For the uninitiated, an F1 visa allows citizens of other countries to study in the United States. Their legal status is linked to their continued enrollment in an American institute of higher learning. Problems arose, however, as students graduated from universities.
Many students who want to stay in the US do so by locating jobs that make them eligible for an H1B visa. In effect, an H1B visa allows a highly skilled worker, with a bachelor’s degree or equivalent, to work in the US through a sponsoring employer. The difficulties faced by applicants stemmed from the gap between the expiration of their F1 visa and the start date of their H1B visa. Technically, these individuals were required to leave the country upon graduation, and were not allowed to return until the start of their new job. This move would be expensive for anyone, but it might be prohibitively expensive for those just graduating from colleges in the US.
This new ruling by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services extends the graduate’s F1 visa to cover the chronological gap in their immigration status. Now, simply by requesting a change of status through USCIS, these individuals are spared the expense and waste of a trip out of country, simply to fulfill the letter of the law.
A Houston immigration lawyer can help navigate the complexity of US immigration law in instances like the one detailed above. The Law Offices of Annie Banerjee (www.visatous.com)
To learn more, visit http://www.visatous.com
