H1B visa cancelled for overstaying in India: US entrepreneur calls it ‘ridiculous but justified’

A Reddit post discusses H1B visa cancellation, and it has gotten the social media running. First, the context: Here’s what the Reddit post said:

A woman shared on Reddit that her H-1 B visa was cancelled at Abu Dhabi International Airport during US preclearance. She works full-time in the US.

She travelled to India in November to celebrate her daughter’s first birthday. She and her husband got their visa stamping done in December. While returning to the US in January, her husband was cleared. But, she was sent for secondary inspection.

She told officers that she had stayed in India for about 2 months and had worked part-time during that time, using Paid Time Off (PTO).

Officers claimed she had “overstayed” in India and said that receiving pay while working from India for a US company was against US law. Her visa was cancelled and marked “Cancelled and Withdrawn”.

She was told to reapply. But, no US visa slots are currently available. Her company’s immigration lawyer says remote work from India is not illegal. She is now stressed and asking for guidance.

Now, when we checked, the Reddit post was removed by the OP. But, screenshots of the post were shared on social media.

US entrepreneurs’ take

US-based entrepreneur James Blunt commented on it. He called it a “221(i) visa cancellation at preclearance”. According to him, CBP (Customs and Border Protection) has “EXTREMELY BROAD discretion at ports of entry”.

Under US immigration law, CBP officers do not require the same level of proof that USCIS requires when approving or denying an H-1 B petition.

“Trigger of scrutiny was probably from: long periods spent abroad (and) mixing vacation and remote work,” Blunt said.

“Even if the underlying legal theory is weak, CBP can cancel the visa stamp. That does NOT revoke the approved H-1B petition but it forces you to go through stamping AGAIN,” he added.

Blunt further said, “Is it ridiculous? YES. From a legal authority standpoint, however, CBP absolutely has the power to do this.”

He wondered why people were still travelling when “even pro-immigration advocates are warning against it”.

He suggests people “stop travelling unless it’s an emergency”.

“There are beautiful places to visit in the US, and we have great Indian food. Come on, folks, it’s not that difficult,” he added.

SkillStorm Co-Founder Hany Girgis also commented on the issue. According to him, the H1B visa cancellation happened because “the remote work wasn’t reflected in the LCA”.

“You cannot be paid by a US company (and) perform work outside the listed worksite. The entire program is built on ‘specific job, specific employer, specific location’,” he said.