'H-1B Layoff Options'

A layoff is never a good thing. The dreaded call from the HR Manager, humiliating experience of security escorting you from the building after you pack your belongings in a cardboard box are painful memories.

Some employers are kind enough to give two weeks’ notice and let you do small tasks like knowledge transfer and give a farewell party in the end.

When an employee in H-1B status is laid off there are many other things to consider. The first and foremost issue is the grace period. H-1B employees have 60 days to find another employer who is willing to file a H-1B petition on their behalf.

The second issue is the green card process. If an employee is laid off in the fifth or sixth year of their H-1B period they need to find an employer who is willing to file Perm (labor) immediately.

It takes around 3 months to do Pre-Perm paperwork and another 4 months for Perm to be approved. It takes another 4 months for i-140 to be approved. A one-year timeline is required for both Perm and i-140 to be approved.

Then the employee in H-1B status can have unlimited 3-year extensions. If the Perm and i-140 are not filed in a timely manner the employee will not able to get an extension beyond 6 years.

If an employee is laid off while the Perm is pending, then the priority date cannot be retained or ported to another employer. If an employee is laid off while the i-140 is pending, then it depends on whether the employer will withdraw the H-1B petition immediately or not.

If the ex-employer does not withdraw the pending i-140 petition there is a good chance that the i-140 petition will be approved without an RFE and the priority date can be retained.

There is a good chance that the per country quota exemption will be added as an amendment to the DACA bill. This will make the visa numbers current soon for those employees whose employers have filed their green cards in EB-2 category.

We request H-1B employees who are subject to an imminent layoff to send their resume to [email protected] and we will help them find a new employer who can sponsor them.

Press note released by: Indian Clicks, LLC