Citizenship change BEFORE H1B stamping...where to go for stamping?

USA H1B Visa
1

I have a pretty complicated issue.

Before entering US as student, I was an indian citizen, legally residing in Italy.

I received my F1 Visa from the US consulate in Milan (Italy) and entered US as student in August 2010. I completed my Masters degree in Business Administration in May 2012.

Once I graduated, an employer applied for H1B Visa with Premium Processing. The petition got approved and I received a I797B without I-94. The document indicates "Chennai" (India) as the consulate where I need to get H1B stamping.

FIRST QUESTION: Is it a bad thing that I received a I797B without change of status? I was expecting to get a new I-94 since I am already in the US.

 

Before my F1 status expired I decided to apply for an OPT, which got approved. Therefore I decided to stay in the US until the OPT expired, planning to leave the US to get H1B stamping only after OPT expiration (OPT expires on 7/10/13, tomorrow).

 

The problem now is that in June 2013, my application for Italian citizenship (which I applied for in 2009, when I was still living in Italy) got approved, and therefore I received an Italian passport.

 

SECOND QUESTION: since now I am Italian citizen and no longer Indian citizen, can I go to Italy for H1B stamping, even if the I797B indicates "Chennai" (India) as the consulate where I need to get the stamping?
Am I going to have any problem?

 

Thank you.
2

You should check w/ attorney as to why I-94 wasn’t issued. It can be one of the following reasons:

  • you didn’t maintain status by getting paid regularly on OPT

  • USCIS did a mistake and didn’t approve COS even though you qualified

  • employer didn’t apply for COS correctly

As for stamping, you can go to Italy. Also, as you have done Masters in US, you can also go to neighboring countries like CA or MX. Talk to your attorney as well about it.