niuniu

Hello

I'm currently in the US with a H1 visa, however if I was to leave the US for a few years to work in another country (Canada) then at some point in the future applied for another H1 to work in the US once again, would this in any way be affected by the previous H1 visa and leaving to Canada. i.e. more likely/less likely to get it or is each H1 application considered entirely in isolation from previous ones/circumstances?

ian-mstm

A future H-1B will likely not be affected by a prior H-1B and a trip outside the US. If you're going to formally abandon your H-1B status, you should probably let the government know.

Ian

meauxna

There is a cumulative time limit on the H-1B though.. I don't know the details off the top of my head but you are limited to (?) 7 years on H-1B. You'll want to find out how long the break needs to be to reset that clock, if it matters to you how soon you'd come back (and how long you'd stay in the future H-1B).

ian-mstm

I had considered this in my last post, but as he said he was going to "leave the US for a few years" it didn't much matter. He needs to be outside the US for only 1 year before he can again be eligible for an H-1B visa once he hits the 7 year limit.

Ian

zerlesen

Six years, iirc. Although if you get far enough along in the EB immigration process (approved I-140, I think?) during that time then you can extend beyond the six year limit (and as Ian says, one year physically outside the US resets the clock.)

If anything, having abided by the terms of one visa can't hurt when you apply for another. I don't think you have to specifically inform USCIS that you're leaving H status - you are just obliged to leave the country as soon as you stop working in the H job.