Concluding H-1B Status

When your employment is terminated, your H-1B status will automatically terminate. At this time, you will be required to depart the U.S. immediately. Workers should be aware that there is no H-1B status grace period following termination of employment at the Medical Center.

Please review the following checklist prior to departure from the Medical Center. Your department will provide guidance on the Medical Center’s procedures for employment termination and departure.

  • Notify department supervisor and department Administrator of your planned departure
  • Provide forwarding address/contact information to your department
  • Notify the Office of International Services as soon as your termination is confirmed
  • Keep all original Immigration documents as a record of your visa status during your U.S. stay
  • Remember to file your tax returns (IRS) for your final period of employment.  Email the Payroll Office at wakepayroll@wakehealth.edu, and make sure to list your full name, last four digits of your Social Security number, your old Medical Center address and the new forwarding address where your future tax forms (W-2, etc.) can be sent.  Even though you may no longer be in the U.S., you are required to fulfill U.S. tax filing requirements for the tax year you were present in the U.S.

Changing Employers

If individuals in H-1B status leave the Medical Center before the end dates on their H-1B approval notices, the Office of International Services is required to notify the Department of Labor and USCIS. Workers should inform International Services if they complete their appointments prior to the expiration of their current H-1B status.

The H-1B is "employer specific," which means that each time a worker changes his/her employer, the new employer must prepare a new H-1B application. Because any new H-1B application starts with obtaining a new Department of Labor prevailing wage, workers should either plan any change of employment well in advance, or prepare to leave the U.S. and return later with the new H-1B status.

Portability Provision

Once USCIS has confirmed that it has received the new H-1B petition for a change of employer, a nonimmigrant who currently holds valid H-1B status may begin work for the new employer. This is allowed under the portability provision.

It is also important to understand that filing a new petition with USCIS can take 90 days or longer due to Department of Labor processing times. The Department of Labor process cannot be expedited. Please check with your new employer’s "international office" for details on how to proceed with the new H-1B portability application. 

Dependents

Spouses and unmarried children (under age 21) of H-1B visa holders are considered dependents and are eligible for H-4 status. H-4 visa holders are only eligible to stay in the U.S. while their H-1B spouses or parents are in the United States maintaining the terms and conditions of their H-1B visa status.

  • H-4 visa holders are not permitted to work in the United States and are not eligible to obtain Social Security numbers.
  • H-4 visa holders may apply to change their visa status to H-1B if they qualify for the specialty occupation requirement and find an employer who is willing to file a petition on their behalf
  • H-4 visa holders may study in the United States, full-time or part-time, for the duration of the H-1B's period of stay.