How To Apply For H1b Visa Extension?

By Author: Paul Anderson
Total Articles: 91
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As of today there are so many options that are open for those who wish to work temporarily in the United States on a H1B extension. There are many work categories that include intra-company transfer visa (L-1 visa), B-1 visa, H-2B visa, H-3 visa, O-1 visa, O-2 visa, P-3 visa, and more. Apart from the above mentioned visas(temporary) you also have the option of a H1 B specialty occupation visa, that is issued by the US Consulate/Embassy that would allow you work temporarily in the US. The issuance of the H1 B extension visa is associated with the employer. This implies that you would require a sponsoring employer in order to apply for the visa.

Ideally the H1 B visa is ideally suited for:

Professional who possess high degree of specialized knowledge like consultants, journalists, analysts related to research.
Professional nurses who have entered the US for supervising nursing operations.
Renowned fashion models.
Employers who are required to bring in qualified professional for jobs that entail specialized skills.

Receiving an extension of stay on the H1 visa:

H1B ...
... extension:

Initially the H1-B Extension was issued for a period of 3 years. It is now possible to extend the visa by another 3 years. A person with an H1B extension is permitted to extend beyond 6 years under special circumstances. Per the 21st Century Act of 2000, a H1 B visa holder can file for an incremental one-year extension annually after the completion of six years on H1B status. This visa can be extended beyond 6 years only if:

You are a beneficiary of an employment based immigrant petition (I-140) or an application for Adjustment of Status.
Your labor certification application is pending for more than 365 days.

Until a final decision is made on the H1 B extension of the non-immigrant's green card, the applicants belonging to the above mentioned scenario can get an extension for 1 year at time.

For the visa status to be extended in increments of 3 years you

must possess an employment based green card petition filed on your behalf in an either EB1, EB2 or EB3 categories.
you are not eligible to file an Adjustment of Status application for the only reason because you are from a country for which the priority date is not current. This is usually the case with applicants who are from India or China.

Required Documents:

The following documents are required to be submitted to the US State Department for the purpose of renewal/extension of your H1B work visa.

A valid passport for the applicant and each of the family members.
An original of the form I-94 that was issued to the applicant by the USCIS.
USCIS Form I-797 which would include the information on the applicant's present employer.
The employer's letter of support containing details of the applicant's nature of work, position.
A fully typed non-immigrant visa application form, OF-156 added with one official passport-size photograph for each applicant, regardless of the age.
A non-refundable visa fee payable to the U.S. Department of State.
A self-addressed postage-paid envelope for return of the documents.