What To do if You Want to Extend Your Stay In The United States?

Suppose you are planning on traveling to the United States for work or pleasure. In that case, the first thing that you must know about is – that there are various visas for the country ranging from a foreign exchange student visa, tourist visa, work visa, student visa, or holding a green card, etc. However, you must know that getting a USA visa is no easy task. It is time-consuming and requires a lot of effort and knowledge.

Often individuals seek their visa on their own because it doesn’t require much effort except for filling out papers and meeting the visa requirements necessary. However, if you require a work visa, it is best to work with a work visa attorney. They work in this field and hence know everything about immigration law and the rules and procedures that need to be followed to obtain a work visa.

It is good to know all available visa options

It often happens that after obtaining a US visa, you need to extend your stay in the United States for some reason. In such cases, you need to know about the law in the country, which only an experienced immigration lawyer can help you with because the immigration law elements change quite frequently. So, always speak with an immigration lawyer who is aware of the latest changes.

If a foreign national enters the US using a B-1 or B-2 visa, they will have six months to fulfill the purpose for which they had come to the US irrespective of whether it is a visit for business or pleasure. In case the work is not done within 6 months, and you need to extend the stay, you could either apply for the same visa you first intended or obtain a new visa status. Remember that going through any visa application process, especially when it comes to getting a US visa, requires various elements that need to be met, which are quite critical and need an immigration lawyer's aid.

If you are in the US with a B-1 or B-2 visa and need to extend your stay in the US for more than six months, Form I-539 is required. The truth is that it is often difficult to be granted this extension unless there is a serious business issue or a health concern.

Suppose you need to change your B-1/B-2 visa to a student F-1 application. In that case, there is a prohibition if the application is filed or the visa holder applies to school within the first three months in the US and against school enrollment even before the application has even been approved. Remember that the application will be declined if the applicant starts studying before his/her visa is even being approved first. Besides, if foreign national wants to extend their visitor status and join a school in the US while visiting, it is considered a status violation.

Green Card applications are also plenty that is processed by the Department of Homeland Security/Citizenship and Immigration Services. Most of the interviews for green cards are scheduled within 2-5 months, provided the paperwork is done correctly. However, if there are missing documents, there could be problems. So, it is best to hire an immigration lawyer's services to cut through the legal hassles.

Stelmakh & Associates, LLC is a leading business immigration law firm who can help you in all visa related concerns. Besides helping our client fill their immigration forms correctly, we also devise customized immigration solutions for our clients and guide them through all the process steps. We have experienced O1 visa lawyer in the team to handle all types of visa concerns. They can provide excellent legal solutions to fit your immigration needs ideally.