221g for H4 renewal visa and kept original 797 of H1B holder

[chikoo]

Hi All,

I am on h1b and my husband on h4.
I am direct employee.
I am currently on 7th year of h1b . Recently got 3 years extension based
on 140 approved.
My husband went for H4 renewal stamping on 1st Aug 2011 at Delhi Embassy.
The officer asked how many employee work for your wife's company.
He said 30 employee.
After that he was told to go to another counter where he was given 221g
pink slip and was told to keep his passport as well as my original
I-797 (H1B work permit).

Q.1. Is this their normal practice to keep original 797 of H1B holder?
When/how would they return original I-797. Does anyone had similar
experience. Can someone please share their experience or tell me more about
this.

My son is in his senior year of his high school.
He is currently in US, planning to travel to India on 4th Aug 2011.
I have booked his flight ticket and h4 renewal stamping scheduled on 10th Aug 2011 at New Delhi.

Q.2. I am not sure , i will be getting my original 797 that was submitted during my husband renewal .If he is not having original 797 of H1B holder, what are chances of him
getting stuck in 221g processing?

Thanks
Sangeeta

[thomachan72]

You have to bear in mind the risk that he could also be stuck and might potentially lose class days. If it is not urgent cant you reschedule his trip till your husband's visa is cleared? Best.

[chikoo]

Thanks for prompt reply.

Can somebody answer to question nos 1 about keeping original 797 of h1b holder for h4 renewal from above post?

Thanks
Sangeeta

[pappu]

Thanks for prompt reply.

Can somebody answer to question nos 1 about keeping original 797 of h1b holder for h4 renewal from above post?

Thanks
Sangeeta

We may have a free attorney call day after tomorrow. You can ask your question in that call too.

[LondonTown]

Q.1. Is this their normal practice to keep original 797 of H1B holder?
When/how would they return original I-797. Does anyone had similar
experience. Can someone please share their experience or tell me more about
this.

They kept my passport and I-797 while I was under 221G and upon my request to return my passport they returned it along with I-797 stapled to it.

I would suggest to cancel your son's trip for now if it is not urgent, and wait until your husband's 221G is cleared.

[sorcerer666]

Thanks for prompt reply.

Can somebody answer to question nos 1 about keeping original 797 of h1b holder for h4 renewal from above post?

Thanks
Sangeeta

I don't know the answer to your 1st question, but I agree with Tomachan about delaying your sons travels at the moment. Also, there was somebody else on here, whose spouse's H-4 visa application supposedly triggered an investigation of his own H-1b, which he found out by the online case status of his receipt number. I would suggest keep an eye on that too. Hopefully its just a minor processing issue, but I would dial-in into the attorney conference call or ask your own attorney about this.

Good luck!!

[thomachan72]

Sorry cannot answer about the 797. I did not even know that you had to give the original of 797. Shouldn't a notarized copy suffice?
One thing is that since they retained all the documents it is very likely that your husband will get an approval after investigations sooner. Did they ask for other documents?

[thomachan72]

If original 797 is a requirement since your husband has already submitted it your son could possible just carry a notarized copy along with all proofs indicating he is your son and then mention that the original is already with them? Also since your husbands filing is already under review there is a very high probability that your son is also likely to get caught with it until they get whatever they are looking for:mad: Its a pain but thats the fact.
If there is anyway you could send him later then that would be the best option unless you are mentally prepared to handle any delays in his getting back. Your husband could be cleared fast but you never know.
Those who were stuck in India can shed more light on the usual delays and types of the 221gs. Usually they ask for other supporting documents but you have not mentioned of any such requests so it is unclear what they are looking for.

[chikoo]

Thanks for responding.

In this span of six years in US , he has travel back and forth to India almost 7-8 times.
My husband (who is on h4)this was his third time stamping and every time he use to carry my(h1b ) original 797.

I have made up my mind to cancel my son's travel plan.

[chikoo]

as of now , no document asked. They just to0k my husband's passport and my (h1b) 's 797 original.

[Rajvrx]

Hello

I had a similar experience at New Delhi Embassy. I am in my 7th year H1 and went for stamping in June last week. I was handed a pink slip and was asked to submit the documents listed on the slip. ( you mentioned they didn't asked for any documents which i didn't understand). The pink slip ask for invitation letter from company, resume, research work done in USA, purpose of travel to USA, itinerary and international travel in last 10 years. I submitted all the documents through email listed on pink slip in first week of July. The auto reply I received said i will get a response in 4-6 weeks. I got the passport with visa stamped in 3 weeks.
Yes they kept my original I-797 along with passport which I received stapled with the passport.
Maybe your husband went for H4, that is why no documents were asked.
They have only approved my visa for 2 years even though I-797 was approved for 3 years. My I-140 is approved, work for a big MNC, non IT and direct employee.

Hope this helps.

[chikoo]

thanks for reply.
yeah they did not asked any document probably because it was h4 stamping.