I am a student in F-1 status and my wife is my F-2 dependent. I am working on OPT that expires in July. My employer is filing an H1B petition for me with an October 1st start date. …

… I understand that, if my H1B petition is accepted for processing and is not denied, revoked, or withdrawn, it will allow me to continue working on cap gap past the expiration of my OPT EAD. If my wife does not file her application for change of status to H-4, together with my H1B petition, will her status be negatively affected?

Answer

Dependents of F-1 students have their F-2 status automatically extended during the cap-gap period, without any additional action required. Therefore, your wife will be in valid F-2 status through the end of the cap-gap period, even if she does not file her application to change status (I-539 form) from F-2 to H-4, concurrently with your H1B petition. However, it is advisable for her to apply for change of status to H-4 at some point during the cap gap, but certainly no later than September 30th. (13.Jan.2017)

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