01steven

I have a situation for which I'd appreciate advice.

I am on a H-1B visa, which commenced Sep 2009 and expires Sep 23 2012.
Myself, my wife and 7 yr old son are all UK citizens. They are on dependent H4 visas.
We went to the US Embassy in London before we moved to the US to get the visas put in our passports.

A few months ago we extended the visa and were sent I-797A 'notice of action' forms confirming our extension.
I asked our immigration attorney about why we didn't need new visas inserted in our passports as the old ones had been, but the attorney said they weren't needed and the I-797A forms would be sufficient to be admitted at border control.
My wife and son recently travelled to the UK and flew back yesterday to the US. We live in Florida.
When my wife presented the I-797A forms the border guard dismissed them and told them that those documents 'meant nothing' and unless there was an actual visa in their passports he wouldn't recognize the visa extension.
So he stamped them in to the country but told them they would have to leave by Sep 23 2012 (the date of expiry of the original H-1B visa).

Looking again at the I-797A forms the document does say on it 'This form is not a visa nor may it be used in place of a visa'. This does seem to confirm my fears originally that what we had was not sufficient, and makes me feel that perhaps the border guard was correct.

The guard did suggest that if we could get to 'an embassy' we might be able to get the visas put in our passports.

Our attorney does not want to help any further, and has made it clear that as far as they are concerned their work is done with this issue.

I am now in a position whereby my current H-1B expires in a few weeks time and although I am obviously approved for an extension, it doesn't seem as though we have the correct documentation to enable us to leave and return the country.

Which office should we go to to get visas put in our passports?
Do we have to go back to the US Embassy in London?! (my wife has just returned from there). Do we need to visit Washington? Or can we do this in Florida? Or perhaps send them off to an office somewhere?

The plan was for us to shortly proceed with an application for an EB-3 visa to enable us to live and work here beyond Sep 2015 (when the H1-B visa extension expires).

I would appreciate advice in this matter.

Kind regards

N1cky

The I797 is sufficient as long as you don't leave the country, however once you leave, as your wife and kid did, you then need a new visa in your passports.

You cannot get a visa within America, you will have to leave. I have seen several people take a trip to the Embassy in the Caribbean, which may work for you as you are in Florida, alternatively Toronto maybe easier than returning to the UK.

Make sure you make appointments, complete all relevant forms and take all relevant evidence with you to your appointment, just as you did the first time.

01steven

Thanks, this might be the best option.
I recall though that when we did this in London, we surrendered our passports, the Embassy processed the visas and then couriered them back to us a week or so later.

Would the Embassy in the Bahamas be able to process this while we wait?
If not, is there some sort of special travel document we could get from the UK Embassy in advance which would enable us to return to Florida while the Bahamas Embassy processed our visas?

P.S. Can't believe a) this can't be done in the US itself, and b) our attorney thought having actual visas in our passport wouldn't be necessary

N1cky

No, you would need to remain out of the country until the Embassy processed your visas and returned your passport. It looks like the processing time is only 1 day in Nassau though.


http://travel.state.gov/visa/temp/wa...ssau&x=82&y=10

01steven

There seems to be a lot of small print on that page indicating that there may be additional processing time etc.
Do you really think I could go and pick up our passports with the visas in them the next day? Or is there a possibility that we'll be made to wait there longer?

N1cky

There's always the possibility, same as there is a possibility your visa will be denied. Those possibilities existed when you went for your initial visa too though.

Orangepants

A poster Vimto recently renewed in Nassau - look for posts from him or have a search for visa renewal posts recently. I am hoping to go the Nassau route when we renew next year.

01steven

Under what circumstances would they approve the H-1B extension, but deny the visa? Don't they apply the same criteria to make their decision?
Do you know if you can collect the passport there after they've processed it, or does it have to be mailed somewhere?

01steven

Thanks, I'll look out for Vimto

Orangepants

Perhaps if you've been a naughty boy. The visa is about you, the petition is about the company and a bit about you..

discoviking

That is quite common, actually. Keep in mind that there are separate government entities involved in this. The I-797A is issued by USCIS, which is under the Dept. of Homeland Security. Visas on the other hand, are issued at a US consulate abroad. US consulates are operated by the Dept of State. It is not uncommon that a US consulate will put an application for an H-1B visa under additional scrutiny, despite the fact that there already is an approved I-797A. There have been several threads on this very website started by people being stuck abroad for months when they went on what was supposed to be a quick trip home to renew an H-1B visa. A colleague of mine has been stuck for almost a year now.

You should also be aware that US consulates in countries other than your home country are not obligated to accept and process your visa application. Keep that in mind when you decide where to go for your renewal.

zerlesen

Well, she *did* have a visa in her passport - which is fortunate, because otherwise she wouldn't have been readmitted. I might be completely wrong about this, but I think your family may have just gotten unlucky with the agent at the POE. As long as the visa itself is valid on the day that they sought entry (which it obviously was) the agent can - I think - admit her until the expiration of the underlying petition (which is to say, until the date on the extension I-797). This sounds like what the lawyer was getting at.

Less fortunately, your wife and son now have to abide by the date on the I-94 she was issued. If what I'm saying above isn't total nonsense, it might - I can't believe I'm saying this - be worth contacting USCIS and seeing if there's anything that can be done after the fact (if it's a matter of the border agent's discretion, the answer is likely no - but still).

As for your first point, alas, there are no US embassies within the US.

(In case there aren't enough disclaimers and equivocations in the above, I am definitely not a lawyer.)

N1cky

This is a very good point.

When you received your paperwork for the renewal, what date did the new I94's have on?

Fred16

My wife had three months left on Visa one time at entry and was warned,try this again and you won't be admitted

I also believe that H4 visa can only be approved if H1 has the visa
That's my understanding anyway

I also did not visit Embassy my last trip home due to some confusion...it was expired...was allowed entry and I've not left since...2.5yrs ago

I just keep getting I94 with extended dates sent to me

01steven

The I-94s on the I797As are valid from 10/01/2012 to 9/30/2015.

Here's the latest.
Spoke to USCIS customer service.
First I called, as the beneficiary of the visa.
The customer service agent was evidently being prompted by a (presumably more experienced) co-worker in the background, but he seemed to suggest that the I-797A was confirmation of my legal status whilst in the country, but in terms of leaving and then entering the country, we would need visas in our passports. He suggested that any US Embassy would be OK for us to visit.

My employer, the petitioner for the visa application then called USCIS and they told him that the border officer should have used the 2015 expiration date for their stay, but they could not advise about issues regarding entry to the country as this was an issue for CBP.
We then called CBP, and they confirmed that because my wife and son left the country, they need a new valid visa in their passports.

We have now made the decision to get visas in our passports. Although my lawyer and the 2nd call to USCIS seems to suggest the visa isn't necessary, it's clear that having visas would eradicate the problem.
It's also clear that we need to leave the US before Sep 23 2012.
So the only question is whether we can do this in Nassau (we're in Miami so this is close by), or London.

I'm now trying to get more clarity on this issue.
The CBP customer service agent said the visa can only be done at the embassy of our home country (in our case London/UK) and not in the Bahamas.
I've not yet got through to the embassy in Nassau, but I am about to draft an email.
Whilst this would be the simplest option (it's not far, wait times seem to be minimal), I'm very concerned about what happens if anything goes wrong (how to know when to book a return flight?, being in Bahamas without our passports etc.)

The plot thickens, the blood boils...but trying to keep things in perspective and stay calm (despite son just going back to school)!!