Is H1B Amendment is equivalent to H1B Extension ??

[Himanshu R Nigam]

Hello Everyone,

I have one question regarding my H1B VISA. Last Year on May 2015, i applied for my H1B Visa extension and i got the validity till Dec 2016. On June 2015, my company applied for H1B Amendment due to my client location change. I got the validity of my H1B Amendment till Dec 2017.

As my H1B Visa extension is expiring on Dec 2016, so i applied for H1B extension. But my company asked me to withdraw my H1B extension case.

H1B Extension Validity: Dec 2016

H1B Amendment Validity: Dec 2017

According to them H1B Amendment has been filed after H1B Extension, and H1B Amendment is Valid till Dec 2017 so i need not to apply for H1B Extension. (FYI - My Client location did not change and its still Same)

I asked below questions to my company immigration team, refer to their response as well :

> Is H1B Amendment is equivalent to H1B Extension ? Yes
> Can i travel to India for Visa Stamping based on my H1B Amendment Validity ? Yes
> My Stay in USA will remain valid under my H1B Amendment Validity ? Yes

I would like to know your opinion, please let me know if any of you have face the same situation. I dont want to get into any trouble, so please respond.

Thanks,
Raj