questions on H1b - No job in H1b for 5months

Hi Saurabh,

I am in H1b visa from past october with out job. I couldnt find a suitable position still and it is already feb now.That being said, I am not paid by my company and I am not paid from Day 1. I read somewhere like we can be here for 180 days with out job after which we need to go out and come back on other visa otherwise it would be legal. People are telling to pay and get the pay slips run until i find a job. But I wanted to know like, is it possible to get the pay slips for all the backlog periods, atleast if not now can i do it once i get a job.? I searched but couldnt find an answer for my question.

I am in dilemma whether to go out and come back in other visa or be here pay and run the pay slips until i get a job. Also I have one other question like, assume i go out and come back in other visa, if i need to work in future can i find an employer and file a visa anytime or will i come under quota??

Please share your thoughts. I know we need to be paid from day 1 but this never happens with desi consultancies.

Regards

The rule is you should always maintain legal status while on H-1. This means you should get paid irrespective of whether you are in a project or on bench. So your employer should start paying you the salary as per the LCA and also pay you back wages.

If you don’t get paid, then you start accumulating “out of status”. 6 months like this and you can end-up w/ 3 year ban from entering US; 1 year like this and you can end-up w/ 10 year ban.

I suggest talk to your employer about getting paid regularly and also the back wages. You will never receive W-2 for 2012, and this is something that can impact you in future. Also, I suggest talking to an attorney if getting back wages now reduces the chances of future immigration applications runinng into any issues.

As a last resort, you can complain to DOL against your employer. Still talk to an attorney about how it will help you in getting back in status.