I am a Singaporean U.S. immigration attorney based in Los Angeles specializing in H-1B1 visas for Singaporeans. My California State Bar record can be found here and my law firm website can be found here. Feel free to connect with me on Linkedin.
Similar to a common adage about our health, "prevention is better than cure", the same applies to navigating US immigration. As such, in this blog post I am going to identify three misconceptions about the H-1B1 (Singapore) visa that you can try to avoid.
Misconception #1: The expiry date of the H-1B1 visa in my passport tells me how long I can stay in the U.S.
Correction to the misconception: The expiry date of the H-1B1 visa tells you the expiry date of when you can use it to enter the U.S. from abroad (To put it in a different way, the visa in your passport serves as the "entry ticket" only). Instead, how long you are allowed to stay in the U.S. is determined by the CBP officer at the airport when you arrive and the record of the expiration date of your duration of stay is found in your online I-94 record that you can access here.*
[*Unfortunately, to compound matters, some CBP officers are not familiar with the H-1B1 Singapore visa classification and make the same mistake of confusing the visa expiry date with the duration of stay expiry date. The correct approach is illustrated in the examples I have described in my previous blog post here. Practical tip: If the CBP officer is confused and cannot find the H-1B1 Singapore visa classification in the computer system, mention "HSC" to the officer; HSC stands for H1B1 for Singaporeans or Chileans.]
Misconception #2: My H-1B1 visa sponsored by my H-1B1 employer is transferable between / usable for multiple employers
Correction to the misconception: Your H-1B1 visa is employer-specific. For example, if you have been sponsored by Employer A for an H-1B1 visa and have been admitted into the U.S. on that H-1B1 visa, you CANNOT simply then work for Employer B instead of Employer A (or work for Employer B in addition to Employer A).
Misconception #3: I need to change my H-1B1 status to regular H-1B status in order to be eligible to apply for a green card
Correction to the misconception: This may sound surprising to some (due to the non-dual-intent nature of the H-1B1), but technically it is not necessary for you to be on regular H-1B status to be eligible to apply for a green card (although being on regular H-1B status could be helpful). Having said that, you need to be very careful in terms of strategizing the timing of commencing the green card process (and the components thereof) when you are still on H-1B1 status to avoid immigration problems down the road:
-- In the context of seeking a marriage-based green card when a Singaporean is on H-1B1 status, I have provided my cautionary notes in my previous blog post here.
-- In the context of seeking an employment-based green card** when a Singaporean is on H-1B1 status, the following components of an employment-based green card case will negatively affect any subsequent H-1B1 renewals: (a) an I-140 immigrant petition filed on behalf of that Singaporean by an employer sponsoring that Singaporean for a green card, (b) when that Singaporean files an I-485 adjustment of status application to obtain a green card. Thus, if you are on H-1B1 status it is important to only commence (a) and (b) after your H-1B1 has been renewed.
*Special note: In the context of an employment-based green card, if you are a Singaporean citizen but was BORN in China or India, then generally you would want to change to H-1B status. This is generally due to "priority date" issues for people born in China or India that significantly protracts the amount of time for such people to be permitted to file the I-485 adjustment of status application.
In conclusion, just as it is helpful for your long-term physical health for you to go for a "checkup" with an experienced doctor to identify and prevent health problems, it is likewise helpful for your long-term immigration status for you to go for a "checkup" with an experienced immigration attorney to see if you can avoid any issues arising from any inadvertent misconceptions about US immigration law and procedures, especially with regard to lesser-utilized visa classifications like the H-1B1 (Singapore).
Disclaimer: This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. The views expressed here are the author's own.
