I-94 is Expired but OPT is Still Valid.

[TheNewGirl 0]

I am currently on a Student F1 and am doing my OPT. My OPT is valid until Jan 31 but my I-94 visa in my passport expired in May and I have not renewed it.

I was back home for 2 weeks a little while ago and had no idea that i could only renew the I-94 outside the States. I sent the International Office at my school copies of all my paperwork and passport/visa/EAD card and they replied that everything looked good.

Therefore, I did not go to American Embassy and on my way back though immigration they stopped me and i had to pay for a waiver to get back in, explaining that I did not know you could not travel if the date on the visa is expired even though I'm still legally allowed to be here. Also, I can't renew the I-94 NOW when I'm already back in the states so I'm stuck with this expired one...

Anyways, my husband and I just got married and we're applying for I-485 and I-130 etc.

What I'm now worried about is if the expired I-94 visa and the record of me paying the waiver is going mess everything up?!?!?

I really really hope not!!!

[Newbie608 103]

If you enter on a F-1 visa, your I-94 wouldn't have an expiration date, instead it would be D/S for Duration of Stay. Therefore it would still be valid once you are in status.

[jaycali 415]

I am currently on a Student F1 and am doing my OPT. My OPT is valid until Jan 31 but my I-94 visa in my passport expired in May and I have not renewed it.I was back home for 2 weeks a little while ago and had no idea that i could only renew the I-94 outside the States. I sent the International Office at my school copies of all my paperwork and passport/visa/EAD card and they replied that everything looked good.Therefore, I did not go to American Embassy and on my way back though immigration they stopped me and i had to pay for a waiver to get back in, explaining that I did not know you could not travel if the date on the visa is expired even though I'm still legally allowed to be here. Also, I can't renew the I-94 NOW when I'm already back in the states so I'm stuck with this expired one...Anyways, my husband and I just got married and we're applying for I-485 and I-130 etc.What I'm now worried about is if the expired I-94 visa and the record of me paying the waiver is going mess everything up?!?!? I really really hope not!!!

Hej!

I can't believe the CBP allowed you in with an expired visa. You dodged a bullet.

Are you sure that the I-94 is expired? Students in F-1 status rarely ever have a date stamped on their I-94s but rather D/S - Duration of Status. If your I-94 says D/S, you're lawfully in the country as long as you're in status. Working on OPT is "in status." The only way I could perceive your I-94 being stamped is the CBP officer stamping it according to your OPT since your visa was already expired.

Either way, this doesn't really matter. When you're filing for adjustment of status based on marriage to a USC, any potential overstay is forgiven anyway. It will be irrelevant to your adjustment process. As long as you entered legally, which you did, you'll be fine. Do NOT leave the US until you have your green card in hand.

Lykke til!

Edited December 1, 2012 by Jay Jay

[AnotherLostSoul 167]

I think your I-94 cannot expire when you're on F1 visa, unless you exited one time the country on OPT and came back and got a new one which might have expiration date that is adjusted to the length you could stay on OPT. The visa can expire, and I am shocked that first of all, they let you back in, second, that you did not know about that. You should know better being on an international student visa for years. No, seriously. Visa is always issued for "entrance" into a country. If it expires while you are in the US but your I-20 is valid and you are registered as a full time student then you are fine...but if you leave, and want to enter back obviously you need a new visa that is valid to re-enter into the States. I am very surprised that you are not aware of this, and I think USCIS will be surprised too. Again, check if you really have expiration date on your I-94...and make sure you fully check what it means to be on OPT, and what it means to be on F1 visa before filing for your AOS as making mistakes during the AOS can greatly delay your approval, if not deny it. Good luck, and sorry for preaching, but seriously, you need to start taking a more serious responsibilities of your legal actions, and status. But we cannot answer if your expired I-94 will cause issues or not as we're not convinced that your I-94 has an expiration date on it. Check it.

[Newbie608 103]

I know that they'll let you in on OPT if you show proof that you have a job offer or is already working. Maybe that's the reason for getting an I-94 with an expiration date..

[AnotherLostSoul 167]

Maybe...that is what I was thinking that she already left the US while on OPT and got back, hence got an I-94 that has an expiration date on it...but at this point, she needs to confirm that with us so we can help her.

[TheNewGirl 0]

Hi again everyone,

Thank you so much for taking time to answer my questions. I'll try to clarify things for you.

First of all, SORRY! I meant the F1 visa page in my passport NOT the I-94 paper slip! Now I get why I confused everyone

I graduated in December last year (2011) and had my OPT start date Feb 1st 2012. I entered with my I-20 as a F1 student in Aug 2011, coming back from summer break back in Sweden, and never left the States until Oct this year when I had to go home for a family emergency. Since I had already graduated, the date on the actual visa in my passport had "expired" (since you're supposed to graduate in 4 years from when you get your visa) but since I am on an OPT I am still definitely in status.

I am currently working full time since Feb this year (9 months now) and my OPT expires on Jan 31 (since it only lasts for 1 year).

I know it's a lame excuse, but the school I went to had a terrible International Student Office, which I have only realized now afterwards when I started looking up things myself. When I was still in school I of course assumed they knew what they were talking about...

For example, they told us we could apply for H1-B Work visa whenever during our OPT, which I was going to do a couple months ago when I realized you can only do so from April 1st, which means it's way past the expiration on my OPT...

The thing is, if I would have just gone to the US embassy in Stockholm and renewed my visa while I was back home I would be fine and I'd have a new page in my passport just delaying the expiration date until my OPT expires, but since it was an emergency and I only got 2 weeks off work, I did not think about having to do so. It's definitely my fault for trusting the Int. people at my old school when they said I was good to go.

In Immigration when coming back I did have a letter from my employer (which they didn't even look at), I had my I-20 signed for travel by the school, my EAD etc. So they could definitely see that I was still in status and I think that is why they let me in after me signing and paying the I-193 waiver ($585 I'll never get back...)

So I guess this makes the question different from above:

Will my expired F-1 visa and the stamp+record of me paying the I-193 waiver ruin my AOS application?

Again, so sorry for the "typo", my brain must have been elsewhere.

Edited December 1, 2012 by TheNewGirl

[ValerieA 350]

Not sure why people are preaching at you in this thread about stuff that has nothing to do with your question...

Your expired visa will have no bearing on your application. Overstay, if accrued, is 'forgiven' for the spouse of a US citizen. I know nothing about the I-193 waiver, but I see no reason that it would effect your application, either. You were admitted to the US legally.

[jaycali 415]

I-193 waivers have no bearing on eligibility to adjust status. You entered the country lawfully, that's what matters.