ndaudi07

Dear All,

I have finally been issued my H1-B visa !! I received notice regarding passport delivery on Friday, and the packet was just delivered to me today. This is a huge huge HUGE relief for me - having undergone administrative processing for exactly 6 months, and with my entire life and career back on hold in the US, it feels good to finally have some certainty back in my life. I'm looking forward to heading back to my apartment, seeing my friends, working from an OFFICE with real people and not from a couch, driving my car and all the other wonderful things that people do in their normal lives, and most of all not live out of a suitcase!

Thank you to all who offered their advice/support/kind words/harsh words - it was all very helpful!

I am sure I will have more questions in the future with regards to US immigration, so I look forward to more responses when the need arises.

Till then... Boston --> I am coming home!

ND

S Folinsky

Congratulations.

Now that you have visa in hand, can you think of anything besides being Pakistani that might have caused problems?

No need to answer if you don't care to. As I may have mentioned earlier, it is not uncommon to be able to figure out a high probability scenario when the person's specific background is known.

BTW, out of discretion I refrained from previously making the following comment: I got the feeling that you proceeded abroad with a certain degree of naivete. Prior inquiry with an attorney or on a forum like this may have avoided grief.

Again, congratulations.

ian-mstm

Congratulations! Great news!

Ian

ndaudi07

Thanks for your response.

Well apart from being born in Pakistan, my parents split their time between UK and PK during the year, so I have visited PK multiple times in the last 5 years to visit family, so that is likely an added factor.

I appreciate you not having mentioned it earlier, but as you may already know, I was already in the US as a student when I transferred my status from F-1 to H1-B after my employers decided to sponsor me once I graduated. Once my H1-B approval notice came through a few months into my employment term, I wasn't obligated to leave the country and could well have stayed there for years for not risking the prospect of AP upon stamping. And yes, our firm does have an immigration attorney that represents us, and did indicate that there was a possibility that someone with my profile could get stuck, but of course, nobody was able to predict how long it could be for.

The way I looked at it as of June 2011 (when I left for vacation and to get stamping): I hadn't traveled out of the US for almost 2 years at that point, and was not prepared to not travel and visit family and friends for what could be a very long haul. I was prepared to risk the possibility of a stamping delay (so I was aware of it) - however, it still doesn't take away from my frustration of having got caught up in it for what felt like a lifetime!

I suppose now that I have the luxury of retrospect - had someone told me (and assuming there was a way of knowing before hand) that I would have got stuck for 6 months... would I have traveled for that holiday? I don't know... but I did, and did pay a price for it. I'll certainly milk the stamp for what it's worth, and make sure I take as many holidays as possible before I am up for renewal, at which point I'll have to evaluate more carefully what to do.

ND

ndaudi07

Thanks Ian - looking forward to being back!

ND

Brat1

Woohoo!!! Congratulations on that, I know you've had a long wait and you'll be home just in time for some Winter storms no doubt

Good luck for the future.

ndaudi07

Thanks! Certainly hoping I can catch a flight out before any major winter storms arrive... although I am looking forward to another Boston winter - it is my favorite time of year

All the best!

phcist2usa

Congratulations!!

very happy for you...good things come to good ppl..sooner or later...
i know yurs was long wait...but u passed it right?// very brave....so tough to those who say if you thought before coming here...

goodwishes to you.!!!!!!!!!!:

Leo_Loves

Congrats! Super happy for you!

ndaudi07

Thank you all ! It really was a difficult time in my life, but glad that it is over. All the best to all those who are undergoing the AP nightmare right now. Hang in there - all will work out for the best soon enough!

S Folinsky

A side comment. I am trained in the underlying organization of the immigration laws. I would like to point out that a visa is permission for a common carrier to transport you to a port of entry so you can apply for admission under the terms of the visa. It is inherent in the system that the border guards are under no obligation whatsoever to admit the visa holder.

As a practical matter, 99.99% of NIV holders are admitted with no problem. However, every time you apply for admission, your whole entitlement to status is subject to review.

ndaudi07

Thanks for pointing that out S Folinsky - I think my statement above about milking the stamp for what it's worth was borne out of the immediate excitement that I felt with regards to the freedom of being able to travel without having to go through an embassy, at least for another couple of years. To be completely honest, I barely get enough holiday to travel out of the country more than once (maximum twice) in the year, so I should probably remind myself of that

I do however recognize that at the end of the day, it is up to the border guard to allow final entry, and that there is a theoretical possibility that despite overcoming all these hurdles, I could still be refused entry. If I happen to be the unfortunate 0.01%, then oh well.. at least I would have left America knowing that I gave it my best shot.

Wibblypig

Congratulations

S Folinsky

Don't worry about all that much. I tend to be a tad paranoid since not only do I know what can happen, I've seen it happen from time to time. The lawyer then gets retained for what my colleague and good friend J Craig Fong would call "janitorial work."

When the law was changed in 1996, I complained to a friend [now deceased] that the border guards would now have the powers of the Gestapo. Monica noted that not only was this not true, it was an insult -- to the Gestapo. Say what you will, the Gestapo had rules to follow -- and they followed them, or else. [I want to make clear that Monica did not in way approve of the rules enforced by the Gestapo.].

ndaudi07

No harm in being extra careful though - just shouldn't stop you from doing what you are legally allowed to do. And then... if the border guards, despite trying to follow their apparent set of rules, turn you away, then not much you can do.

- Let's hope the particular border officer I get is not on a power trip. The only time I didn't get asked additional questions upon arrival (when I say additional I mean 45-60 mins at least, and usually in a separate room) was when the border officer was finishing up his shift, and seemed to be in a particular rush to get out. Fingerprints, and what I believe to be the standard "where are you coming from" question, and I was out of there. I honestly felt something was wrong when I got out of there so quickly. Even the customs officer didn't open up my bags... was too good to be true.