L1B to H1B COS - Need expert advice

USA L1, L2 Visa
1

My current situation - My 3 years L1B expires on 25-Jul-2015, both the visa and I94. My company will apply for my H1B (COS) on Apr 01. My company has also planned to apply for my L1B extension by Jul 2nd week, in an attempt to keep me in the US for the period between my I94 expiry (25-Jul-2015) and H1 start date (Oct 01).

My intention is stay and continue working in the US. Can you please advice on the below questions?

  1. Can I use the 280 days period after my I94 expiry to continue working? Assuming my L1 extension invites an RFE, how this will be affected? How early can USCIS get back with and RFE, and how late can I respond to it?

  2. If my L1 extension is rejected, Can I go out of the US and continue H1B under consular processing with the same petition? What will happen if my H1B petition is approved before L1B rejection?

  3. If my H1B petition is approved, can my company withdraw the L1B extension, so that my final status will be H1B? After the withdrawal, and before Oct 01, can I work in the US?

Please advice me a better way to handle this situation.

2

  1. You can work on L1 when the extension is in pending (using the case number, even if it is in RFE)

  2. You can go out of US, followed by stamping and enter US. Even if the H1 is approved earlier than Oct 1st, you can only start working on H1 from Oct 1 as US Fiscal year starts from Oct 1

  3. Yes, they can withdraw L1 at anytime, but only after Oct 1 (as H1 can only be active from Oct 1)

3

Thank you for the answers. For answer 3, if I withdraw my L1 after Oct 01, will my stay (and work) in the US for the period between my I94 expiry and Sep 30 be considered as illegal? What are the implications of it?