i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
May 19th 2009, 5:19 am
#1
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Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 13
i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
Hi everyone,
here's our situation:
We're on L1b visa's due to expire in October 2009.
We've had our i-140's accepted and have just (May 01st) submitted:
i485 - Change of status to Permanent resident
i325 - Biometrics
i131 - Advanced parole for travel outside the US
i765 - Employment authorization
If our i485 isn't done by the time our L1B's expire in October, we're wondering if we'll need to get our L1b visas re-authorized or if the i765 & i131 will cover us to stay in the US until it's done?
Does anyone know how this works?
here's our situation:
We're on L1b visa's due to expire in October 2009.
We've had our i-140's accepted and have just (May 01st) submitted:
i485 - Change of status to Permanent resident
i325 - Biometrics
i131 - Advanced parole for travel outside the US
i765 - Employment authorization
If our i485 isn't done by the time our L1B's expire in October, we're wondering if we'll need to get our L1b visas re-authorized or if the i765 & i131 will cover us to stay in the US until it's done?
Does anyone know how this works?
May 19th 2009, 2:35 pm
#2
L2, GC, Surrey, OH, TX!
Joined: Aug 2007
Location: Surrey to Dallas (via Ohio)!
Posts: 6,363
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
i think the ead would keep you going in the meantime - and that takes about 8-12 weeks to come through.
May 19th 2009, 10:24 pm
#3
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Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 13
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
We just got some advice on this, I thought I'd post it up in case anyone else wanted to know...
In short once you have your i767 (Employment Authorization Document) & your i131 (Advanced parole for travel) you're covered.
You use the i131 instead of your L1 to get back into the country should you need to leave.
Waiting times for the i131 & i767 should fit for us - fingers crossed.
In short once you have your i767 (Employment Authorization Document) & your i131 (Advanced parole for travel) you're covered.
You use the i131 instead of your L1 to get back into the country should you need to leave.
Waiting times for the i131 & i767 should fit for us - fingers crossed.
Last edited by sanfranwolf; May 19th 2009 at 10:27 pm.
May 20th 2009, 1:03 am
#4
US immigration lawyer.
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: Los Angeles & Palm Springs, California
Posts: 695
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
BEWARE: Any irregularity in the processing of your case could cause difficulties. For example: if your company goes out of business or restructures, if you get laid off, if you hate your new boss and refuse to stay employed, etc etc. If for ANY reason your I-140 + AOS don't or can't get approved, and if your L-1 has already expired, you will be in the USA with no legal status. And then you'll really have problems.
In better economic times, it was easy enough to say, "oh, well, the I-140 + AOS will probably be approved, so there's no need to renew the underlying visa." Nowadays, we attempt to keep applicants in status, despite the extra costs; there are 'way to many unreasonable and arbitrary RFEs, glitches, companies 'going south,' and so on.
Acknowledged: there are some -- including a goodly number on BE -- who will say that "it's just the attorney trying to get more money from you." And if you feel that way, by all means, don't pay. However, the number of inquiries I have had in the past year -- where an alien did NOT keep the underlying visa alive, whether or not at the recommendation of prior counsel -- is simply amazing. In the past I might get a handful of such problems in a year. Since the new year, we've had over a dozen.
-- J Craig Fong
Los Angeles, CA
In better economic times, it was easy enough to say, "oh, well, the I-140 + AOS will probably be approved, so there's no need to renew the underlying visa." Nowadays, we attempt to keep applicants in status, despite the extra costs; there are 'way to many unreasonable and arbitrary RFEs, glitches, companies 'going south,' and so on.
Acknowledged: there are some -- including a goodly number on BE -- who will say that "it's just the attorney trying to get more money from you." And if you feel that way, by all means, don't pay. However, the number of inquiries I have had in the past year -- where an alien did NOT keep the underlying visa alive, whether or not at the recommendation of prior counsel -- is simply amazing. In the past I might get a handful of such problems in a year. Since the new year, we've had over a dozen.
-- J Craig Fong
Los Angeles, CA
May 20th 2009, 1:37 am
#5
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Joined: Mar 2009
Posts: 13
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
Thanks JCraigFong, that sounds like good advice.
Do you know if we can petition for an extension of our L1b without having to physically go back to the UK?
- I'm told an immigration service center can extend the L1b - is that correct?
Do you know if we can petition for an extension of our L1b without having to physically go back to the UK?
- I'm told an immigration service center can extend the L1b - is that correct?
May 20th 2009, 5:53 am
#6
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Joined: May 2005
Location: San Diego, CA
Posts: 349
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
You can extend the L1 status without leaving the US, but you need to visit an embassy outside of the US if you want to get the updated visa stamp in your passport. If you are not planning to travel outside of the US for sometime, then you could not bother with getting the visa stamp on the basis that you could always use your AP if some emergency came up that meant you needed to travel. However, when I was going through this process I was advised by the attorney to use the visa to enter rather than AP because I believe there is some disadvantage to being 'paroled in' rather than entering on a visa, especially if anything does go wrong with AOS.
May 20th 2009, 6:55 pm
#7
US immigration lawyer.
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: Los Angeles & Palm Springs, California
Posts: 695
Re: i140 Accepted but L1b Due for renewal.
You can extend the L1 status without leaving the US, but you need to visit an embassy outside of the US if you want to get the updated visa stamp in your passport. If you are not planning to travel outside of the US for sometime, then you could not bother with getting the visa stamp on the basis that you could always use your AP if some emergency came up that meant you needed to travel. However, when I was going through this process I was advised by the attorney to use the visa to enter rather than AP because I believe there is some disadvantage to being 'paroled in' rather than entering on a visa, especially if anything does go wrong with AOS.
Two immigration practice fundamentals: A visa allows an alien to approach the US border or POE and ask to be admitted in a particular visa status. Nothing more. It does not guarantee admission. After one is admitted the I-94 Arrival-Departure card controls one's visa class (A, B-2, F-1, H-4, etc.), and sets one's length of authorized stay. Regardless of the validity of the visa, your I-94 determines how long you may remain in the USA for this visit.
--J Craig Fong
Los Angeles, CA
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