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by ckaygusu 2187 days ago
You are still conflating legal status and visa in an improper way.

The I94 expiration case can happen in practice. I don't know all possible cases, but at least for H1B done through change of status, you are not required to get a visa as long as you do not leave the country. And no, you r I-94 does not expire for three years, so it is entirely possible to complete a whole H1B period without a visa.
1 comments
armada651 2187 days ago
As an H1 all your authorizations are tied to your Visa in some way. They may not expire at the same time, but if you have no way of acquiring a new visa (which under this suspension, you don't) you're in trouble whether you leave the country or not.

> You are still conflating legal status and visa in an improper way.

I am and you should speak to your immigration lawyer if your visa is expiring.

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MVorlm 2187 days ago
This is incorrect information. H1B "Status" and H1B "Visa" are two separate things.

A common immigration path is F1(Student) -> OPT -> H1B Status. If the person was already in the US(because they're going to a US college) then they would be given H1B status(read: no visa). Getting a H1B visa from the US consulate would be required IFF they: 1) Weren't already in the US, 2) Need to leave and reenter the US.

If the person is _already_ in the US when they receive H1B Status then they don't need to receive a visa. Not having a visa is not illegal or affect work status. A visa simply allows ingress and egress in/out of the country and does not confer work authorization(which is what an H1b "Status" does).

Source: I've gone through this process, and from a family of attorneys.

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ckaygusu 2187 days ago
Oh man.

I am going through F1->H1B process. I do not have an H1B visa, and I have a document that tells me I am allowed to stay in the country in the H1B status between a time period, and you are telling me I am in trouble because I do not have a visa. Ok, I suppose.

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armada651 2187 days ago
I don't know how this order affects your current process, definitely talk to you immigration lawyer about that. But we're talking about immigrants who have not yet applied for renewal, they could be in a situation where they have no chance for renewal.
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ckaygusu 2187 days ago
Nope, we were talking about visas and legal status, and about getting kicked out if lack of visa. But whatever, I think you get the point.
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