How long can a person be in H-1B status?
Under current law, you can be in H-1B status for a maximum period of six years. After that time, you must remain outside the United States for one year (to “reset” the six-year clock) before you may obtain another H-1B status. Certain foreign nationals who work on Defense Department projects may remain in H-1B status for 10 years. Furthermore, you may be able to extend your H-1B status beyond the 6-year maximum period under either of the following two circumstances: • One-year extensions because of slow government case processing. You may obtain an H-1B extension beyond the 6-year limitation in one-year increments if a labor certification application or an achievement-based I-140 petition is filed 365 days or more before the expiration of your H-1B six-year limitation and is still pending. You may continue to extend your H-1B status over and over in one-year increments generally as long as you continue to move forward successfully on your path toward permanent residency. The key to qua
