Your 60-day grace period starts the day after your last day of paid employment, not the day you were told. Every deadline on this page runs off that one date.
Up to 60 consecutive calendar days, starting the day after your last day of paid employment. Federal regulations treat that window as a period of authorized stay.
You cannot work during the grace period unless a new employer has filed an H-1B change-of-employer petition on your behalf. You also cannot travel internationally. Leaving the country ends the grace period, and re-entry would require a valid visa stamp and a new petition.
The grace period applies whether your employment ended by layoff, termination, or resignation. It is measured from the day after your final paycheck date, not from the day you were told about the layoff.
If your employer keeps you on payroll during a notice period or garden leave, the clock does not start until that pay stops. See when the clock starts.
You get one grace period per petition validity period. If you were laid off by Employer A, used part of the grace period, and then returned to Employer A on the same petition, you do not get a second 60 days. If you transfer to Employer B on a new petition and are later laid off again, you would be eligible for a new grace period under that new petition.
Yes. The new employer files an H-1B change-of-employer petition, Form I-129, with USCIS, and you can start work as soon as it is filed.
This is commonly called an H-1B "transfer," though technically it is a new petition rather than a move of an existing one.
The petition should be filed while you are still in the grace period. If you miss the window, your options narrow significantly. Some attorneys have successfully filed after the 60 days, but this is risky and depends on the facts of your case.
File a change of status to another nonimmigrant category before the grace period expires. A timely filed, non-frivolous application preserves your authorized stay while USCIS processes it, even if the 60 days pass before a decision is made.
B-1/B-2 and F-1 both use Form I-539, which must be filed during the grace period. While the application is pending, you are in a period of authorized stay.
F-1 requires you to enroll in a qualifying academic program at a SEVP-certified school before filing Form I-539.
O-1 requires a strong record of achievement in your field. It has no annual cap and allows immediate work authorization upon approval.
The critical point is that you must file before the grace period expires. A timely filed, non-frivolous application preserves your authorized stay while USCIS processes it, even if the 60 days pass before a decision is made.
Your H-4 dependents stay in authorized stay with you through the 60 days. Include them in the transfer or change-of-status filing so their status is preserved along with yours.
H-4 status derives from your H-1B, so when your H-1B employment ends, your spouse and children are affected too.
If your H-4 spouse holds an Employment Authorization Document, they can continue working during the grace period. If the grace period expires without a new petition or change of status being filed, the H-4 EAD also becomes invalid.
The day after your last day of paid employment. While you are still on the company's payroll, the 60 days have not started.
Get your official last day of employment from HR. That single date determines when your grace period starts, and therefore when it ends.
Garden leave is paid non-working notice. As long as you are being paid and remain on payroll, the grace period has not begun, which effectively extends your window to find a new sponsor.
If your employer provides 60 days of WARN Act pay in lieu of notice, you may still be on payroll during that period. The key question is whether you remain an employee on the company's records.
If the WARN pay is structured as continued employment, meaning you are still on payroll and benefits continue, the grace period likely starts when that pay ends. If it is structured as a lump-sum severance after your employment date ends, the grace period starts the day after your last day of employment.
The grace period still exists in regulation and most H-1B workers use it without incident, but the risk environment has shifted. Act early rather than waiting until the end of the 60 days.
In 2025, immigration attorneys began reporting cases of H-1B workers receiving Notices to Appear in immigration court during their 60-day grace period. In those cases, the employer had already notified USCIS that the worker's H-1B sponsorship was revoked, and DHS treated the worker as removable even before the 60 days had elapsed.
Filing a new petition or a change of status early in the grace period reduces your exposure. Do not plan around the last week.
This is a fast-moving area of immigration policy. Consult an immigration attorney for advice specific to your situation.
The regulation that created the 60-day grace period, 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2), also gives DHS discretion to shorten or eliminate it.
As of early 2026, the USCIS guidance page on options for terminated nonimmigrant workers is listed as "out of date," and there is no official policy memo confirming whether the grace period will continue to be honored as it has been in the past.
An approved I-140 filed by a current or previous employer gives you three options a straight H-1B holder does not have: portability, a compelling circumstances EAD, and H-1B extensions past the six-year limit.
For portability, the new employer does not need to file a new I-140, though they may choose to.
The compelling circumstances EAD comes from 8 CFR 204.5(p). It is available to the beneficiary of an approved I-140 whose priority date is not yet current, it is granted in one-year increments, and it allows you to work for any employer while you wait for your priority date.
Work through this list in order of urgency.
This is general information about the H-1B grace period and related immigration options. It is not legal advice.
Immigration law is complex and changes frequently. The enforcement environment around the 60-day grace period has shifted in 2025 and 2026, and individual circumstances vary. Consult a qualified immigration attorney for advice specific to your situation.
New WARN filings delivered to your inbox on weekdays.