Soon, H1-B, L1 visa holders may get their visa re-stamped in the US itself

The United States will resume "domestic visa revalidation" in a selected few categories on a pilot basis. The pilot project is set to launch later in 2023. The move, once fully implemented, would be a big relief for the thousands of Indian professionals in the United States who wouldn't need to get out of the United States to get their passports re-stamped after the expiration of their stay.

Which categories of visas are eligible for 'domestic visa revalidation'?

The foreign tech workers on H-1B and L1 visas will be eligible for "domestic visa revalidation".

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"We are working in earnest on plans to restart this service for certain petition-based NIV categories, and we hope to have a pilot up and running later this year. This would eliminate the need for these applicants to travel abroad to renew visas,"a State Department spokesperson told Press Trust of India.

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"We cannot comment on how many visa holders would be initially eligible, but the pilot would begin with a small number of cases before scaling over the following 1-2 years,"said the State Department spokesperson in response to a question.

What does it mean?

It means that non-immigrant visa holders in H-1B and L1 categories will be able to renew their visas while staying in the United States. At present, visa re-stamping is not allowed within the United States. The visa holders, after the expiration of their stay, have to go out of the United States,to their country of origin, to get the extension stamped on their passport. Once implemented, the eligible individuals holding H-1B and L1 visas will be able to get their passports re-stamped in the United States itself.

Under the existing rule, that came into force in 2004, the procedure for re-stamping H1-B and L visas is to visit the home country and submit their H1, and L1 visas, passports, and documents by way of a dropbox or interview.

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The much-sought-after H-1B visas are issued for three years at a time.

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries such as India and China.

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