Changing Status to H-1B in the United States

If you are already in the United States in another nonimmigrant status, you may be able to change status to H-1B while remaining in the U.S. If you are eligible to request a change of status to H-1B while remaining in the U.S., then MUSC will request the change of status on your behalf within the H-1B petition submitted to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). You must be maintaining your current nonimmigrant status, or be in an authorized grace period, until the H-1B petition is adjudicated.

If you are currently in J-1 or J-2 status and are subject to the 212(e) two-year home country physical presence requirement, we will not be able to request a change of status on your behalf, unless you have received a waiver of the two-year home residency requirement. 

Traveling While H-1B Change of Status Petition is Pending

You are advised not to travel outside of the United States while an H-1B change of status petition is pending with USCIS. If you travel outside of the US while your H-1B change of status petition is pending with USCIS, USCIS will consider that you have abandoned the H-1B petition and change of status request, and the H-1B petition may be denied.

Please notify the Center for Global Health immediately if you are planning on traveling at all in the coming months during the preparation of your H-1B petition. Your travel plans may have an impact on the timing of the filing of MUSC's H-1B petition.

Approval of Change of Status

If the H-1B petition is approved, and a change of status was requested, then your status will automatically change to H-1B on the USCIS H-1B approval notice start date.

The USCIS Form I-797 is known as the H-1B approval notice. If you change status to H-1B while remaining in the United States, the H-1B approval notice document will contain a new I-94 record at the bottom. This I-94 record will replace your previous I-94 record and will show your new nonimmigrant status (H-1B) and dates of valid status in the U.S. The I-94 number should be the same as the number you were given when you last entered the U.S.

Please note that the I-94 record on the U.S. Customs and Border Protection I-94 website will not update unless you depart from the United States and physically re-enter the U.S. in H-1B status. This is why you have been issued a paper I-94 record along with the H-1B approval notice. You should use the paper I-94 record showing your status as H-1B if you are asked to provide your I-94 record.

If you change status to H-1B while in the United States, this means that you may not have an H-1B visa stamp in your passport. You do not need an H-1B visa stamp in your passport in order to be in legal H-1B status in the U.S., as long as you have the USCIS Form I-797A H-1B approval notice, the new I-94 record showing H-1B status, and a valid passport. You will only need to get an H-1B visa stamp in your passport if you travel outside of the United States and need to re-enter the U.S. in H-1B status.