Currently on L1B in US; H1B petition approved for different employer but COS denied

[american]

Hi,

I would really appreciate some advice on this delicate yet important topic so thanks in advance to all the contributors.

Facts of my case -
1. Came to US in April 2014 on L1B thru company A
2. Filed H1B petition thru company B which got approved in Sep 2014
3. Got a project for company A with my employer being company B and another vendor C in between being preferred vendor
4. Filed for Change of Status from L1 to H1 in Nov 2014
5. Got RFE on COS regarding relationship between companies A,B & C
6. Responded to RFE with letter from company C that company A can't issue client letter but I will be working for company A but will be supervised by company B.
7. COS Petition got rejected and reason to be known once we receive letter from USCIS in a day or two.

Options I think I have. Please advise if these are possible and answer some questions -
1. Travel to India or Canada (pls advise which country will be better) to get H1B stamped. Risk is that without client letter it might be rejected and I can't return to US working for company B
2. Can I transfer my H1B to company C and then file for COS or go for stamping to Canada? I don't have pay stubs from company B and only pay stubs I have are from company A which processed my salary plus per diem as part of Indian payroll instead of US payroll.
Also how much time would this option take?
3. Any other better option in terms in time as I already have an offer and they're waiting for me to join?

Once again I thank you for the advise.

Regards.

[raghvi]

Hi,

I would really appreciate some advice on this delicate yet important topic so thanks in advance to all the contributors.

Facts of my case -
1. Came to US in April 2014 on L1B thru company A
2. Filed H1B petition thru company B which got approved in Sep 2014
3. Got a project for company A with my employer being company B and another vendor C in between being preferred vendor
4. Filed for Change of Status from L1 to H1 in Nov 2014
5. Got RFE on COS regarding relationship between companies A,B & C
6. Responded to RFE with letter from company C that company A can't issue client letter but I will be working for company A but will be supervised by company B.
7. COS Petition got rejected and reason to be known once we receive letter from USCIS in a day or two.

Options I think I have. Please advise if these are possible and answer some questions -
1. Travel to India or Canada (pls advise which country will be better) to get H1B stamped. Risk is that without client letter it might be rejected and I can't return to US working for company B
2. Can I transfer my H1B to company C and then file for COS or go for stamping to Canada? I don't have pay stubs from company B and only pay stubs I have are from company A which processed my salary plus per diem as part of Indian payroll instead of US payroll.
Also how much time would this option take?
3. Any other better option in terms in time as I already have an offer and they're waiting for me to join?

Once again I thank you for the advise.

Regards.

The unclear relationship between A, B, and C is the reason for COS denial.

Ask C to file a COS from L1 to H1 in premium. If they really want you to join they should not have any issue in paying extra for premium processing. If the COS is rejected then leave US, go to Canada/Home country and attend Visa stamping.

I would say , avoid as many layers as possible, and take the risk of going for stamping only if you have client letter in hand.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[american]

Thanks for the advise Raghvi, so a simple COS petition in premium would be required by company C? Or they need to first file for H1B transfer and then file COS?
Also I have one more doubt I wanted some closure on - I travelled outside US in July 2014 while my H1B petition was in progress and thought it was okay as my petition was a non consular one from day one. Would that have caused any problems in anyway?

[american]

Update: Received denial letter from USCIS

As anticipated, the denial letter from USCIS states that the unclear relationship between company A and C is the reason for denial as it does not fulfill the requirement of employer-employee relationship required by USCIS. I can ask company C to file COS for me in premium but wondering if they only need to file COS in form I129 or also H1B transfer petition? If both, then in what order?
Appreciate your help.