Which i94 is going to be valid?

USA H1B Visa
1

I have my H1B extension approved where i797A has an attached i94 with effective date of 5th Aug 2022 and expiring on 13th Aug 2025.

However, if I travel sometime in June 2022 and get a new i94 at POE in June 2022, which i94 would be valid after 5th August 2022? Is that the i94 obtained at POE or the i94 in the H1b extn approval?

Note: I am not planning to get my visa stamped with the new H1b approval obtained. So, I will be travelling back with my current H1B visa valid until 14th Aug 2022. I am hoping that POE officer will give me i94 as per the new approved petition. However, if POE officer gives i94 only until 14th Aug 2022 (which is my current visa expiry date), I want to know if the i797a’s i94 dates take effect after 5th Aug 2022.

2

Make sure you present the current and new I-797 to CBP, they should give you until the new I797 expiry. If they only give you till current I797 but you enter before your new I797 kicks in, your new I-94 will still be valid and govern your status after the CBP issued I-94 expires.
Make sure to check the CBP issued I94 online asap after your entry.

3

Thanks, @Kalpesh_Dalwadi for the quick response. If I can ask a follow-up question.

I have heard that recent issued i94 takes the highest priority. I am not sure if that is the date of issue of i94 or effective date of i94. So, if CBP officer at POE issues i94 as per the current i797 which would have expiry date of 14-Aug-2022, will I still be good with validity dates of new i797’s i94 (5th Aug 2022 to 13th Aug 2025) ?

4

Later start date will override the past. Consult your employer’s immigration lawyer to double check.

5

Thanks Kalpesh for your quick response. Much appreciated.

7

Quick update.
As I mentioned above, I did not go for visa stamping in India. And, I have travelled back to US on 27th June 2022 with the unexpired visa. However, POE officer gave me a i94 validity until 25th June 2025 based on my already approved H1B i797A (even though the i797A is valid until 3rd Aug 2025, POE officer gave i94 only until 25th June 2025 probably because one can not get more than 3 years from date of Entry to US? Not sure…).

So, I have two i94s.
#1. Issued in Apr 2022 with approved H1B i797A.This attached i94 has effective date of 5th Aug 2022 and expiring on 13th Aug 2025.
#2. Issued at POE on 27th June 2022. This i94 has validity until 25th June 2025

When I checked my employer to find which i94 is final, I got an answer that #2 above should be considered.

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