to a random audit, which lasted over 20 months. By the time the audit was performed (without any issues), filing guidelines had changed slightly and the original LCA petition was no longer adequately filled out. A revised one had to be submitted in 2010, which was subsequently approved in early 2011.
Before the LCA was approved, my H1-B needed to be extended past the 6-year limit. Since the second LCA petition had not been pending for a year yet, we couldn't use that as a basis for renewing past the H1-B 6 year limit. So we used the "recapture time spent outside of the US during the 6-year term" clause. This was successful and my H1-B was extended until August 15th, 2011.
Once the LCA was approved, we filed the I-140 petition for a green card. This petition was subsequently denied due to a processing error on their end. They made an assumption that the application was for a new position, despite the fact that "existing position" was clearly checked on the form. Based on this, they assumed my employer could not afford to hire a new employee, even though I've been working for him for 8 years now and have always been paid in full and on time.
While this was happening, my H1-B was up for renewal again. We filed an I-129 petition, asking for yet another year extension past the 6-year limit because the LCA had been approved more than 365 days prior (ie. the green card petition was still pending at the time). But during the I-129 evaluation process, my green card application was denied.
Once the green card petition was denied, we immediately filed an I-290B petition for appeal of the decision. So the green card petition is currently under appeal, but the last we heard, the processing delay on appeals is 31 months.
Meanwhile, I've been out of status for 235 days. I've got 5 more days before I need to leave the country. The current I-129 petition is taking forever to get processed. We just received a Request for Evidence regarding the case 2 weeks ago, which we replied to immediately. But it doesn't look like any decision will be forthcoming before my 240 days is up.
I live in Canada and work in the US. I haven't been able to go home since August of last year because of my current situation. If I go home, border inspectors may not allow me back into the country anymore because I'm sitting in a gray area of the law (valid I-129 petition pending but I-140 denied and under appeal). I've been living in a friend's bedroom for months, away from my husband and family. I couldn't spend time with my family on Christmas. I couldn't attend family members' funerals. I'm feeling trapped in a jail cell, all because I can't afford to lose my job. And soon it might all be for nothing, since my 240 days is almost up.
I have no idea what to do anymore. All of the hold-ups have been due to mistakes by the processing centers. I'm at the mercy of a culture where failure is encouraged, since it makes them more money.
I've been an H1-B beneficiary since 2003.
In 2008, an LCA was filed in preparation for filing an I-140 petition for a green card. That LCA was subject to a random audit, which lasted over 20 months. By the time the audit was performed (without any issues), filing guidelines had changed slightly and the original LCA petition was no longer adequately filled out. A revised one had to be submitted in 2010, which was subsequently approved in early 2011.
Before the LCA was approved, my H1-B needed to be extended past the 6-year limit. Since the second LCA petition had not been pending for a year yet, we couldn't use that as a basis for renewing past the H1-B 6 year limit. So we used the "recapture time spent outside of the US during the 6-year term" clause. This was successful and my H1-B was extended until August 15th, 2011.
Once the LCA was approved, we filed the I-140 petition for a green card. This petition was subsequently denied due to a processing error on their end. They made an assumption that the application was for a new position, despite the fact that "existing position" was clearly checked on the form. Based on this, they assumed my employer could not afford to hire a new employee, even though I've been working for him for 8 years now and have always been paid in full and on time.
While this was happening, my H1-B was up for renewal again. We filed an I-129 petition, asking for yet another year extension past the 6-year limit because the LCA had been approved more than 365 days prior (ie. the green card petition was still pending at the time). But during the I-129 evaluation process, my green card application was denied.
Once the green card petition was denied, we immediately filed an I-290B petition for appeal of the decision. So the green card petition is currently under appeal, but the last we heard, the processing delay on appeals is 31 months.
Meanwhile, I've been out of status for 235 days. I've got 5 more days before I need to leave the country. The current I-129 petition is taking forever to get processed. We just received a Request for Evidence regarding the case 2 weeks ago, which we replied to immediately. But it doesn't look like any decision will be forthcoming before my 240 days is up.
I live in Canada and work in the US. I haven't been able to go home since August of last year because of my current situation. If I go home, border inspectors may not allow me back into the country anymore because I'm sitting in a gray area of the law (valid I-129 petition pending but I-140 denied and under appeal). I've been living in a friend's bedroom for months, away from my husband and family. I couldn't spend time with my family on Christmas. I couldn't attend family members' funerals. I'm feeling trapped in a jail cell, all because I can't afford to lose my job. And soon it might all be for nothing, since my 240 days is almost up.
I have no idea what to do anymore. All of the hold-ups have been due to mistakes by the processing centers. I'm at the mercy of a culture where failure is encouraged, since it makes them more money.
