H-1B Transfers
H-1B Transfers
Already in H-1B status? Changing employers does not mean the lottery. A transfer is a new petition by the new employer — no cap, no registration window, and it can be filed at any time of year. Our fee for the case is one all-inclusive flat fee — no surprises, and nothing extra for an RFE.
Most of the H-1B movement in Silicon Valley is not the March lottery. It is people already in H-1B status moving from one employer to another — hired away, recruited, or moving on after a layoff. The law calls it a change of employer petition. Everyone calls it a transfer, and it is the fastest clean route to a new start date, because the worker has already been counted against the cap.
Under the portability rule, the worker can start with the new employer as soon as the petition is filed — on the filing receipt, not the approval — provided the worker is in lawful H-1B status, the petition is filed before that status expires, and it is a real, complete petition. If the petition is denied, that work authorization ends. Getting the sequence right is the whole case.
For Employers
The candidate you want is already here, already working, already through the lottery. What stands between you and a start date is one petition: a Labor Condition Application, then the I-129. Two of the government fees on a change-of-employer petition — the $500 fraud prevention fee and the training fee, $1,500 or $750 for employers with 25 or fewer full-time employees — are the employer's to pay by law. Premium processing is available, currently $2,965, for a decision in 15 business days.
The $100,000 payment added by presidential proclamation applies to certain new petitions for workers outside the United States. A change-of-employer petition for a worker already in the United States in H-1B status is a different posture — we confirm the position at the time we file, before you budget the hire.
Tell us the role and the person. We confirm the timing — especially where the worker's status, travel plans, or remaining six years are tight — and we take it from there.
For the Worker Moving
Two mistakes cause most transfer trouble: resigning before the petition is filed, and traveling internationally while it is pending. Neither is hard to avoid when the sequence is planned first. A spouse and children in H-4 status move with the case. And if the worker is approaching the six-year limit, the transfer is often where the green card timeline gets decided — extensions beyond six years are available in defined circumstances when a PERM application or an I-140 has been pending at least a year, or an I-140 is approved.
If you want your own read on the timing before the new employer files, tell us your situation. We reply in writing, focusing on the issues involved.
How It Works
- Tell us about the role and the worker — through the form below.
- We confirm the worker's status, the filing sequence, and the start-date options.
- The new employer files the Labor Condition Application — about a week for certification — and then the petition.
- The worker starts on the filing receipt, or on approval — with premium processing, a decision in 15 business days. The timing call is made deliberately, not by default.
What to Prepare
The current H-1B approval notice, the worker's most recent I-94 and pay records, passport, the new role's title, duties and worksite, and the new employer's details. If any of that is still taking shape — a start date, a title — say so in the form. That is what the reply is for.
For the full picture, see the H-1B visa page and the HR / Employers page.