H1-B, hiring freeze and no GC processing

[rm02]

Hi,

I am on H1B working for a big company in Manufacturing. I have completed 4 yrs of my H1-B.My company is on a hiring freeze right now due to austerity. Since I will be in my 5th year of H1-B next year so my GC HAS to start, but my company says if the hiring freeze does not lift by April next year it will be too late for them to start the GC process for next year. Can anyone suggest what are my options at this time. One option is obviously going back to India and work there for a year and then come back either in L1. Please let me know, can I work in any other country ( eg: France or Belgium) and come back after a year or when my company decides to bring me back. What happens to the visa status then.
Thanks.

[txh1b]

It is your choice. As long as you work outside the US, the time spent outside US can be recaptured for H1b.

Or find another employer that can file for labor right now and is hiring. It will be tough to get labor approved in this economy as there are so many qualified US citizens that are jobless.

[kabkaba]

If you can convince your company that your GC will not be done for some years to come due to date not being current, then they can simply start the process. It is not as if they are hiring a new person so hiring freeze should not matter to you. Convince them that if hiring freeze is not lifted by the time your date becomes current, they can always revoke their petition.

[txh1b]

If you can convince your company that your GC will not be done for some years to come due to date not being current, then they can simply start the process. It is not as if they are hiring a new person so hiring freeze should not matter to you. Convince them that if hiring freeze is not lifted by the time your date becomes current, they can always revoke their petition.

You missed the point. For a labor to be approved, the company has to go through the formal hiring process by advertising a job through the right channels. If there is company wide hiring freeze, there is no way a company can put up an ad for the GC purpose. This is the reason why a major law firm was investigated by DOL.

[kabkaba]

I understand this, but for the company hiring freeze only means they don't want to hire somebody and if this person can convince them that they are not actually going to hire him for a long time anyway, they can still start the process. It all depends how he pleads his case to people in his company. I mean it is worth trying.
I understand that if they get a qualified US candidate they will have to hire him and they may not want to take that risk.