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Old 7th October 2011, 13:58   #106
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Guys, probably a bit OT. But I want to know the best place (www or otherwise) for house hunt.
I hope we don't need to mandatory go through a broker as we do in Indian metros!

Also, which areas/towns (safe & friendly) should I look forward to considering my workplace is Hoboken, NJ?

Last edited by cyclops : 7th October 2011 at 14:22.
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Old 7th October 2011, 14:06   #107
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

What is the difference between a premium H1 and a normal H1 petition, apart from the processing speed, which is said to be just 15 days?
When is the earliest when people have filed their petitions in 2011's quota can start the work ?
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Old 7th October 2011, 14:29   #108
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

$1225 over and above the normal processing fees. Plus the lawyers might be fleecing to a greater extent..
Usually the petitions (normal) applied in Mar-Apr are approved to start working from Oct.
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Old 1st March 2012, 22:24   #109
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H1B visa - After the Petition is approved.

Hi!!

The petitions for 2013 will be accepted from April 01 for H1b visa processing.
The successful can start working from October 2012 provided they get their visa stamped.

Can you please guide me on the below-

aa)In case the petition is approved in May or June , when can one apply / start the visa procedure for stamping in India?

Can he immediately apply or he has to wait till september ?

bb)If one gets his visa stamped say in July then can he/she enter US in sept. Ofcourse one cannot start working.It will be only from 1st October.

Cheers
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Old 1st March 2012, 22:57   #110
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Re: H1B visa - After the Petition is approved.

Quote:
Originally Posted by naj View Post

aa)In case the petition is approved in May or June , when can one apply / start the visa procedure for stamping in India?

Can he immediately apply or he has to wait till september ?
Cheers
One can apply/start the visa procedure for stamping in India as soon as the approved petition is available at hand.


Quote:
Originally Posted by naj View Post

bb)If one gets his visa stamped say in July then can he/she enter US in sept. Ofcourse one cannot start working.It will be only from 1st October.

Cheers
You may not enter the United States more than 10 days prior to the petition validity date.
Example: petition start date is 1st Oct, one can enter only on or after 20th Sep.

Source: Know Your H-1B Rights | Consulate General of the United States Chennai, India

Hope this helps.
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Old 14th June 2012, 15:59   #111
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Does anyone know whether one needs to return to the home country only to get the L1 visa re-stamped after an extension or can this be done from any consulate outside of US, like in Canada or Mexico?
I've been getting mixed responses so far. So, anyone with firm knowledge of the issue here?

Thanks,
Amitoj
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Old 14th June 2012, 18:29   #112
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by amitoj View Post
Does anyone know whether one needs to return to the home country only to get the L1 visa re-stamped after an extension or can this be done from any consulate outside of US, like in Canada or Mexico?
I've been getting mixed responses so far. So, anyone with firm knowledge of the issue here?

Thanks,
Amitoj
it can be done from any consulate outside US. few years ago, my company had made an appointment for me with consulate in toronto (however, i ended up traveling to India and getting the stamping done in mumbai) for the same.
if you do it in canada, since while entering into canada by road your I-94 is not taken off, I am not sure how the process of re-issue of I-94 works.
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Old 14th June 2012, 19:12   #113
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by amitoj View Post
Does anyone know whether one needs to return to the home country only to get the L1 visa re-stamped after an extension or can this be done from any consulate outside of US, like in Canada or Mexico?
I've been getting mixed responses so far. So, anyone with firm knowledge of the issue here?

Thanks,
Amitoj
Yes you can go for stamping to Canada or Mexico. There are lot of immi forums with real experiences and process of doing the same.
The only reason people think twice is the rate of rejection has been increasing, and in such case you would have to probably head back to India or stay in Canada until you RFE thing is over and visa gets approved.
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Old 9th July 2012, 13:52   #114
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Hi All,
I have a family emergency and need to return back to india but this time I am in the US to apply for H1B extension,My visa is expiring on sept 30 2012.By this week end i will apply for extension. I might have to return to India at the earliest.At the same time dont want to lose my onsite oppurtunity. Please advice.

i have few doubts ,please answer them if your very sure:

1.Can i travel back to India ,once i get a receipt that my H1B extension is filed?
2. Once my petition is approved for extension,i can start my stamping from india ?

Thnaks
MSVG
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Old 11th July 2012, 11:06   #115
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by msvg View Post
Hi All,
I have a family emergency and need to return back to india but this time I am in the US to apply for H1B extension,My visa is expiring on sept 30 2012.By this week end i will apply for extension. I might have to return to India at the earliest.At the same time dont want to lose my onsite oppurtunity. Please advice.

i have few doubts ,please answer them if your very sure:

1.Can i travel back to India ,once i get a receipt that my H1B extension is filed?
2. Once my petition is approved for extension,i can start my stamping from india ?

Thnaks
MSVG
It is best to apply in premium processing and leave for India once you have you I 797 (notice of approval). Not prudent to leave USA with a visa decision pending - that defeats the fundamental purpose of asking for an extension.
Once you have your I 797 , you can easily get a date for stamping while you are in India.
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Old 14th July 2012, 08:12   #116
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by blackasta View Post
It is best to apply in premium processing and leave for India once you have you I 797 (notice of approval). Not prudent to leave USA with a visa decision pending - that defeats the fundamental purpose of asking for an extension.
Once you have your I 797 , you can easily get a date for stamping while you are in India.
AFAIK leaving US while the visa is under processing, is as good as not applying since US immigration will reject the application.
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Old 7th December 2012, 12:43   #117
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Hey guys,
A minor query on H1B visa filing. My company guidelines states the following point
- If Given Name or Surname is blank in the existing passport it is highly advisable to get a new passport with both Given Name or Surname available during stamping of visa

Now I'm a Tamilian with no surname - all of my official documents are in that format (Name: Niranjan XXXX / Surname : <blank>).
Now is this a generic problem or can I ignore this aspect.

P.s. Haven't scanned the thread for this point. If this has already been answered, please do share the post details.
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Old 7th December 2012, 16:24   #118
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by ninjatalli View Post
Hey guys,
A minor query on H1B visa filing. My company guidelines states the following point
- If Given Name or Surname is blank in the existing passport it is highly advisable to get a new passport with both Given Name or Surname available during stamping of visa

Now I'm a Tamilian with no surname - all of my official documents are in that format (Name: Niranjan XXXX / Surname : <blank>).
Now is this a generic problem or can I ignore this aspect.

P.s. Haven't scanned the thread for this point. If this has already been answered, please do share the post details.
Hi ninjatalli - I do not want to scare you but I would advice better get your name corrected in passport. Let me share my experience here.

My name is Jose Joseph and in my passport I have Given Name as Jose Joseph with no Surname <blank>.

When I got my US visa stamped, First Name became FNU and Last Name as Jose Joseph. At the port of entry the officer there changed it to First Name as Jose Joseph and Last Name as LNU. When I had to apply for SSN, there were many confusions as my name in the records did not match. Due to this, there was a delay to get my SSN. When I received SSN, my name became FNU Jose Joseph. And in my driver's license my name is First Name <blank> and Last Name JoseJoseph (no space in between). When I asked for correcting my name in driving license, the officer asked me to go to consulate and get my name in visa corrected first inorder to correct my name in driving license. So I'm still using my driving license with incorrect name.

-- Jose
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Old 7th December 2012, 20:47   #119
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by ninjatalli View Post
Hey guys,
A minor query on H1B visa filing. My company guidelines states the following point
- If Given Name or Surname is blank in the existing passport it is highly advisable to get a new passport with both Given Name or Surname available during stamping of visa

Now I'm a Tamilian with no surname - all of my official documents are in that format (Name: Niranjan XXXX / Surname : <blank>).
Now is this a generic problem or can I ignore this aspect.

P.s. Haven't scanned the thread for this point. If this has already been answered, please do share the post details.
Yes please change your name in the passport to a firstname / lastname format - I know a guy firsthand who faced similar problems as Jose - its a big trouble ranging from Visa / I 94 / DL / tax returns etc.
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Old 7th December 2012, 23:18   #120
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Re: H1B visa -Your Experience

Quote:
Originally Posted by blackasta View Post
Yes please change your name in the passport to a firstname / lastname format - I know a guy firsthand who faced similar problems as Jose - its a big trouble ranging from Visa / I 94 / DL / tax returns etc.
Quote:
Originally Posted by josejoseph View Post
Hi ninjatalli - I do not want to scare you but I would advice better get your name corrected in passport.
Thanks for the advice guys. But I wonder if I do this, even at the risk of the passport having the wrong credentials?! I don't have a surname, the second part of my name is my father's name The way I understand it, I would face problems later when I land up there, but not during the visa filling/process right?

To top it, not to ignore the trouble I have to go through again (just got my passport renewed less than a year back) to get the name changed (not sure how long is that process)
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