Hello,
I have a Master’s Degree in Mech. Engg. and I am currently working on OPT (17 month extension) which is valid till 1st August 2013. I will be applying for H1B through my employer in April 2013.
The problem is that my F1 visa is expiring in January 2013, so I am not sure what will be my status and if I will be able to work between 1 August 2013 and 1st Oct 2013, considering my H1B is approved.
Will it be OK to apply for H1B in April 2013 with an expired F1 visa (Jan 2013) but valid OPT (Aug 2013)?
I will appreciate it very much if anybody could advice on my situation.
Thanks,
Ajay
You need not worry at all. Your visa is just t ogain entry into USA if you leave to your home country. You can work as long as you have a valid OPT. From Aug 1st 2013 to Oct 1st 2013 you can apply for cap-gap when you receive H1petition acceptance receipt.
Hi everyone ,
I have similar situation. I will apply for H1B in APRIL 2013 and My OPT(17 month extension ) is valid until MAY 2014 . . Well , what would be my status in between april and oct(2013) . I think I will be in F1 . Would i be able to travel to india freely without any constraint. Because i traveled couple of months back with just my OPT CARD and my I-20 . would it be same status as i am now … Its usually not advisable to travel outside USA when we apply OPT extension ( or until we got the OPT extended ) bcoz our sevis is going to be in Processing if we re-enter USA before OPT extension got approved …
SO my question is lets assume that i got H1B approved and my start date is OCt 2013 … ( will my status still F1 in months between april and oct ) and will be able to go in these dates outside USA without any constraints .
Any suggestions would be really helpful