{"id":8282,"date":"2026-08-03T16:28:19","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T16:28:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=8282"},"modified":"2026-08-03T16:28:19","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T16:28:19","slug":"immigration-attorneys-warn-indian-diaspora-to-exercise-caution-while-travelling-domestically","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=8282","title":{"rendered":"Immigration attorneys warn Indian diaspora to exercise caution while travelling domestically"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-132830753,imgsize-77651,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg\" alt=\"Immigration attorneys warn Indian diaspora to exercise caution while travelling domestically\" title=\"US immigration lawyers urge H-1B holders to carry status documents amid reports of domestic travel detentions.\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"US immigration lawyers urge H-1B holders to carry status documents amid reports of domestic travel detentions.\">US immigration lawyers urge H-1B holders to carry status documents amid reports of domestic travel detentions.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>Widespread reports of non-citizens being detained by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) during domestic travel within the US, have prompted immigration attorneys to advise their clients, including <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/topic\/h-1b-visa\" styleobj=\"[object Object]\" class=\"\" commonstate=\"[object Object]\" frmappuse=\"1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">H-1B visa<\/a> holders, to carry documents that establish their lawful immigration status or authorised stay in the US.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"4\"\/>The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) says such incidents have been reported across the country, including in California, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, New Jersey, Texas and Virginia.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"6\"\/>Those detained did not necessarily have criminal records. Many were lawfully present in the US while an immigration benefit\u2014such as adjustment of status or an asylum application\u2014was pending. <!-- -->Some had also been issued Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) by DHS, allowing them to work legally while their applications were under consideration. However, immigration attorneys told TOI that while an EAD authorises employment, it does not, by itself, create or preserve lawful immigration status.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"11\"\/>The issue has particular relevance for the Indian diaspora, which accounts for the overwhelming majority of H-1B visa holders. When an employer sponsors an employee for an employment-based green card and an immigrant visa number becomes available, the employee may file Form I-485 to adjust status to permanent residence. While the application is pending, the individual has two broad options: continue maintaining H-1B status by obtaining periodic extensions of status (EOS), or rely on the pending I-485 application and work using an EAD.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"16\"\/>Maintaining H-1B status provides an important safeguard. If the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) ultimately denies the adjustment of status application, an individual whose H-1B status remains valid can generally continue living and working in the US for the sponsoring employer.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>\u201cIf the underlying H-1B status has lapsed, and the person has a pending adjustment application, they could be amenable to detention and placed in removal technically,\u201d said Cyrus D. <!-- -->Mehta, founder of an immigration law firm.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/>Thus far, there have been no reports of the Indian diaspora facing such issues during domestic travel. One reason, immigration attorneys say, is that many employment-based immigrants continue to maintain their underlying non-immigrant status even after filing for adjustment of status.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"25\"\/>\u201cMany employment-based immigrants continue to maintain H-1B or L-1 status via periodic extensions throughout the adjustment of status process, even after filing Form I-485,\u201d said Abhinav Tripathi, immigration attorney at Protego Law Group.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"28\"\/>Nevertheless, immigration attorneys say the current enforcement environment warrants greater caution. \u201cI am advising everyone who is EOS-pending and\/or AOS-pending not to get near an airport for any reason if their I-94 has expired, even with a timely-filed extension of status, especially if they are between jobs or relying on EAD alone,\u201d said Karin Wolman, a New York-based immigration attorney.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"30\"\/>Immigration attorneys recommend that all non-citizens travelling within the US carry documents establishing their immigration status or authorised stay. These may include a passport, the most recent Form I-94, a green card, receipt notices for pending immigration applications, an EAD, and evidence of current employment, as applicable.<span class=\"em\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\"\/><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/nri\/us-canada-news\/immigration-attorneys-warn-indian-diaspora-to-exercise-caution-while-travelling-domestically\/articleshow\/132830291.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>US immigration lawyers urge H-1B holders to carry status documents amid reports of domestic travel detentions. Widespread reports of non-citizens being detained by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) during domestic travel within the US, have prompted immigration attorneys to advise their clients, including H-1B visa holders, to carry documents that establish their lawful [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8283,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8282","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"US immigration lawyers urge H-1B holders to carry status documents amid reports of domestic travel detentions. Widespread reports of non-citizens being detained by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) during domestic travel within the US, have prompted immigration attorneys to advise their clients, including H-1B visa holders, to carry documents that establish their lawful [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":1,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":3,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg",400,225,false],"medium":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg",300,169,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/h1b-visa-representative-image.jpg",150,84,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/author\/admin"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"<a href=\"#\" class=\"category-link category-link-31\">\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8282","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8282"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8282\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8283"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8282"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8282"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8282"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}