F1 stamping again??

[swash 0]

I came to US for Masters degree and I worked on OPT till Jul 2013, left the job and returned to my home country. My employer applied for H1(in April 2013) and it got approved. My sevis is completed as my h1 is approved. No H1 stamping yet.

I have F1 visa stamping for 5 years, expiring in Nov 2015. I am planning to do PhD in US this year. Do I need to go for F1 stamping again or is COS to F1 sufficient ? Please suggest.

[jan22 2,900]

I came to US for Masters degree and I worked on OPT till Jul 2013, left the job and returned to my home country. My employer applied for H1(in April 2013) and it got approved. My sevis is completed as my h1 is approved. No H1 stamping yet.

I have F1 visa stamping for 5 years, expiring in Nov 2015. I am planning to do PhD in US this year. Do I need to go for F1 stamping again or is COS to F1 sufficient ? Please suggest.

Assuming that you are currently in the US in H1B status, a COS to F1 is sufficient -- until you leave the US and want to re-enter as an F1. At that point, you would need a new F1 visa. You can't use the previous one even if it still appears to be valid -- it isn't, since you ended the studies for which it was issued. Since you finished the previous program and, in fact, had another status in the US, you will need to pay the SEVIS fee and all again. Any timte there's a change of SEVIS number, it requires a new visa.

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Thanks Jan22 for your reply.

I was on F1 all the time in US. I came to my home country before Oct 1st. What will be my chances of new F1 visa ? I am planning to apply for Phd in Computer Science. Earlier my Masters was in MIS from a Business College. I did my bachelors in Computer Science.

[jan22 2,900]

Sorry --- you said "COS" which is "Change of Status"; as that is something that can only happen in the U.S. I thought you had actually taken up the H1B. But -- how were you in F1status all the time if you ended your OPT in July 2013 and did not leave the U.S. until October 2013?? You also said your H1B was approved in April 2013....if it included a Change of Status in the I-797 and you worked for the job for which the petition was approved, you were, in fact, no longer in F1 status. Rather, that status had been changed to H1B by USCIS.

Bottom line, under either scenario, you need to apply for a new F1 visa for your next degree and can't use the one that's still in your passport -- it's no longer valid. Good luck!