Big Relief For H1B Visa Holders: You Can Now Renew US Work Visa Without Travelling To India

The significant decision will help thousands of Indian professionals working in the US as they can continue their jobs without the hassle of travelling overseas for the renewal of their H1B visas.

Washington: Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced during his highly anticipated address to the Indian diaspora at Washington’s Ronald Reagan Center that Indian-Americans will no longer need to leave America for the renewal of their H-1B visas.

“It has been decided that now, renewal of H1B Visa will not require one to move out of America. A pilot project in this regard will be started soon. This will help thousands of IT sector employees here,” said PM Modi while addressing the Indian diaspora at Ronald Reagan Center in Washington.

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VIDEO | “It has been decided that now, renewal of H1B Visa will not require one to move out of America. A pilot project in this regard will be started soon. This will help thousands of IT sector employees here,” says PM Modi addressing the Indian diaspora at Ronald Reagan Center,… pic.twitter.com/uHtdLT5gBh

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 24, 2023

The significant decision will help thousands of Indian professionals working in the US as they can continue their jobs without the hassle of travelling overseas for the renewal of their H1B visas.

Recently, the U.S. Department of State decided to launch a pilot to adjudicate domestic renewals of certain petition-based temporary work visas later this year.

Indian nationals will be included in this project, with the aim of implementing it for a larger group of H1B and L visa holders in 2024. The program will be expanded further to encompass other eligible categories.

US President Joe Biden and PM Modi emphasised that the mobility of professionals, skilled workers, students, investors, and business travelers between their countries plays a crucial role in strengthening bilateral economic and technological collaboration.

“While acknowledging the important steps taken to augment the processing of visa applications, they noted the pressing need to further expedite this process. The leaders also directed officials to identify additional mechanisms to facilitate travel for business, tourism, and professional and technical exchanges between the two countries,” read the joint statement.

This announcement by the Prime Minister received a standing ovation from the Indian diaspora, who warmly welcomed the decision.

What Are H-1B Visas?

These visas are issued for a duration of three years. When H-1B visa holders seek renewal, they are required to have their passports stamped with the new expiration dates if they plan to travel outside the United States and re-enter. Currently, restamping of this visa cannot be done within the United States.

Before 2004, H-1B visa holders had the option to renew their visas within the United States. However, this policy changed in 2004, making it mandatory that H-1B visa holders must travel outside the US to have their visas renewed. This change caused significant inconvenience, especially for those facing long wait times for visa renewal.

H1B Visa Extension

The H1B Visa offers many benefits to its holders. It is highly valuable due to the lengthy process of finding an employer, getting selected in the lottery, and receiving approval.

Typically, a foreign national is initially given a 3-year period of stay in H-1B status. As the end of that period approaches, they can apply for an extension of the visa, up to a total of 6 years.

Requirements for H-1B Visa Extension Beyond 6 years

Some H-1B visa holders who have had a pending Labor Certification Application for over 365 days or 1 year may have the option to extend their visa beyond the 6-year limit, in increments of 1 year. This extension can be done until a final decision is made on their employment-based permanent residence case. However, it’s important to note that the 7th-year extension is only available for people applying for green cards through the employment-based category and is not applicable to those with pending family-based petitions.

H-1B Extension Processing Time 2023

For the regular application process, the visa processing time takes more than 3 months to get approved. It will take at least 4 weeks to 5+ months for the H1B extension processing depending on if RFEs are issued. As of September 2023, Texas service center has the fastest processing times.

H1B Renewal Process

Extension requests are similar to the original H-1B petition package. The request can be filed up to 6 months before the expiration date of the H-1B status. The employer will be responsible for filing Form I-129 on the employee’s behalf and submitting it along with all the required documents.

H-1B Extension Fees and Cost

• Another I-129 petition filing fee: $460
• The amended Public Law 114-113 fee (if applicable): $4,000
• The ACWIA fee: Between $750 – $1,500
• The Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee: $500
• Premium processing: $2,500