Hey all. I need some advice on a situation i am stuck in.
I finished my grad school in summer 2022 and started working for a tech company in August 2022 on OPT. My H1B had gotten approved while i was still in school which is the reason i opted for 'consular notification' instead of 'Change of status' to make the switch to H1B since i needed to maintain my F1 to finish grad school.
I travelled back home in December 2022 to get the H1B stamped. Sent my documents to the consulate in mid-december because i qualified for the interview waiver. After a month they sent my documents back and asked me to come to the embassy in-person. My interview was in mid-February. Unfortunately i got put in administrative processing and have been on the same for 4+ months now. So far i was working remotely, but now have been forced on a leave of absence due to tax related issues because i can't work from abroad for more than 6 months according to some tax law.
I was thinking of coming back on my F1 which is still valid till January 2024 and extending my OPT (current one expires in mid-August). Do you guys think i can/should do that? Is there a chance i might be denied entry and forced to return from the airport? Can doing this have an adverse effect on my H1B in processing?
My main motivation for coming back is so that one i can of course start earning again since i still have to pay rent on my apartment and all that. Plus i do not want to lose the opportunity of extending my OPT for another 2 years just in case this processing takes a really long time OR worst case my visa gets refused. I even asked the congress person from my area to file a congressional inquiry on my behalf. Even they got sent the same info that my case is in AP and i will get an email once its done. Being in this transient phase has gotten really frustrating now and i am now in a state where even logistical things are starting to become a problem such as should i renew my lease or not.
Any advice would be really appreciate. Cheers!
