Currently i am in US on L1. I have an approved H1B effective from Oct 1st 2012 from consultant ‘A’. Now i am offered with a full time position in one of the reputed US MNC ‘B’. They would like to transfer my H1
What documents are required by company ‘B’? Is just the case number sufficient enough as i dont hold the 797 doc and my consultant might not provide them, so is it ok if we proceed just with case number?
My visa is approved for company A under premium processing, now if the company B applies for transfer still it will take another 2-3 months for transfer?
How much will be the cost incurred for H1 transfer for company B?
If the transfer time takes beyond oct 1st, still my legal status is considered as H1 from October 1st?
Can i start working for company B just with receipt number stating transfer is applied or should i be waiting till transfer is completed?
H1B approval notice is required for H1B transfer process, but you may try with the receipt number as well.
Yes, regular processing would take 2-6 months. You may opt for Premium Processing in this case too so that you get adjudication within 15 calendar days.
Cost of transfer is same as new H1B filing.
If your initial H1B was approved w/ COS, then your status will automatically change to H1 on 1st October. Otherwise you may apply for COS from 1st October or a date you wish to start working for the new company.
Yes, you may start working for company B with the receipt number.
Thanks a lot sujith for your inputs. Regarding the first point, I am wondering if you meant by “I SHOULD hold by approval notice”? or “you aren’t sure about going forward just with case number” for transfer. Also, How would i know if my H1B is applied along with COS(as the approval docs are with consultant)?
Regarding the first point; there is a field in the petition Form I-129, “Provide the most recent petition/application number for the beneficiary. If none exists, indicate N/A”. The petitioner can enter the receipt number here, but without a supporting document for this (like the I-797 approval notice), USCIS may or may not process that petition, which I am not sure.
I have no idea how to know whether your petition was filed w/ COS or not, other than getting that info from the petitioner. Why don’t you check with your petitioner (consultant ‘A’) whether its with or without COS?