A nonimmigrant currently in H-1B status with another employer (other than Rutgers) can begin H-1B employment with Rutgers as soon as Rutgers has obtained a USCIS Receipt Notice for filing its own H-1B petition for the individual's employment at Rutgers. This arrangement is called "Portability."

While neither the employee nor Rutgers has to wait for Rutgers' H-1B petition to be approved in order for the new employment to begin, if Rutgers' H-1B petition should for any reason be denied, the work authorization allowed by "portability" is automatically and immediately terminated.

To qualify for H-1B "portability" employment, ALL of the following must apply to the prospective employee:

• He or she must be in valid (active) H-1B status with the previous H-1B employer. This means that he or she must still be working on the previous employer's approved H-1B EITHER through the start date of employment with Rutgers OR through the date Rutgers receives a Receipt Notice from USCIS on the Rutgers-filed H-1B petition (whichever of these two dates occurs later); AND
• He or she must have been lawfully admitted into the United States as a nonimmigrant; AND
• He or she may not have engaged in employment without authorization since being lawfully admitted to the U.S.; AND
• Be certain that Rutgers has received from USCIS a dated receipt for the H-1B petition it has filed with that nonimmigrant individual's name as the petition beneficiary.

It is absolutely necessary for foreign nationals transferring to Rutgers in H-1B status under the benefit of H-1B "portability" to maintain H-1B employment (and thus legal status) at their current institution until the Center receives from USCIS a Receipt Notice for the H-1B petition filed by Rutgers on their behalf. H-1B "portability" employment at Rutgers cannot begin before Rutgers has received this Receipt Notice, and in no case can H-1B employment begin at Rutgers prior to the start date of the Rutgers-sponsored H-1B petition. It is therefore critical that the H-1B petition is filed well in advance of the employment start date. Please note that portability benefits do not apply if the previous H-1B employment has ceased more than one business day prior to the start date noted on the H-1B petition Rutgers has filed.