Immigration QA

"Grace" is Minnesota's official state photograph. I was State Senator in 2002 when we officially voted for Minnesota's official "state photograph." A more prolific image originating from Minnesota than "Grace," I'm not aware of.  My colleague and friend, Rep. Loren Solberg , was the natural author of the bill since Loren lived in Bovey, Minnesota where the photograph was taken.  I think Loren also liked it because he bears resemblance to Charles Winden, the guy in the photo (Loren and I ribbed each other from time to time).  Read more about the history of Grace here. Speaking of grace, lately I've received a rash of calls from noncitizens who find themselves similarly situated to Mr. Wilden, praying for providential intervention in a recent job loss.  Primarily H1B visa holders, these folks have been laid off and are uncertain about their legal status and how to proceed with potential new employment in the United States.  The influx is prom...

I recently answered the following question. Q:   I was working on H1b for 3.5 years, but for some personal reasons I resigned last week from the job.   Now my Employer is really mad and they are saying that they will report it to USCIS. I came back to my home country and then resigned. Can they still report something bad/suspicious to the USCIS? A: You didn't do anything illegal, but by resigning from your job you lost your H1B status. If you truly departed the country, and THEN resigned, then there is nothing about that particular action your employer can complain about. Of course they can try. If there were other issues going on (like fraud) then certainly the employer can submit a report.  It does not mean their reports will be found valid, but they can cause a headache nonetheless. If there's not fraud for them to report, then at most they can submit a "withdrawal" of your visa to make a difficult to reenter (but you'd need to be rehired by that particulary em...

Foreign students should carefully follow the rules for early program withdrawal, and understand implications. If you are a student on an F-1 visa, there is no penalty to withdraw from your program of study, as long a certain requirements are met. A designated school official (DSO) has the authority to permit "authorized early withdrawals" to a foreign student's F visa status in extenuating circumstances. This includes a temporary absence or withdrawal from school due to a family emergency, personal matter or another circumstance that calls for the student to leave the United States prior to their program’s completion.  If an F student is granted authorized early withdrawal, or a permitted temporary absence from their course of study, they are permitted a 15-day grace period to depart the United States. F students who are granted an authorized early withdrawal, but do not depart the country within the 15-day grace period, are in violation of their student vis...