H-1B Visa Revoked: Indian Woman Forced to Return to India After 12 Years Due to Consultancy Payroll Issue

Woman says her H-1B visa got revoked as her payroll was maintained by a consultancy that stopped her salary. An Indian woman working in the US on an H-1B visa shared her story in an NRI group about how she has to go back to India after spending 12 years, which came to nothing after all. The issue, she explained, was that she was working for a consultancy and her employer did not run the payroll. This has emerged as a massive issue as many H-1B visa holders are hired by IT staffing agencies and consultancies and then supplied to clients. In such cases, the clients for which they are working do not handle their payroll and salary. "I came to the US 12 years ago with dreams of building a better life. Unfortunately, my employer stopped paying my salary for the last six months," the woman said, adding that she already filed a complaint with the Department of Labor. "My H-1B status was eventually revoked because my employer didn't run payroll, and I couldn't transfer to another employer. My husband had to move to H-4 status, and I couldn't even apply for H-4 in time. We have three children, including an infant. After losing everything we worked so hard to build, we have no choice but to return to India," the post said. "Today I am leaving the US with empty hands. My employer destroyed everything we spent 12 years building. I know I am not the only one. There are many others silently facing the same situation. I hope our stories are heard, and no one else has to go through this," the post added. Consultancy 'scams' in the US: What is happening? Under US Citizenship and Immigration Services rules, an H-1B holder must actively maintain their nonimmigrant status by working and being paid according to the terms of their Labor Condition Application. When applying to transfer to a new employer, extend a visa, or adjust status, USCIS typically requires 2 to 3 recent pay stubs as proof that the individual maintained continuous employment. Without payroll records, USCIS considers the worker to have fallen out of status. In the consulting world, when a worker is between client projects (on the "bench"), some unethical employers (consultancies) stop running payroll to save money until a new client contract begins. Under DOL regulations, "benching" without pay is illegal. Sponsoring employers are legally required to pay the worker their full wage during non-productive time. But when it happens, USCIS still views the absence of pay stubs as a failure on the worker's part to maintain H-1B status, leaving them out of status.