L2+EAD or E3? Pros and cons...

[Skippykangaroo 0]

Hi All,

 

I am in the US on a L2 visa (Wife has blanket L1), and I have already obtained my EAD and SSN over a year ago (I have been studying a foreign MBA and not working).  It looks like I may be offered a job here in the next few weeks.  I am fine to start working using my current L2+EAD - but am wondering if people would recommend applying for an E3 visa as soon as I get an offer.

 

This would potentially have the benefit of taking me out from under my spousal visa - which means I would not be forced to leave the country if her current employment is terminated (and hence her L1 no longer valid). It would also give me a “fresh” 2 years of visa - since my EAD will need to be renewed towrds the end of this year.

 

- can anyone think of a downside to doing this? I am going to cause myself new visa renewal headaches?

- would I be better to just work on my L2+EAD and only apply for the E3 if our circustances change(eg her employment)?

- is EAD renewal generally an easy process (getting it first time took >3months)

 

Thanks, J.

[Coco8 1,042]

Is your wife's company going to apply for a green card for her?

 

I'd start looking into that possibility because it would mean you would get one too.

 

If they are going to apply for a GC for her, then you should not get the E3.

[Skippykangaroo 0]

Thanks for your response.

 

I don’t know if my wife’s company would sponsor a greencard. It is a large multinational who regularly moves senior people around the world.  The truth is we probably don’t want to stay in the USA forever, probably only about 4-7 years.  My main thought was the risk of a forced departure if her employment situation changes (which would then affect my employer). If we both had independent visas then as long as one of us was still employed we could stay.

[Coco8 1,042]

Right. Yes,  then it make sense then to look into the E3. But you should look into whether you can change status in the US or if you would have to go to Australia and apply at the consulate. If you can change status in the US, you can start the job with the L2 and then, once your E3 gets approved change your paperwork to that. Of course, once you go to Australia you would have to go to the consulate to get a visa stamp on your passport; otherwise, you cannot re-enter the US.

 

Maybe you can ask in the Australia forum about experiences with E3 (which I don't know about). 

 

 

 

 

[BlueAriel 9]

OP, there’re few things you’ll need to prepare before you start your new job if you were to look into obtaining an E3. Most likely your start date might be pushed back for 2-4 weeks so you can come back to the US with an E3.

 

Even though your employer doesn’t have to pay to provide that sponsorship for you, they still need to provide the LCA for you to take to the US consulate in Oz.

 

Few things to keep in mind:

 

1. Your employer must file a “Labor Condition Application” (LCA) to start the entire e3 visa processing routine. The processing of the filing normally takes around 5-10 business days. 

 

2. Then you need to schedule an interview with a US consulate in Australia. Given that your concern with your spouse losing her job and L1 visa, you may want to add your spouse to the E3 visa. In this case, both you and your spouse will need to attend the interview together. So you’ll neee to factor in travel time and costs before you start your job. 

 

3. Worst case scenario where your E3 is denied (rare but it does happen), you’ll need to wait for your employer to submit an appeal or resubmit any required documents. 

 

Obtaining an E3 visa is not difficult, however just make sure you factor in enough time to prepare the documents and the process. It is better to let your employer know that you require visa sponsorship prior to accepting a start date. I’ve heard few stories where employers change their minds on a candidate because they’ve mentioned E3 sponsorship after receiving the offer. Although there’s no costs to the employer but some employers have no idea what E3 is and usually are concern abt the time taken to go through the sponsorship process which may delay the start date. They sometimes prefer to offer the role to candidates who already have US work rights. 

 

Edited March 29, 2018 by BlueAriel

[Skippykangaroo 0]

Thanks BlueAriel, good advice.

 

I was aware of the LCA requirement, but thought I may be able to change visa status here in the US without having to return to Aus. (This is not a cost issue for me, but as you say the potential delay to the start date could be problematic).  Perhaps I am better off to start on L2+EAD and go from there. If nothing has changed later in the year, I just extend the EAD. I would then have a chance to prove my worth to the new employer. If there is any change in my wife’s employment status sometime down the track, I could continue to work for up to 60 days (I believe) while preparing E3 documentation and returning to Aus for interviews, Passport/visa stamps ..etc.

[BlueAriel 9]

Sounds like a plan, Skippykangaroo!

 

Like you said you’ll still have time to obtain sponsorship and file an E3 if things don’t work out. L visa is good to have as it is dual intended and E3 is non immigrant intended. I know that you’ve mentioned you want to be here for a limited time frame instead of permanently residing in the US, but L visa does provide a path to green card should you choose to settle in the US in future. Hard to know what’s gonna happen few years down the track! Always good to have options.

 

Best of luck with your new job!

[Coco8 1,042]

28 minutes ago, Skippykangaroo said:

thought I may be able to change visa status here in the US without having to return to Aus.

Yes, you can change status within the US. That is what I was mentioning above.

[YellowSubmarine 0]

Hi Skippykangaroo, did you successfully change to an E3 visa? I've a similar scenario, my wife and I are both working in the US cirrently under my L1 and my Australian wife is on an L2. My job is ending in 5 months so we're looking at getting an E3 through my wife as her company said they will sponsor her.  Do you know if my wife needs to submit a change of status from l2 to e3 or is it best if we travel to Australia and submit e3 application? Any tips you learned in the process are welcome.

[TBoneTX 45,284]

The OP hasn't logged in since April 2018, so a response is unlikely.  Maybe someone else can help with the most recent query.

[Skippykangaroo 0]

12 hours ago, YellowSubmarine said:

Hi Skippykangaroo, did you successfully change to an E3 visa? I've a similar scenario, my wife and I are both working in the US cirrently under my L1 and my Australian wife is on an L2. My job is ending in 5 months so we're looking at getting an E3 through my wife as her company said they will sponsor her.  Do you know if my wife needs to submit a change of status from l2 to e3 or is it best if we travel to Australia and submit e3 application? Any tips you learned in the process are welcome.

So ... an update.... since YellowSubmarine asked. The L2/EAD I had was due to expire in about the end of September.  I had lodged a renewal request back in about April, shortly after I posted the original post.  While I had a talked with the CEO and then he asked me to talk with the VPs of the company I was hoping to be employed with, it took several months for the discussion to turn into a real job offer. My EAD renewal request was posted to Phoenix, but somewhere along the way was redirected to California.  After 3 months I had not heard anything from USCIS, so I submitted a query and was told "it's in the queue" and the wait times had gone out from 2 months to 6 months or more. In August the job finally turned into a reality and I looked into "expediting" my request. As the job was with "a not for profit, in the national interest" I forwarded a copy of my job offer letter together with a request signed by the company asking for "Expidite".  About 2 weeks later I received an "Expedite denied" letter. No resining, just denied.

 

The company (quite rightly) didn't want me to start with only a month or so valid on my EAD.  So I asked them to submit a LCA (which apparently was no problem for them), and I booked a E3 visa appointment in Sydney about 10 days later (which was the soonest I could get).  I travelled back to Sydney, had the visa interview, submitted the appropriate paperwork and 2 days later I had my E3.  I sent a copy of my E3 to the company, flew back to the States and started work the following week.

 

So I now have a L2 and a E3 visa in my passport. I tell passport control at the airport that I am traveling on the E3 each time I re-enter.

 

Some footnotes:

I tried to renew my Illinois drivers license in about July/August and they were only going to renew it for 1 month because "my EAD was expiring".  I had to argue that my EAD determined whether I could work and not how long I could stay in the country (and hence have a "local ID"). Even then they wouldn't renew for the full length of my L2 (Feb2021) but picked an arbitrary date of Feb 2020.  So now that will expire soon and I bet they will only renew until July 2020 as that is what my E3 is now.

 

The EAD renewal was finally responded to in about November, with a "request for evidence" asking for a  “a current clear and legible copy of the front and back of the Principal’s (spouse) Form I-94 (Arrival-Departure Record) that was issued upon arrival in the United States and all I-94s issued for any other extensions of stay or submit a copy of the Principal’s current I-797 approval notice for Form I-129.”  This is something I supplied with the original application - and certainly something their own computer systems should tell them.... but they wanted me to FAX (!) them a copy.  It seems they were unaware I now had an E3.  Since I didn't fax them the requested info within 10 days, the EAD renewal was sent back "denied" (about 9 months after lodging the renewal for a 2 year document).

 

I had been unofficially told by someone who knew a couple of people who had recently resigned from USCIS that they had been unofficially told to "go slow" on EADs and H1B type visa applications. (Total hearsay - but?)