Applying for a Change of Status to a B1/B2 Tourist Visa
Who should buy this package?
It is often the case that a foreign national who enters the U.S. as, say, an F-1 student or an H-1B worker suddenly learns that he is about to fall out of status. For example, if an H-1B worker is laid off from his job or an F-1 student unexpectedly fails a course, the visa holder’s immigration status may be in jeopardy. U.S. immigration law is very strict and uncaring, and it is expected that foreign nationals should immediately depart from the U.S. after falling out of status.
Fortunately, there is a way for individuals who unexpectedly lose their nonimmigrant visa status to remain in the United States, with permission, until they can either acquire a new visa status or until they can tie up loose ends and depart from the United States on their own terms: applying to change status to a B1/B2 tourist. Changing status to B1/B2 allows a foreign national to remain in the United States in tourist status for up to six months.
In order to qualify for a change in status, an application to change status must be filed either while the foreign national is still in status, or is still within the “grace period” for their previous nonimmigrant visa (for example, most work visas permit an applicant to remain in the United States for up to 60 days following a premature termination of employment). Filing a change of status application after your authorized stay has expired may result in a denial and may result in serious immigration consequences.
If your immigration status is unexpectedly in jeopardy, it is generally advisable to consult with an experienced immigration attorney in order to discuss your options. However, speaking with an immigration attorney is not always practicable if your authorized stay will be expiring in mere days. You should buy this packet if you have an urgent need to change your nonimmigrant status to B1/B2 in order to protect yourself against accruing unlawful presence, and you need advice as to how to assemble the strongest application possible.
This package is intended only for individuals who have “clean” criminal and U.S. immigration histories. You should not buy this package if you have a serious criminal history (including any convictions for drugs, no matter how minor) or you have committed violations of U.S. immigration law in the past. In either case, you might not be eligible for a change of status. In most cases, you are not eligible for a change of status if you hold J-1 or J-2 status and are subject to the two-year home residence requirement. If you have any reason to suspect that you might not be eligible for a change of status, you should consult with an experienced U.S. immigration attorney prior to filing your application.
What is in this package?
- Overview of the process of applying for a change of status to B1/B2, from start to finish.
- Checklist of forms and evidence that you will need to submit with your application.
- Step-by-step instructions for applying for a change of status to B1/B2. The step-by step instructions will guide you through the process of collecting necessary evidence, filling out your paperwork, submitting the application to USCIS, and everything in between.
- Sample Cover Letter. You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but USCIS does sometimes judge immigration applications by their cover letters! Following this template will help to ensure that your application is not erroneously rejected in USCIS’s mailroom.
- Example Personal Statements. A major component of any application to change status is an applicant’s personal statement explaining to USCIS why he or she wants or needs to remain in the United States in B1/B2 status. These examples are meant to give you a sense of the sort of information that USCIS needs to know, and to help you identify factors in your own case that might be significant.
- Frequently Asked Questions, answering some of the most common questions that applicants have when filing applications to change status to B1/B2.
How to use this package?
Follow the step-by-step instructions to complete, assemble, and file a successful application for a change of status to B1/B2 with USCIS. The package starts with an overview of the process, provides a checklist of the documents that you’ll need to submit with your application, and provides detailed instructions for how to complete each form. The package also contains instructions for preparing your application for mailing, and an explanation as to what happens after you file. Following the instructions in this package can help you to put together the strongest application possible.
Special instructions
As mentioned above, it is generally necessary to file applications to change status to B1/B2 before the expiration of a person’s authorized stay. If you file a request to change your immigration status to B1/B2 after your authorized stay has already expired, your application will likely be denied, and you may face serious immigration consequences. If your current authorized stay has already expired, or if you are unsure whether or not you are still in a period of authorized stay, you should consult with an experienced immigration attorney prior to filing.
If successful, changing status to B1/B2 will result in you being classified as a “tourist” for U.S. immigration purposes. Individuals in B1/B2 are not permitted to work or attend school while in B1/B2 status. If your ultimate goal is to work or study in the United States, it will likely be necessary for you to change your status again to the appropriate visa type once you qualify for the visa type that you are seeking.
You should be aware that if you depart from the United States while your application to change status is still pending, USCIS will consider the application to be “abandoned” and will deny your application. If you need to leave the United States while your application is pending, you should be prepared to apply for a new visa before your next trip to the United States, and you should be prepared to show a US consular official documents pertaining to your request for a change of status and the reason why the application was denied. If you do not prove to the officer that your application was denied because you left the United States while the application was pending, the consular officer use this denial against you.
If your application to change status is denied while you are inside the United States, US immigration officials will expect you to leave the country immediately. USCIS typically gives a 10-day grace period after a denial. You will accumulate unlawful presence if you remain in the United States after the grace period expires.