My H-1B maxout is 5/21/2015, but my current I-797 expiry is 4/30/2015.
My company will not be able to file my GC labor certification before 5/20/2014 (1 year before maxout), but should file it sometime by 6/20/2014. So I am planning to go to India during Feb - March 2015 to gain back this 1 month time, so I can extend by H-1 for 7th year pending GC processing, in the event that I-140 doesn’t get approved by then. My company will file for extension as soon as I am back in US. My questions:
Will the VO have a problem with issuing a Visa for just 2 months, especially when a extension is not pending?
If the VO queries, can I say my GC is pending and I will be extending my Visa as soon as I reach US?
Are there any other issues I need to bw aware of (like issue at POE, etc.)?
I am not sure if the VO will stamp you VISA for remaining 2 months on the petition, especially since you will be maxing out your H1B stay after those 2 months and your GC processing hasn’t started yet.
If your GC processing hasn’t started (filing I-140 or applying for PERM LCA), do not say it’s in process.
Even if you got your VISA stamped for the remaining 2 months, CBP officer at your port of entry in US could deny your entry citing too short period. It’s a risk you will be taking.
A better option would be to go back to India before last quarter of this year if possible, so that you will have atleast 5-6 months before expiry of your I-797 and you will have a better chance of going through all these processes successfully.
However on your 1) and 2) response, I will have the GC processing going when I appear for stamping during Feb-Mar 2015…Only because it would be filed a month later (6/2014) than it should have (5/2014), I have to go and spend a month outside to gain back time for the 1 year of GC processing clause when extending H-1 for the 7th year. This said, does that change anything with respect to your response for the scenario?