Need Advise-US h1b Resident moving back to India, EE 467 points

[mpdent]

Hi,

I am fairly new here. I am a US resident (legal alien) but recently was laid off work. I may have to move back to India if I can't find a job son. My CRS score now is 467 (having dropped 6 points from 473 in March when I first entered the EE pool - age!). I am trying to get all the documents together.

- Arranging job verification letters from previous employers
- I sent my fingerprints to FBI on 16th March. I am assuming it will take another couple of months to receive PCC from FBI - June?
- Checked on medical exam dates available
- I have PoFs.

Please advise-

1. I am not too keen on staying in US but would like to get all the paperwork sorted out for CIC. Is it reasonable to change my status to B1 or F1 if I can't find a job soon?

2. If I do move back to India,

a) Should I consider sending another set of fingerprints w/ application to FBI just in case the first ones are declined?
b) What's the best way to arrange FBI PCC to be sent to India? Can I change my address w/ FBI and get it delivered to a friend instead?
c) What other documents should I acquire?

3. When can you get med exam done? Does it have to be fairly recent and closer to ITA date? I haven't received ITA, should I bother getting medical exam now or should I postpone it to a later date?

4. Any other advice you may have for me? Is there anything I am overlooking/missing?

I have a lot going on and need some clarity of thoughts. I appreciate any help and advice!

Best,

M.

 

[sachinsoman1988]

Hi,

I am fairly new here. I am a US resident (legal alien) but recently was laid off work. I may have to move back to India if I can't find a job son. My CRS score now is 467 (having dropped 6 points from 473 in March when I first entered the EE pool - age!). I am trying to get all the documents together.

- Arranging job verification letters from previous employers
- I sent my fingerprints to FBI on 16th March. I am assuming it will take another couple of months to receive PCC from FBI - June?
- Checked on medical exam dates available
- I have PoFs.

Please advise-

1. I am not too keen on staying in US but would like to get all the paperwork sorted out for CIC. Is it reasonable to change my status to B1 or F1 if I can't find a job soon?
It will be harder to get US job verification letters from India. This should be top priority. Other than that, all other documents can be arranged in India.

2. If I do move back to India,

a) Should I consider sending another set of fingerprints w/ application to FBI just in case the first ones are declined?
Irrespective of your decision to move or not, you should always do it to be on safe side.
b) What's the best way to arrange FBI PCC to be sent to India? Can I change my address w/ FBI and get it delivered to a friend instead?
Yes. There is a change of address form.
c) What other documents should I acquire?
After you move, you can CSE CIC to inform change of address.
3. When can you get med exam done? Does it have to be fairly recent and closer to ITA date? I haven't received ITA, should I bother getting medical exam now or should I postpone it to a later date?
Medical results are only valid for a year. You should get your application approved and enter canada before medical results expire. If it expires, you will have to take medical test again.

4. Any other advice you may have for me? Is there anything I am overlooking/missing?
If applying from US, the application is handled by CPC-Ottawa. If residence in India, its NDVO. As far as I have seen, Outland VO's process the application faster than CPC-Ottawa.
I have a lot going on and need some clarity of thoughts. I appreciate any help and advice!

Best,

M.

 

[dallasboy]

Sorry to hear about your layoff. There is no single answer to your query so I am putting a response as if I am in your shoes..hope it helps.

There is a new rule proposed which allows H1B to remain in US for upto 60 days after lay off but that is yet to become law. Hence, if you are already laid off, I would suggest that you immediately switch to B2 / F1 status (or l2/h4 if your spouse is on l1/h1 visa). Ideally, the COS application should be filed before your last working day. If your last working day is in past, technically your are already out of h1B status but I heard that there is a unwritten rule where USCIS ignores periods less than 10 days but you can't count on it. If you hadn't already found a new H1B sponsor, it is most likely that your new employer has to request for consular processing. Whichever the case may be, go for premium processing. There is lot of information on this topic on H1B related forums on other websites so I won't go into details.

If you have any relatives / friends in Canada, you can apply for Canada Visitor visa as well (takes 2-3 weeks). As you can see, there are so many factors which you have to consider to decide if you should move to India or not. Also, staying back in US or Canada without job (and assuming your spouse is also not working) will eat up all of your savings pretty fast (expect 3k to 4k usd per month)

Coming back to express entry part, though it is a efficient process but it can still take 6+ months. Score of 467 is still very decent. Last few rounds are very close to this mark so sooner or later you have high chances of getting ITA.

2. If I do move back to India,

a) Should I consider sending another set of fingerprints w/ application to FBI just in case the first ones are declined? - Its not very costly so I would say no harm (include multiple finger print sheets in same envelope)
b) What's the best way to arrange FBI PCC to be sent to India? Can I change my address w/ FBI and get it delivered to a friend instead? Yes, you have both the options - contact 304-625-5590 for more details.
c) What other documents should I acquire?
refer to following link for full details
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/tools/perm/express/intake-complete.asp

3. When can you get med exam done? Does it have to be fairly recent and closer to ITA date? I haven't received ITA, should I bother getting medical exam now or should I postpone it to a later date?
I would suggest doing it about 2 weeks before you plan to submit your application. If you are all set to submit the application after getting ITA, I would suggest that you go for medical exam, immediately after ITA. The reason being, medical exam is valid only for one year and you have to land in canada within 1 year of medical exam.
4. Any other advice you may have for me? Is there anything I am overlooking/missing?
I would suggest that you start accessing the Canadian job market. Many people say its difficult to get a job after landing so what I did was that I posted my CV on Canada job sites and in my job area, I was getting good response from Toronto and Vancouver based employers (since it was not ethical to lie about Canada work status and proceed with interview rounds, I didn't get a real job offer. its difficult to get LIMA job offer)

Good luck...

 

[mpdent]

Thanks Sachinsoman1988 and Dallasboy!