On B1Visa- Applied for H1B Visa

Hi,

I’m currently on B1 visa in US. I will be in here in US until sep 19th.

My question is will my duration of stay on B1 (5 months and 3 weeks) have any affect on my H1 interview?

And also, is it mandatory that I return to India to attend the interview for H1B or is there any way to convert my B1 to H1B without returning to India?

Thanks,

Harish

Usually, business visitors are given 3 months period of stay in US and 6 months is the maximum. Since you will stay in US very close to the maximum limit, this can be questioned by VO in the consular interview - they could doubt that you were working there rather than visiting on business purpose.

Yes, its not advisable to change your B1 status to H1B while in US, which will be deemed as 'misuse' of B1 VISA. And I don't think USCIS will approve any such COS requests - they will reject that and recommend for consular processing.