L1 Extension - Multiple Situations - Requesting Info

[Rohanadhikari]

Hi,

Requesting for guidence on how to manage below situations,

Our (self and spouse) L1 & L2 are getting expired in Aug 2012. I have 3 months of lead time to apply for extension from now. My employer agreed for filling the extension. But I have to manage few situations as described below,

1. In next month (June), I have to visit India for one important function. If I fill the application for extension in the month of May and go out of USA in June and come back in July before expiry of current valid L1&L2 (which is valid till Aug). Will there be any impact on my Extension request application? Is is true that applicant need to stay in USA from the day extension form is being submitted to have the extension approved othewise it gets automatically rejected? Will there be any issue at immigration (passport control) for reentry in July because the VISA is valid only for one month post entry?

2. If we both apply for extension in May and my spouse decides to stay in India till September (wherein her current VISA gets expired), can she make travel back to USA if the extension gets approved (after stamping again)? Or the extension does not remain valid as she is out of states.

Kindly advice. Many Thanks![/FONT][/FONT]

[shervin143]

1. In next month (June), I have to visit India for one important function. If I fill the application for extension in the month of May and go out of USA in June and come back in July before expiry of current valid L1&L2 (which is valid till Aug). Will there be any impact on my Extension request application? Is is true that applicant need to stay in USA from the day extension form is being submitted to have the extension approved othewise it gets automatically rejected?
>>> It is not advisable to travel out of the country when the exttension is in progress. The EOS will get denied if you leave the country. Either file the extension in premium, get the result and then travel or come back and file the extension.

Will there be any issue at immigration (passport control) for reentry in July because the VISA is valid only for one month post entry?
>>> That is not an issue. You will get an I-94 only for 1 month and you should be ready to file the extension imemdiately. The documents for extending your stay should reach USCIS before your I-94 expires. Make sure the employer is ready with all the documents to file the extension (Like approved LCA and other documents) by the time you return back.

2. If we both apply for extension in May and my spouse decides to stay in India till September (wherein her current VISA gets expired), can she make travel back to USA if the extension gets approved (after stamping again)? Or the extension does not remain valid as she is out of states.
>>> Like I mentioned, extension should not be filed if the candidate is leaving the country. If your wife is going to stay in India for a longer period, then there is no point is filing her extension at the first place. If she has a valid L2 visa, then she can travel back once your L1 extension gets approved. By showing your extended L1 petition at the POE, she will get an I-94 matching your petition expiry date. There is no need to file her extension if she is leaving U.S before her current I-94 expiry date.

[Rohanadhikari]

Thank you Shervin for your immediate response.


Getting extension completed in May (only one month) looks very difficult and delay might impact my travel plans. Hence I can request my employer to submit the extension request in July (once I am back). In this case if the approval does not happen (neither denied or approval..considering in progress) by expiry of VISA and I94 date then how long I am authorized to stay in USA considering my current L1 and I94 gets expired in Aug first week.

Further on your comment regarding the last situation.
Like I mentioned, extension should not be filed if the candidate is leaving the country. If your wife is going to stay in India for a longer period, then there is no point is filing her extension at the first place. If she has a valid L2 visa, then she can travel back once your L1 extension gets approved. By showing your extended L1 petition at the POE, she will get an I-94 matching your petition expiry date. There is no need to file her extension if she is leaving U.S before her current I-94 expiry date.

In this case, she will not have L2 VISA valid to enter as it will be expired in Aug first week, but showing my extension papers (L1) at point of entry (Passport control/Immigration) should be fine. Kindly confirm if I understood it correctly. I really appreciate your help in matter. Thanks again!

[shervin143]

Getting extension completed in May (only one month) looks very difficult and delay might impact my travel plans. Hence I can request my employer to submit the extension request in July (once I am back). In this case if the approval does not happen (neither denied or approval..considering in progress) by expiry of VISA and I94 date then how long I am authorized to stay in USA considering my current L1 and I94 gets expired in Aug first week.
>>> USCIS allows you to stay up to 240 days in U.S if your petiotion was filed before your current I-94 expiry date and a deceision has not been made by USCIS. However, keep in mind this is a risky thing to do. If the extension gets approved finally, then you are all good. If not, then the time spend in U.S after I-94 expiry date will be treated as illegal stay. Consulates don't go by this 240 day rule. For them any time spend in U.S without a valid I-94 (You will get into that situation if your extension gets denied after spending some time in U.S after the I-94 expiry date assuming the extension will go through) is considered to be illegal stay.

In this case, she will not have L2 VISA valid to enter as it will be expired in Aug first week, but showing my extension papers (L1) at point of entry (Passport control/Immigration) should be fine.
>>> That is not correct. She cannot enter U.S without a valid L2 visa in the passport. If she won't have a valid visa in the passport, then she should get it stamped based on your approved extended L1 petition. Once the L2 visa gets approved, she can travel to U.S using that visa. At the port of entry, she will show your extended L1 approval notice which will get a new extended I-94 matching your petition expiry date.

[Rohanadhikari]

Thank you very much! All your inputs really helped me. Have a nice day!

[Rohanadhikari]

Hi Shervin,

One last question. Is there any timeline or restriction of number of days for individual to enter into USA before VISA expiry date? Would it make a problem to enter back in USA 20-25 days before expiry of L1 VISA.? Sorry you might have answer it but would like to confirm again. Thanks again!

[shervin143]

You can enter U.S as long as the visa and the petition remains valid. However, keep in mind that your I-94 may very well be issued only till the visa expiry date. In which case, you will have just 20-25 days to file the extension. Your petition to extend the status should reach USCIS before your I-94 expiry date. It takes about 10 days to get the LCA approved and only then the petition can be filed. Also, the lawyers will take their time to prepare the documents for extending your status. If you think all these are feasible within 2--25 days, then you can go for it. Otherwise, it is not advisable. If the extension is filed after the I-94 expiry date, then EOS will be declined. Also, keep in mind, that even though you are legally allowed to stay and work in U.S after the I-94 expiry date based on the pending extension, if the extension gets denied, then all the time spend in U.S after the I-94 expiry date will be considered to be illegal stay. That is why USCIS gives you 6 months from the I-94 expiry date to file the extension.

Hi Shervin,

One last question. Is there any timeline or restriction of number of days for individual to enter into USA before VISA expiry date? Would it make a problem to enter back in USA 20-25 days before expiry of L1 VISA.? Sorry you might have answer it but would like to confirm again. Thanks again!