From H1B Visa to F1 and Back to H1B
If you're on H1B and considering returning to school in the United States, this guide is for you. My story will hopefully help other immigrant professionals navigate this complex process.
Understanding the Transition
If you've already completed a master's degree in the US and are currently on an H1B but are looking to pursue another master's full-time, you might wonder what happens if you switch back to an F-1 visa.
Yoshita's Journey
After completing my undergraduate degree in engineering in India, I pursued a master's in engineering in California on F1. I used my STEM OPT for about 16 months before being selected in the H1B lottery (master's cap), sponsored by my previous employer. I spent about 2.5 years on my H1B before pursuing a full-time MBA.
Exploring the Options
When considering a return to full-time study, I had two main options for transitioning back to an F-1 visa:
Get Lola’s stories in your inbox
Join Medium for free to get updates from this writer.
1. Travel to India for Visa Processing:
- Quit my job and fly back to India to apply for an F-1 visa.
- Once granted, I return to the US to complete my MBA.
- After finishing my MBA, ask my future employer to sponsor my H1B again, bypassing the lottery but reinstating my previous H1B status.
2. Change of Status (COS) in the US:
- Continue working until school starts.
- Apply for a Change of Status (COS) from H1B to F-1 through USCIS.
- Use the notification receipt to enroll in school while awaiting the decision.
- Post-MBA, I apply for another COS through my future employer to revert to my H1B.
Option 1 seemed more straightforward, but several factors influenced my decision to stay in the US:
- The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant backlogs, making it difficult to secure an F-1 visa slot in India.
- The US embassy in India may not grant non-immigrant F1 status to someone who shows a reason to stay back in the country. Given I had already spent so many years here.
Based on these considerations, and after consulting with the experts at Murthy Law Firm (Highly recommend), it became clear that leaving for India posed a high risk of my F-1 visa being denied at the US embassy. Therefore, I opted for the Change of Status (COS) route to transition smoothly back to student life and later re-enter the workforce under my existing H1B .
Yoshita’s Timeline
The caveat here is that I couldn’t leave the country while I was on COS and F1.
Is this path straightforward? Nope. It’s filled with trepidation and paperwork, and it’s not inexpensive. Also, it would be best if you had a job offer, aka an employer willing to take this bet with you. I was lucky and worked hard to ensure I had all that. My new employer applied for premium processing, and within 8 business days after my graduation, I was able to get back on H1B. My H1B is valid for 3 years — which is fantastic for me.
If I can, you can, too. Don’t be afraid to reach out to yoshita.ucla@gmail.com.
Also, my next worry is getting to India, specifically Hyderabad, for my H1B Visa. Hopefully, I’ll cross that hurdle as smoothly as this one.
Sometimes, I wonder if all this mad paperwork is worth the opportunity to work here. And I think it is. I get to work with the best of the best. And I take that forward with the rest of my life, even if it's a temporary experience. I am not sure why I shared all that- but maybe it is because you’re in the deep pool of figuring all this, and I want to assure you it’ll be worth it :)
