Passport expiring soon. H1B approval and attached I-94 valid till 2018

[ssjgoku]

Hello

My Indian passport is expiring soon, Jan 29th 2016 to be precise. I had my H1B renewed while I was in USA in 2015, so I have an approved petition(I-797) and attached I-94 to the petition approval is valid till Sept 2018.

I had completely forgotten about it and saw that it was expiring on Jan 29th today. I have already started the passport renewal process and will be submitting my application asap.

My concern is that if my passport renewal gets delayed and I get a fresh passport with date of issue after Jan 29th 2016, does it cause any problems with my I-94 or legal H1B status?

My immigration attorney told me that I-94 is what governs my legal stay in the US and not my passport, so having a passport expire and getting it renewed will not cause me to go out of status.

I wanted to check with folks here if my attorney is correct, or should I leave the county before my passport expires?

Kindly let me know.
Thanks

[raghvi]

Hello

My Indian passport is expiring soon, Jan 29th 2016 to be precise. I had my H1B renewed while I was in USA in 2015, so I have an approved petition(I-797) and attached I-94 to the petition approval is valid till Sept 2018.

I had completely forgotten about it and saw that it was expiring on Jan 29th today. I have already started the passport renewal process and will be submitting my application asap.

My concern is that if my passport renewal gets delayed and I get a fresh passport with date of issue after Jan 29th 2016, does it cause any problems with my I-94 or legal H1B status?

My immigration attorney told me that I-94 is what governs my legal stay in the US and not my passport, so having a passport expire and getting it renewed will not cause me to go out of status.

I wanted to check with folks here if my attorney is correct, or should I leave the county before my passport expires?

Kindly let me know.
Thanks

It was not correct on the part of USCIS to grant you an I-94 beyond your passport expiry. Nonetheless, I believe having a valid I797 and I94 allows you to stay , but still would suggest to have the passport renewed in tatkaal to get a faster response.

This is my opinion not legal advice.

[Trinity71]

Hello

My Indian passport is expiring soon, Jan 29th 2016 to be precise. I had my H1B renewed while I was in USA in 2015, so I have an approved petition(I-797) and attached I-94 to the petition approval is valid till Sept 2018.

I had completely forgotten about it and saw that it was expiring on Jan 29th today. I have already started the passport renewal process and will be submitting my application asap.

My concern is that if my passport renewal gets delayed and I get a fresh passport with date of issue after Jan 29th 2016, does it cause any problems with my I-94 or legal H1B status?

My immigration attorney told me that I-94 is what governs my legal stay in the US and not my passport, so having a passport expire and getting it renewed will not cause me to go out of status.

I wanted to check with folks here if my attorney is correct, or should I leave the county before my passport expires?

Kindly let me know.
Thanks

While you should be getting your passport renewed, which is what you are doing, your attorney is correct. The passport is to travel, the visa to arrive/enter and the I-94 dates are your approved dates to stay. You would not need to leave the country before your passport expires. The only time you would need to leave the country is if your I-94 dates were expiring.

This is my opinion and not legal advice. Use of this information is strictly at your own risk.

Trinity71