Ask HN: How many H1B holders here taking the H4 "punishment"?

13 points·goshx··3 comments

If you are a married H1B holder you know what I am talking about. H4 (H1B dependent) holders are not allowed to work. Period. It does not even matter if it is remote work to home country.

To me this is one of the biggest problems of being a H1B holder in this country.

If you and your spouse are on this situation, can you please share your story? How do you handle the situation?

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In my case, I had my wife enroll in a graduate program rather than wasting 6 precious years of her life. Promptly, I had her switch from H4 to F1. So effectively, I've just kicked the can down the road. It remains to be seen what will happen once she graduates and the OPT runs out.

The US govt and Congress are apathetic in resolving this issue. On a more hopeful note, recently, there has been some noise about allowing H4 visa holders to work after the H1-B holder has completed 6 years[1]. The commenting period closed recently. It remains to be seen how, if and when, USCIS will implement this rule.

[1] http://www.reginfo.gov/public/do/eAgendaViewRule?pubId=20121...

It's not just the H1B visa, F1 students have the same problem.

On H4 you can still run a business, but you cannot be your business employee.

You can also get another immigration status (such as H1B or F1), though it can be hard.

IANAL

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