H1-B expiring. Can I still work?

[Shami 0]

I have applied for my EAD card, but haven’t received it yet. I currently work for a company and my H1-B is expiring sep30th. Can my company fire me? What should I do to stay legal at my company? What should I tell my H.R. manager?

[Dr_LHA 3]

Yes, the company can fire you if you don't get your EAD before your H-1B runs out. I was in the exact same position as you, but I just got my EAD and am in the clear. However I filed about a month before you did.

[tomica52 0]

You will not be authorized to work, meaning you can't legaly work. Maybe you can take an unpaid leave for about a month or so if your EAD doesn't come in by the 30th. However you should discuss this with someone at your firm.

A

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Shami, you could have had your co. extend your H1-b. So long as you remain with the same employer, USCIS will allow you to extend it in one-year increments while doing AOS.

You still have 12 days in which to do so--in which case you can work until you have a NOA-2 of rejection (one of acceptance, then keep working).

[diadromous mermaid 36]

I have applied for my EAD card, but haven’t received it yet. I currently work for a company and my H1-B is expiring sep30th. Can my company fire me? What should I do to stay legal at my company? What should I tell my H.R. manager?

Have you received a NOA receipt for the EAD yet?

Edited to add: For employment verification purposes, you have to demonstrate to the employer that you have work authorised status. The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe. You should check the I-9 under verification to be sure, I'm going on recall.

Edited September 20, 2006 by diadromous mermaid

[Shami 0]

I have received my NOA.

[kc456 0]

Have you received a NOA receipt for the EAD yet?

Edited to add: For employment verification purposes, you have to demonstrate to the employer that you have work authorised status. The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe. You should check the I-9 under verification to be sure, I'm going on recall.

What mermaid is referring to is NOA for a replacement EAD if your current (and valid) EAD was stolen or destroyed. It does not apply in your situation. What does HR in your company say? You may wait out in an unpaid leave, if that works for your employer.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Have you received a NOA receipt for the EAD yet?

Edited to add: For employment verification purposes, you have to demonstrate to the employer that you have work authorised status. The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe. You should check the I-9 under verification to be sure, I'm going on recall.

What mermaid is referring to is NOA for a replacement EAD if your current (and valid) EAD was stolen or destroyed. It does not apply in your situation. What does HR in your company say? You may wait out in an unpaid leave, if that works for your employer.

Not necessarily for replacement; she may have been referring to the NOA-1 for INITIAL EAD.

Shami, you still have one week to bug HR to extend the H1-b (as I pointed out earlier, this approach is available for H1-b holders undergoing AOS--because H1-b is explicitly "dual-intent-allowed" visa/status).

[kc456 0]

Have you received a NOA receipt for the EAD yet?

The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe.

What mermaid is referring to is NOA for a replacement EAD if your current (and valid) EAD was stolen or destroyed. It does not apply in your situation. What does HR in your company say? You may wait out in an unpaid leave, if that works for your employer.

Not necessarily for replacement; she may have been referring to the NOA-1 for INITIAL EAD.

What I meant to say that Shami cannot use his NOA to show that he's work authorized. Mermaid was incorrect (in Shami's case) when she said that "NOA can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days." His EAD is an initial one, not a replacement, and he cannot use the NOA he has to show that he's work authorized. I hope that now I've made myself clear.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

Have you received a NOA receipt for the EAD yet?

The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe.

What mermaid is referring to is NOA for a replacement EAD if your current (and valid) EAD was stolen or destroyed. It does not apply in your situation. What does HR in your company say? You may wait out in an unpaid leave, if that works for your employer.

Not necessarily for replacement; she may have been referring to the NOA-1 for INITIAL EAD.

What I meant to say that Shami cannot use his NOA to show that he's work authorized. Mermaid was incorrect (in Shami's case) when she said that "NOA can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days." His EAD is an initial one, not a replacement, and he cannot use the NOA he has to show that he's work authorized. I hope that now I've made myself clear.

Irony that NOA-1 for initial EAD app (I-765) can't be used as proof of work authorisation, but that for H1-b extension (I-129--for up to 240 days) can.

[Yodrak 7]

diadromous mermaid,

How so? The receipt notice for an application for EA does not show that one has work authorized status - it only shows that they've applied for it.

Yodrak

I have applied for my EAD card, but haven’t received it yet. I currently work for a company and my H1-B is expiring sep30th. Can my company fire me? What should I do to stay legal at my company? What should I tell my H.R. manager?

.... For employment verification purposes, you have to demonstrate to the employer that you have work authorised status. The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe. You should check the I-9 under verification to be sure, I'm going on recall.

[Shami 0]

Thank you all for taking the time to respond to my question. Here’s what I found from the University of Pennsylvania website (http://www.upenn.edu/oip/iss/penn/i9.html)

The employment of aliens whose authorization for that employment has expired must be terminated, or the employer risks penalties [Act 274a.2(B)(1)(vii) and 274a.3]. An exception to the rule requiring unexpired employment authorization exists for certain categories of aliens seeking extension of stay. The exception allows employers to continue to employ an individual in H-1B , J-1, O-1 or TN status if and only if the individual has filed in a timely manner an application for extension of stay with the same employer; and has not yet received a decision on the application for extension. (Filing in a timely manner means submitting the application prior to the current expiration date.) Under these circumstances, the alien is considered authorized for employment for a period of up to 120 days beyond the expiration of status, and an employer is neither penalized nor required to document extended employment authorization.

[diadromous mermaid 36]

diadromous mermaid,

How so? The receipt notice for an application for EA does not show that one has work authorized status - it only shows that they've applied for it.

Yodrak

I have applied for my EAD card, but haven’t received it yet. I currently work for a company and my H1-B is expiring sep30th. Can my company fire me? What should I do to stay legal at my company? What should I tell my H.R. manager?

.... For employment verification purposes, you have to demonstrate to the employer that you have work authorised status. The receipt can be offered in lieu of the actual EAD as long as you can present the document within 90 days, I believe. You should check the I-9 under verification to be sure, I'm going on recall.

Well, perhaps I am mistaken, but as I read the revised I-9, and the Receipt Rule it states..

RECEIPT RULE: Employees who do not possess the required documentation when employment begins may not submit receipts showing that they have applied for initial applications for documents or for applications for extension of documents.

[Shami 0]

Today I talked to my HR manager, and told her about I-9 and she knew exactly what I was talking about. She took a photocopy of my NOA and she said I am good to go. So am legally able to work for 90 days since I have applied for my EAD. When I told her about the I-9 she sounded like she had dealt with cases like me, and she knew exactly what to do.