Posted on 09/09/2003 5:04:40 PM PDT by dark_lord
According to the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS), foreign nationals working in the U.S. lose their H1-B status the moment they lose their jobs.
Since the workers are only entitled to stay in the country to perform the jobs for which they were granted the visa, they must now return to their countries of origin. In recent years, these workers had 60 days in which to remain here. Since 9-11, that has been reduced to 30 days.
But don't panic. There are a few things H1-B workers can do if they have recently lost their employment, or fear that the worst is coming, says Harry J. Joe, founder and attorney of the immigration law practice Jenkins & Gilchrist in Dallas.
If you're an out-of-status H1-B worker, one of the quickest ways to protect yourself is to attend a U.S. college or university on an F-1 student visa. Once you have actually made the application for college and the F-1 visa you are protecting yourself, Joe says, since you can then document a legitimate reason to remain in the U.S. while awaiting approval of your application.
Should you go this route, pursue a master's degree in a field other than technology, such as business, Joe suggests. This will increase your value once you complete the program.
If the better option for an international husband and wife team is for the spouse to seek a student F-1 visa, the H1-B worker can file for H-1 status. This allows the H-1 B worker to remain in the U.S. for the length of time the spouse is a student -- six years.
This option gives H1-B workers a lot of time to find new employment, whether they have just lost their jobs, or anticipate losing them shortly. And again, H1-B workers become protected in their immigration status the moment their spouses file for an F-1 visa, and they file for H-1 status.
By applying for "tourist" status with the INS, H1-B workers can remain in the U.S. for six months to see the sights. Those six months could do wonders for their ability to locate new employers. Once done, those employers can file for H1-B status for them for new jobs.
If none of the above options pans out, H1-B workers who don't want to return home should file for visa status with neighboring Canada. It has less strict policies than the U.S. right now, Joe explains.
When all else fails, H1-B workers who can't get back into "status" should willingly return to their countries of origin quickly, Joe advises. This allows the worker to leave the U.S. on good terms, and in good grace. If H1-B workers lose visa status and remain past the 30-day period with no change in employment or education status, they will not be viewed favorably for new H1-B visas at a later time.
Employers also need to act quickly when H1-B workers lose their jobs, Joe notes. In fact, the employer must notify the INS of the change in status of worker immediately. Failure to do so not only violates the terms of the original visa approval, it makes employers liable for back wages to H1-B employees should they seek them. Employees could argue that their employers never terminated employment, and collect retroactive wages until they line up new jobs.
(Excerpt) Read more at searchcio.techtarget.com ...
I'm a whole lot more worried about a President and multiple Democrat candidates who want to grant amnesty to 9-12 million folks who entered this country illegally and have minimal skills at best....not to mention they mostly live off the welfare and free medical care system. At least the H-1Bs brought job skills.
How about some parting advice to the H1-B employee Go home-stay home! When we're fully employed and need you we'll give you a holler.
< /rant >
Who told you that....it's simply not true.
I've heard there are great IT jobs in India!
So does Bush. Is there any presidential candidate who wants to deport the illegals? I dont know who to vote for this time. Buchannan and Perot are not running, and everyone else wants our population to get up to a billion by bringing in foreigners, and losing our culture, as soon as possible.
I would vote for anyone who is both pro-gun and who would protect our borders, I dont care what party he is from.
No one is monitoring this. All a company has to do is prove that they placed the ad. No checks are made to determine if a qualified American applied. If the checks were being made there would have been no H-1B's granted in the last two years for high tech jobs.
Wrong again...the employer doesn't have to advertise the position. Moreover, the availabilty of qualified U.S. workers is not an issue. The employer must pay "prevailing wage" but the existence of "hundreds of qualified applicants" is not an issue in the H-1B process. H-1B visas are available to professional level employees whether or not it is a "tech" job (e.g. executive chef, hotel manager).
Well it's refreshing to have someone advise them to remain within the law while doing so. That suggests that legal reform of visa law is the route necessary to change any of this you disagree with.
I have a lot more trouble with visa abuse than I do with visas themselves.
Who told you that....it's simply not true.
It has been true in the experience of my company. H1's are much harder now. Even L1's are no longer automatic.
I think he's confusing this with green card processing.
I am very familiar with the BCIS and DOL web pages....could you please show me where either of these web pages suggest that an employer needs to "advertise" the position in order to obtain H-1B approval (I'll save you some time...don't bother looking). As for it being more difficult to obtain H-1B approval these days...nothing has changed in the law. Just the facts, dude.
Thanks for your real life post. I get so tired of folks whining and moaning about H-1Bs when we have 9-12 million illegals who are using fake social security numbers, jamming up the emergency rooms for routine health care, driving without licenses and insurance. And every Presidential candidate (including our beloved President) wants to give them a free ticket to America.
Bingo!
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