L1 Extension after visa expired and GC processing

[Prisha]

Hi...I request your guidance on my visa situation

I am in US on L1A blanket visa . The visa expired in Feb-2013 but my I-94 is valid till Nov-2015. I need to travel to India in March 2015 due to a family reasons and trying to understand the least risk option

I was told that I cannot file for an extension until 6 months before my I-94 expiration date which is May 2015 and if I need to travel to India before that date then the only option I have is to get a fresh L1 Blanket stamping done at the India Consulate. Please confirm if this is true ?

I feel that the advantage of getting an extension instead of new visa stamping is that I would know while in US if my extension is rejected and I can wrap up things before leaving US, whereas in case of new Blanket there is always the uncertainity and I would only know the result after I am in India

Here are my questions

1) Is it true that extension can be only applied 6 months before I-94 expire (Not visa expiration date) ? and If I file extension before 6 months of I-94 expiry it would simply be rejected

2) If I file extension and is rejected then do I have to leave US Immediately or I can continue till my I-94 expiration date and then leave

3) My company is also going to initiate my GC processing under EB1 this month. Not sure how long it typically takes to get an EAD or advanced parole ? If I dont receive that until March then can I still travel in March or will that negatively impact my GC case ? and in order to re-enter US, can I still go for L1 blanket stamping while GC is in process

Requesting your views

[raghvi]

Hi...I request your guidance on my visa situation

I am in US on L1A blanket visa . The visa expired in Feb-2013 but my I-94 is valid till Nov-2015. I need to travel to India in March 2015 due to a family reasons and trying to understand the least risk option

I was told that I cannot file for an extension until 6 months before my I-94 expiration date which is May 2015 and if I need to travel to India before that date then the only option I have is to get a fresh L1 Blanket stamping done at the India Consulate. Please confirm if this is true ?

I feel that the advantage of getting an extension instead of new visa stamping is that I would know while in US if my extension is rejected and I can wrap up things before leaving US, whereas in case of new Blanket there is always the uncertainity and I would only know the result after I am in India

Here are my questions

1) Is it true that extension can be only applied 6 months before I-94 expire (Not visa expiration date) ? and If I file extension before 6 months of I-94 expiry it would simply be rejected

2) If I file extension and is rejected then do I have to leave US Immediately or I can continue till my I-94 expiration date and then leave

3) My company is also going to initiate my GC processing under EB1 this month. Not sure how long it typically takes to get an EAD or advanced parole ? If I dont receive that until March then can I still travel in March or will that negatively impact my GC case ? and in order to re-enter US, can I still go for L1 blanket stamping while GC is in process

Requesting your views

1. Yes it is true. Further, your L1 visa has already expired, so , as it is, you need to attend a fresh visa stamping and get a new visa to re enter US, I do not see a point of filing extension when you have to go for fresh stamping.
2. It is generally mentioned in the rejection notice, but it is generally allowed to stay till I-94 expiry. It can take upto 4-6 Months to get a decision if not applied in premium, so you might want to consider time and cost factor too.
3. Even under EB1, I do not think 3 Months is an achievable time to get EAD and Advance Parole. Yes you can still travel, it can affect your GC timeline, as you got to be in US in order to apply your 485.

Its a personal choice as to how critical is your travel in March. I would say avoid it if possible, if everything goes well with your GC, you may be lucky enough to get it by Sep-Oct 2015. If you cannot avoid travel, start the GC process, attend visa stamping and return.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[Prisha]

Thanks for your response. Couple of follow up questions

My reason for considering extension was I am told that once ext is approved visa stamping is mere formality and almost guaranteed whereas a new blanket would be a fresh evaluation. Is this not true?

In case my L1 extension or new L1 blanket request gets denied and I am forced to leave the US, will my GC processing continue and I can return to US once GC is approved?

[raghvi]

Either way it is a fresh evaluation. Even during extension they will evaluate if extension can be granted or not. As for returning to US once GC is approved, as I mentioned earlier, your I485 cannot be filed if you are not present in US at that time. And as your visa has expired you would not be able to enter US without a valid visa. I would say you seriously rethink your travel and, if absolutely need to, take advice from your attorney as to how to proceed.

This is my opinion not legal advice.