H1b transfer of used but valid visa from home country

[lookingforanswers]

I used to work for Company X in India. For me to work on client site in US the Company Y (US branch of company X) applied for my H1B visa Oct 2011. It got approved and i travelled Nov 2011. I have worked for past few months here but now company Y wants me to go back to company X in india and continue working from there as before. So I will no longer be employee of company Y. My visa and I-94 are stamped to be valid till 2014. I have pay stubs for all time I have been here.

1. If i go back to india now, and if get a job in any Company Z of US while in India. Can the Company Z apply for H1b transfer for me? Or will they need new petition with cap? What documents will I need/What will be the procedure?

2. If 1 is possible, can u see any issues I might face in process considering I wil be in India at the time?

3. Will I have to give visa interview again? Will there be new I-94 on travel?

4. If my company X/Y find out , can they cancel my H1b? After that Z cannot apply for my H1b transfer?

5. If 1 is not possible, how long can I stay in US legally to get another job. I hear zero.

6. I read something about H1b visa petition without cap. How is the process different from a "transfer"

7. Do employers generally feel okay with H1b tranfer petitions over new H1b petitions? Does it cost less for them?

[shervin143]

1. If i go back to india now, and if get a job in any Company Z of US while in India. Can the Company Z apply for H1b transfer for me? Or will they need new petition with cap? What documents will I need/What will be the procedure?
>>> Any U.S company can filed a new H1B petition using the CAP from your previous H1B approval notice and request an immediate start date. Give the new employer a copy of your existing H1B approval notice. Once the petition gets approved, you can use the existing valid H1B visa in the passport along with the new approval notice to travel to U.S to work for the new employer. The documents needed will be the same as what you gave your first employer to process the H1B petition.

2. If 1 is possible, can u see any issues I might face in process considering I wil be in India at the time?
>>> The process is the same whether you are inside U.S or outside U.S. If you are inside U.S the H1B approval will come with a new I-94. If you are outside, the approval will come without a new I-94. That is the only difference.

3. Will I have to give visa interview again? Will there be new I-94 on travel?
>>> No. You can use the existing H1B visa along with the new approval notice to travel. You will get a new I-94 associated to your new approval notice at the POE.

4. If my company X/Y find out , can they cancel my H1b? After that Z cannot apply for my H1b transfer?
>>> They can cancel their petition. Only the petition gets revoked and not the CAP. Meaning, you just cannot work for Company Y. You can still file a new petition using the CAP from that petition.

5. If 1 is not possible, how long can I stay in US legally to get another job. I hear zero.
>>> 1 is possible. You cannot stay even for 1 single day in U.S without a job when you are in H1B status. You will go out of status on H1B and that will cause unnecessary issues.

6. I read something about H1b visa petition without cap. How is the process different from a "transfer"
>>> They are the same.

7. Do employers generally feel okay with H1b tranfer petitions over new H1b petitions? Does it cost less for them?
>>> There is technically no such thing as transfer. There are only two forms of filing the H1B petition. One using an existing CAP and one using a new CAP with Oct 1st as start date. Filing a new H1B petition using an existing CAP is termed as a transfer.