Unused H1B visa stamp

[jadine]

Hello,

I got my my H1B approved in September 2014, and my passport stamped with a multiple entry Visa in January 2015. The Visa stamp expires on in November 2015

Because I was put on administrative processing when I got the visa, my employer could not wait, and had to hire someone else for that particular position. So I have not yet entered the US yet. My employer is willing to offer me the same position as soon as it opens up, which maybe before the expiry of my Visa stamp or after. Given that this is the case:

1- If I enter the US before the date of expiry, would I be able to exit/re-enter the US after November 2015 on the same Visa, or do I have to re-issue a new visa once I exit?

2- If I have to re-issue a new Visa, would it be advisable to enter the US before November 2015 (even if my employer doesn't have a position available yet) and extend it from there?

Or

3- Is it possible to extend my Visa while outside the US without having entered in the first place?

I would really appreciate some help.

[shervin143]

Your post is very confusing. Not exactly sure what you are trying to ask. You cannot enter U.S without a job in hand. If the employer has a position for you and if they can provide you an employment verification letter, then you can enter U.S as long as your petition (filed by that employer), your H1B visa and passport are valid. To extend the H1B visa in the passport, your employer need to first of all extend the H1B petition. Visa is only an entry document to U.S. As long as the visa is valid on your date of entry, you are good. To stay in U.S, you do not need a valid visa. You will need a valid H1B petition and a valid I-94 (which you will get when you enter U.S). The employer can file H1B extension when the current petition is about to expire. Employer can extend the petition when you are inside U.S or right now when you are outside U.S.

[jadine]

Your post is very confusing. Not exactly sure what you are trying to ask. You cannot enter U.S without a job in hand. If the employer has a position for you and if they can provide you an employment verification letter, then you can enter U.S as long as your petition (filed by that employer), your H1B visa and passport are valid. To extend the H1B visa in the passport, your employer need to first of all extend the H1B petition. Visa is only an entry document to U.S. As long as the visa is valid on your date of entry, you are good. To stay in U.S, you do not need a valid visa. You will need a valid H1B petition and a valid I-94 (which you will get when you enter U.S). The employer can file H1B extension when the current petition is about to expire. Employer can extend the petition when you are inside U.S or right now when you are outside U.S.

Thanks. The petition is valid until 2017, my question is purely about the Visa. I thought that was clear. Also, I do have a job offer (and an employment letter), it's just that due to the unavailability of projects now, if I go to the US I cannot yet start. Let me break this down:

1- The visa expires in November. If I enter the US in October, and exit in December I need to issue a new Visa, correct?

2- Can I extend my Visa now, without having entered the US (my petition is valid as I said), or do I need to have used the Visa to extend it?

[shervin143]

1- The visa expires in November. If I enter the US in October, and exit in December I need to issue a new Visa, correct?
>>> Visa is an entry document to U.S. If you want to enter U.S in H1B status, then your H1B petition and H1B visa need to be valid as of the date of your travel to U.S. To stay legally in U.S, a valid visa is not needed. A valid H1b petition and a valid I-94 is what is needed to stay legally in U.S. I-94 will be issued when you enter U.S and its expiry date will be in most cases same as the petition expiry date. To stay in U.S pots your recently issued I-94 expiry date, the employer will need to file an H1B extension. As long as the extension is filed before your latest I-94 expires, you can legally stay and work in U.s until you receive the extension approval. If you leave U.S post your visa expiry date, then to re-enter U.S you need a valid H1B visa foe which you need to go for stamping again based on your extended petition.

2- Can I extend my Visa now, without having entered the US (my petition is valid as I said), or do I need to have used the Visa to extend it?
>>> You don't have to enter U.S to extend the visa. Visa will be issued only till the H1B petition expiry date. So if you have an extended petition filed and approved by your employer, then you can apply for visa stamping again even when the current visa is still valid. But like I said, you don't need to if you are entering U.s before your current visa expiry date. You can use your current valid visa and an extended H1B petition to enter U.S to get an I-94 matching your extended petition.