L1B to H1B coversion

USA L1, L2 Visa
1

Hello,

I am currently employed with employer A on L1B, valid from May 2014 to May 2017. I-94 expires in June 2019.

In July 2014, my employer A had applied for H1B through consular processing and the petition has been approved.

Post the H1B approval, i did not change the status from L1B to H1B and i continue to be on L1B. I even travelled to India and returned to US (in 2015, 2016) on L1B status.

I donot intend to change employment and wish to continue with employer A.

Request advise on the following

  1. Is the H1B petition approval still valid? And if yes, till when is it valid?

  2. Since I continue to be on L1B, is it mandatory to change to H1B and if yes, is there a time limit?

  3. Given that the L1B visa is going to expire in May 2017, would it be advisable to extend the L1B or switch to H1B?

  4. I moved from from an earlier work location A to a new work location B. My H1B was filed for location A. If I have to change to H1B, does it require any additional process to be done since I am in location B.

  5. Since H1B was through consular processing, am i required to travel out of US for H1B stamping?

  6. If i decide to extend my L1B (since my spouse has L2 EAD), when should i start the extension process?

Appreciate insights.

Thank You.

2

  1. The petition itself has an expiration date of 1-3 years. You will have to look at your petition approval notice to know the exact date. However, it can be used for cap-exempt purposes (i.e. transfer) for 6 years from original approval date. In some recent cases, this was successfully done even after the 6 year period had expired.

  2. Not mandatory at all

  3. You have to decide that depending upon who you want to work for and what kind of job you plan to do

  4. If the location changes, then new LCA and H-1 amendment needs to be applied. In addition, COS is needed to change status from L-1 to H-1 irrespective of your location.

  5. You can go for stamping and file COS (see 4)

  6. Your employer can apply for L-1 extension at most 6 months prior to current expiration date