Want to remain in the US - Is L1 to B2 possible?

USA L1, L2 Visa
1

Hello all,

I came onsite on L1 last year, my project is about to get over in a month. I want to remain in the US for personal reasons. Firstly, based on my basic research I know that these are my 2 options: Convert to Student (F1) or Visitor (B2). Since this is too short a notice to get a student visa now, I think my only option is to convert to visitor.

Questions:

  1. What is the process of converting from L1 to B2 visa? I plan to take a few months of sabbatical from my Indian firm while I am on B2 here, can someone please explain this process.

  2. Is it just my assumption, or is it really too short of a notice to convert to F1 now? Are there any collleges (including community colleges) that may offer admission, again, my goal here is to remain in the US for a transitory period of time until I decide my next steps, so I don’t care about the course etc. for now.

  3. Is L1 to B2 something that my company will do, or is it somethine entirely I should apply for? Meaning, should my company be involved here, since it is through them that my L1 has been processed.

Please help me here, even if you can answer only 1 of the 3 questions above, greatly appreciate your help!

Thanks

Pooja

2

Answer to Q1 - I believe you will have to apply for B2 from outside the US but F1 can be applied from within the US. Check with your immigration attorney for detailed process.

Answer to Q3 - No, its something that you should apply for. I believe you need a Sponsorship ( from those US residents you will be visiting) as well.

You can also look for another US Project assignment within your company.