L1A visa not expired but blanket L1 petition expired but individual petition renewed.

[amitvjti]

I have an Indian passport & my latest US L1 visa was issued at Mexico City in July 2018 & expiration date on visa is July 2023. It has an annotation which says Blanket L1 with my petitiioner name & petition no. used during July 2018. Visa also says PED - 09 July 2020. I had applied for individual L1 petition for extension of stay in May 2020 while I was in US & the petition got approved in Jan 2021 with validity - Valid from 07/06/2020 to 06/29/2022. Currently I am in India. My question is - Do I need to apply for visa at US embassy in India if I have to return back to USA?


My details
1. Passport - India
2. US Visa - L1
3. Visa issue date - 20 Jul 2018
4. VIsa expiry date - 17 Jul 2023
5. Annotation - Blanket L1, Petitioner name & no. PED - 09 Jul 202
6. Extension of stay - i-797 approved for case type i-129 with same petitioner company.
7. Petition validity - Valid from July 2020 to July 2022

Note that my visa duration is 5 years due to reciprocal agreement between India & US. I plan to travel from India to USA in March 2021. Do I need to go for visa stamping OR existing visa valid till Jul 2023 with new i-797 valid till July 2022 be enough to show as port of entry (POE)? if yes, Am I eligible for dropbox?

[zzzsss111]

I am in similar situation
Did you get an answer to this? -
Do I need to go for visa stamping OR existing visa valid till Jul 2023 with new i-797 valid till July 2022 be enough to show as port of entry (POE)? if yes, Am I eligible for dropbox?

[Libra_14]

I am in similar situation
Did you get an answer to this? -
Do I need to go for visa stamping OR existing visa valid till Jul 2023 with new i-797 valid till July 2022 be enough to show as port of entry (POE)? if yes, Am I eligible for dropbox?

You need to have a valid visa as well as valid I-797 at the time of entry into USA. Seems like your I-797 is expired early this year (July 2022). You need a new petition first.

Your existing valid visa will work with new extended petition (I-797).

You are eligible for dropbox.

[zzzsss111]

Libra_14 , thanks for the reply so my case as below -

Current Visa expiry - March 2025
PED on the current Visa - March 2023

We are in process of filing the new petition
If the new petition is approved I should have new PED on the I797 let's say - 2025.

So if I understand you correctly , I should not need a new Visa stamp to travel and return to US .
Existing Visa stamp + new I797 should suffice.
Correct ?

[Libra_14]

Libra_14 , thanks for the reply so my case as below -

Current Visa expiry - March 2025
PED on the current Visa - March 2023

We are in process of filing the new petition
If the new petition is approved I should have new PED on the I797 let's say - 2025.

So if I understand you correctly , I should not need a new Visa stamp to travel and return to US .
Existing Visa stamp + new I797 should suffice.
Correct ?

That's correct.