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Here is my current situation-
I entered United states in May 2008 on L1-B visa and have been working with the same employer since then. My petition and I 94 both expired on April 17 2011.
1. On April 13th 2011, my employer filed an L1 extension application on my behalf. On August 4th 2011, I received an RFE asking for more details on my specialized knowledge, the response for which was filed by my employer on October 27th 2011.
2. Since I am married and did not want to leave United States in case L1-B extension is rejected, as a back up, I had also filed for an H4 (change of status) application on April 15th 2011. I filed this as a dependent on my spouse who is working on H1-B visa since Oct 2009. There has been no update to the status of this application. I raised a service request with the USCIS service center to provide an update on this application because the processing timelines published on their website are way past the date my application was filed. On Sep 28, I received an email from USCIS stating that they will update the status within 30 days, but there has been no update yet.
3. I am 5 months pregnant and want to avoid any travel to my home country in coming few months in case my visa is rejected. I am now more keen on getting an approval on my change of status application to H4, and once I get that I plan to withdraw the L1-extension application. My employer understands my situation and are flexible to relieve or keep me based on my visa situation.
Here are my questions-
1. Is it possible that my L1-B extension application is holding up my H4 application? Is it possible that my change of status (to H4) application can be rejected because I have an L1-B extension application in parallel?
2. If yes, is it advisable to withdraw the L1-B extension application, if it helps to get an approval on H4 application? I recently filed the response to the RFE, because now I wanted to have L1-B as a back up in case my H4 change of status is rejected.
3. Is it advisable to file for premium processing on my L1 extension application so that I can get the results within 2 weeks? If L1 is denied then can I travel to India and apply for H4 stamping in my home country? Will there be any issues with H4 stamping since I had applied for change of status to H4 in US or since I am pregnant?
4. If I do not opt for L1 premium processing and in case I get a visa rejection very late in my pregnancy when its not advisable to travel, is there any law for such medical conditions, based on which I can buy few more months to be able to legally stay in United States?
5. How many days can I legally stay in US while my L1 visa extension is pending with USCIS? Is it 180 or 240? In case, my L1 is denied can I still stay in US because I had applied for L1 to H4 COS and if yes, is there any time limit?
I entered United states in May 2008 on L1-B visa and have been working with the same employer since then. My petition and I 94 both expired on April 17 2011.
1. On April 13th 2011, my employer filed an L1 extension application on my behalf. On August 4th 2011, I received an RFE asking for more details on my specialized knowledge, the response for which was filed by my employer on October 27th 2011.
2. Since I am married and did not want to leave United States in case L1-B extension is rejected, as a back up, I had also filed for an H4 (change of status) application on April 15th 2011. I filed this as a dependent on my spouse who is working on H1-B visa since Oct 2009. There has been no update to the status of this application. I raised a service request with the USCIS service center to provide an update on this application because the processing timelines published on their website are way past the date my application was filed. On Sep 28, I received an email from USCIS stating that they will update the status within 30 days, but there has been no update yet.
3. I am 5 months pregnant and want to avoid any travel to my home country in coming few months in case my visa is rejected. I am now more keen on getting an approval on my change of status application to H4, and once I get that I plan to withdraw the L1-extension application. My employer understands my situation and are flexible to relieve or keep me based on my visa situation.
Here are my questions-
1. Is it possible that my L1-B extension application is holding up my H4 application? Is it possible that my change of status (to H4) application can be rejected because I have an L1-B extension application in parallel?
2. If yes, is it advisable to withdraw the L1-B extension application, if it helps to get an approval on H4 application? I recently filed the response to the RFE, because now I wanted to have L1-B as a back up in case my H4 change of status is rejected.
3. Is it advisable to file for premium processing on my L1 extension application so that I can get the results within 2 weeks? If L1 is denied then can I travel to India and apply for H4 stamping in my home country? Will there be any issues with H4 stamping since I had applied for change of status to H4 in US or since I am pregnant?
4. If I do not opt for L1 premium processing and in case I get a visa rejection very late in my pregnancy when its not advisable to travel, is there any law for such medical conditions, based on which I can buy few more months to be able to legally stay in United States?
5. How many days can I legally stay in US while my L1 visa extension is pending with USCIS? Is it 180 or 240? In case, my L1 is denied can I still stay in US because I had applied for L1 to H4 COS and if yes, is there any time limit?
