Employer kept me in dark about RFE!!! No time to respond now.

[greenleaf81]

Hi,

My employer applied for my H1b Extension and the case was received on Aug 5th by USCIS. The online status still shows the case to be in "Initial Review". Out of curiosity, I called USCIS and they told me that they can only reveal information abuot the case to my employer. So I called my employer and they gave me a shocking news - They had received an RFE about a month ago and they "forgot" to inform me. They are not revealing me the details of the RFE.

We have to respond to the RFE by Nov 3rd, and since I had a change of project(I did provide the previous client letter when we had originally applied for H1b extension) they are asking me to get a client letter and other proofs within a day!!!! My client is taking its on time and I do not think I will get the client letter to send it in time.

1) What are my options here? Not knowing what the RFE is, being told about the RFE with just 2 days remaining, can I threaten to take any legal action against my employer?
2) Is it my right to get a copy of the RFE?
3) How come the case status did not change on USCIS website?

My current visa expires on Nov 20th. Please advice ASAP.

[wandmaker]

Originally Posted by greenleaf81

Hi,

My employer applied for my H1b Extension and the case was received on Aug 5th by USCIS. The online status still shows the case to be in "Initial Review". Out of curiosity, I called USCIS and they told me that they can only reveal information abuot the case to my employer. So I called my employer and they gave me a shocking news - They had received an RFE about a month ago and they "forgot" to inform me. They are not revealing me the details of the RFE.

We have to respond to the RFE by Nov 3rd, and since I had a change of project(I did provide the previous client letter when we had originally applied for H1b extension) they are asking me to get a client letter and other proofs within a day!!!! My client is taking its on time and I do not think I will get the client letter to send it in time.

1) What are my options here? Not knowing what the RFE is, being told about the RFE with just 2 days remaining, can I threaten to take any legal action against my employer?
2) Is it my right to get a copy of the RFE?
3) How come the case status did not change on USCIS website?

My current visa expires on Nov 20th. Please advice ASAP!

#1 - H1B is company's petition, you are merely a beneficiery, you can not do anything.
#2 - It is not your right to ask for RFE notice copy, but you can request.
#3 - Dont rely on online status

Find a new employer, have your H1 transferred while your I-94 is valid.

[rameshraju11]

Hello,

since your H1b has not been rejected yet , you still can re-file H1b at the same time
call USCIS and request for additional time for RFE and send RFE documents for the
original H1B

tx

[ajp5]

Talk to your company Liar (lawyer) first. My non-legal advise is

1. Ask lawyer to request more time for the RFE
2. If thats not possible - send what you can. eg W2 , paystubs etc etc. Try to get the client letter from your employer. If you get it in next 10 days, additional evidence is always welcome by USCIS I guess.

You cannot threaten your employer for something like this. Talk to them & resolve this with the help of your manager.....You have 1 last day ie Monday before last Fedex dropoff time.....reset your stopwatch.......maybe make a movie out of it and post it on youtube

[meridiani.planum]

Originally Posted by greenleaf81

Hi,

My employer applied for my H1b Extension and the case was received on Aug 5th by USCIS. The online status still shows the case to be in "Initial Review". Out of curiosity, I called USCIS and they told me that they can only reveal information abuot the case to my employer. So I called my employer and they gave me a shocking news - They had received an RFE about a month ago and they "forgot" to inform me. They are not revealing me the details of the RFE.

We have to respond to the RFE by Nov 3rd, and since I had a change of project(I did provide the previous client letter when we had originally applied for H1b extension) they are asking me to get a client letter and other proofs within a day!!!! My client is taking its on time and I do not think I will get the client letter to send it in time.

1) What are my options here? Not knowing what the RFE is, being told about the RFE with just 2 days remaining, can I threaten to take any legal action against my employer?
2) Is it my right to get a copy of the RFE?
3) How come the case status did not change on USCIS website?

My current visa expires on Nov 20th. Please advice ASAP!

sorry to say but your employer is useless. by playing around with your H1 petition he is messing around with your legal status in the US. Since he has already proven himself untrustworthy, I would suggest you move on asap: find another job and transfer your H1. Since you already have a client, should be easier to get a transfer done. Also, do the transfer with premium processing even if you have to pay $1k out of your own pocket.

P.S: H1 is his own petition, you are just the beneficiary. You dont have a right to see the RFE and he does not have an obligation to share information about it with you. Thats the legal part. morally and ethically the way he is acting sucks.

[greenleaf81]

Thank you guys for responding to my situation.
My client could not issue a letter but the Vendor issued a letter saying I am working at the client. Also we have attached some emails from the client Manager. And thankfully they were able to send the documents on Monday.


ajp5: I do believe that I have switch the employer now, because I cannot risk to wait for the USCIS to process the RFE and run out of time. I will talk to the vendor about the transfer. Yes the last few days have been a hell for me, suitable for a thrilling movie.

wandmaker, meridiani.planum: Thanks for the advice, I am in the process of finding another employer, hopefully more trustworthy this time. When I do find a new consultant I will do PP.

I want to convert this H1b application to Premium Processing now, that is after responding to the RFE. My current company's lawyer claims that we cannot convert to Premium Processing after an RFE is issued and answered. Is this is true? Can an application be converted to PP only if it does not receive an RFE? I thought it can be converted anytime...please advice.

[wandmaker]

Originally Posted by greenleaf81

......
I want to convert this H1b application to Premium Processing now, that is after responding to the RFE. My current company's lawyer claims that we cannot convert to Premium Processing after an RFE is issued and answered. Is this is true? Can an application be converted to PP only if it does not receive an RFE? I thought it can be converted anytime...please advice.

You need to send in the I-907, please read section "Premium Processing Service for Form I-129 -Upgrades for Pending Cases" on Page 2 of Download Instructions PDF USCIS - Request for Premium Processing Service

...
If you have already filed Form I-129, and you wish to requestPremium Processing Service, file Form I-907 with the ServiceCenter where Form I-129 is pending. Include a copy of FormI-797, Notice of Action, or a copy of the transfer notice, ifapplicable, showing the location of the relating petition. Toensure that Form I-907 is matched up with the pending FormI-129, you must completely answer Questions 1 through 5 inPart 2 of Form I-907. If this information is not provided, theForm I-907 will be rejected. The Premium Processingaddresses for each service center that handles Form I-129 islisted in the Form I-129 filing chart
...

[greenleaf81]

Originally Posted by wandmaker

You need to send in the I-907, please read section "Premium Processing Service for Form I-129 -Upgrades for Pending Cases" on Page 2 of Download Instructions PDF USCIS - Request for Premium Processing Service

Thanks a lot WandMaker, really appreciate you giving me the link. Definitely looks like we can convert a case to Premium processing even after a RFE.

[Soltan]

Oh wow, I have a similar situation like yours. Who is your employer, send me a pm. I am in the process of converting it to Premium.
I have talked to an immigration attorney and confirmed that it surely can be converted to PP. Good luck to you. If you go to other forums, I have seen a similar discussion, check it out there as well.