destone

Hi All

I am finally getting sponsored by a company for H1B this year April. My fiancee and I currently live in London, UK and are getting married in September later this year. (The wedding has been in the making for a year now.)

Now that premium processing is suspended, if all goes well, I expect the H1B to be approved 8 months from the filing date (first week of April). That means anywhere between November 2017 and January 2018.

By then we'll be married -- but what do I have to do now (before the filing) and later (once we are married) so that my future wife gets the H4 dependent visa?

Thanks

Rete

If you are lucky enough to be chosen for an H-1B, I don't believe there is anything that you need to do about the impeding marriage. Since you would be already married at the time of the issuance of the visa, the company will just make it to include your wife along with your visa.

She does know that the visa she will be getting is called the visa from hell. She cannot work. She is not eligible for a social security card and while that is a pain in the ass it can be overcome in getting a driver's license by getting a letter from the Social Security Administration that she is not entitled to one. She will apply for and get a temporary taxpayer identification number when you file your first tax returns in the US. Some people have been successful in obtaining credit with this number but without a job she won't qualify financially. But she can be put on your credit card(s). If she wants to volunteer, she can only do so if the position is one that no one else has been or is being paid to do.

Good with the visa and congratulations on the upcoming nupitals.

Noorah101

There is nothing specific you need to do. She will apply for an H-4 based on the fact that you have an H-1B.

Rene

destone

Isn't it true that she can get H4 EAD work authorisation if my employer file the correct paperworks on my behalf? I already asked them if they're ok to do this as part of the job offer they made. I.e. getting my I-140 approved as soon as possible. I believe it takes ~4 months for H4 EAD to be approved once I-140 is approved.

ian-mstm

She can apply for an EAD after you have an approved I-140, yes.


It's closer to 3 months - but yes. Keep in mind that it could take a year or more to get the I-140 approved. By the way, if you can get that I-140 offer in writing, do it. Also, just because the company says they will, doesn't mean they'll follow through. Everybody wants to trust the company, but you shouldn't.

Ian

destone

Thanks Ian. Do you know if it is possible to start the I-140 process at the same time as the original H1B application is being filed? Or is it the case that filing for I-140 can only start once we have touched ground on U.S. soil with the H1B visa in my hand?

destone

Also, I believe USCIS did not suspend the Premium Processing Service for I-140 so in theory they could approve it within 15 days of receiving the filing?

Rete

How long does I-140 processing take?




A safe estimate is around six months. If your I-140 petition is based on a category that requires a labor certification from the Department of Labor (DOL), the preparation time will depend on how long the labor certification process itself takes.

Does your category require a labor certification?

destone

It is category 1.e. "A professional (at a minimum, possessing a bachelor's degree or a foreign degree equivalent to a U.S. bachelor's degree)." so yes, labour certification is required.

Can the employer arrange the labour certification during the 6+ months window while the H1B application is being processed? If so, then the way I look at it, I could have the I-140 filed and approved (via Premium Processing) within 15 days of entering the U.S. on the approved H1B visa.

In other words, my future wife could file H4 EAD within the first 30 days of we being present in the U.S., and she would be ok waiting 3-4 months to get that approved.

Am I missing a trick here?

Rete

Have you asked the institutes lawyers? Done any research on the web? I don't have the answer to that question.

ian-mstm

In which case, it's not the I-140 that'll take time... it's the labor certification you'll be waiting on. I don't believe the I-140 can be filed until the labor certification is approved.


I don't think so, no. Until you're in H-1B status (which doesn't happen until after you enter the US), there's no basis on which to file for labor certification.

Ian

Orangepants

Not missing a trick - that would be the perfect scenario.

Unfortunately often it doesn't happen as smoothly. Yes the employer can get on with applying for EB-3 or EB-2 which you qualify for now and start that process now. Once the Labor cert is through, then they submit the I-140, get that approved and then they submit the I-485 for you both to adjust status. You do know that labor certs are pretty hard to get and can take a long time - advertising, interviewing, documenting and proving that you are the best candidate. Even perhaps being audited.

She doesn't file for EAD H4. The lawyer submits I-485 for you both and as part of that process she'd get the EAD.

We have just been through the process through EB-1 so there wasn't a labor cert. Our lawyer was totally on top of the process, no intermediaries, just him and us. Submitted 1-140 in Sept with PP and we got the EADs in mid February.

sherbert

You don't need a letter from SS to get a license. All you need is your I-94 printout and your valid H4 visa. At the DMV, the person attending to me didn't understand the situation but called a supervisor who knew exactly what to do.

While Rete is correct, H4 is the visa from hell, your wife *can* have her own bank account in her own name but getting a credit card in her name will be very difficult - impossible probably.

For what it is worth, not having an SSN has never been a problem for me. If you tell someone you don't have an SSN they don't ask questions (but I do live in a so-called sanctuary city and perhaps people are more used to 'undocumented' people). The ITIN is of no help except for tax filing (it cannot be used for bank accounts/identification purposes).

I would make sure she is prepared to not be able to work for at least the first year: your company has no obligation to start the process quickly for you (in fact quite the contrary, the longer they can string it out the better), documentation gathering takes time, and now with all the changes to visa processing, who knows how long it will take.

fbf2006

You technically don't have to be on H1-B or in the US at all before a company starts the green card process for you. So yes, they certainly can start the labor certification process while the H1-B is pending.

ian-mstm

Technically, or actually? If not actually, could you please explain what you mean by technically.

Ian