H-1B Address Change Travel Rules: What HR Needs to Know During Cap Season

Practical guidance for HR teams overseeing H-1B cap petitions, including what to flag early and how to avoid common disruptions.

What HR Managers Need to Know About H-1B Address Change Travel Rules

It’s an exciting time when your foreign national employees are picked in the H-1B lottery—but the weeks that follow are full of nuance, paperwork, and pitfalls. As HR leaders, your ability to anticipate small disruptions can make or break the success of the case.

In this article, we’re flagging two of the biggest issues that come up during H-1B cap case processing: address changes and international travel. Both can seem harmless, but they can derail timelines or even risk denials if not managed carefully.

Why Address Changes Can Delay or Disrupt Your H-1B Cap Filing

The Impact on Wage Determination and LCA

When an employee changes their address—especially to a new city, state, or metro area—it affects the prevailing wage and the Labor Condition Application (LCA).

• Wage level recalculations: The Department of Labor uses regional wage data to determine appropriate pay for H-1B roles. A new address might shift the wage level.

• LCA posting requirements: Employers must post the LCA at the new worksite and get certified again.

• Restarting steps: In some cases, the attorney may need to redo wage determination or even restart the LCA process.

📌 Translation for HR: If your employee is moving—even temporarily—tell your immigration provider right away. Waiting can push your petition timeline into risky territory.

Why Travel Outside the U.S. Can Jeopardize the Case

H-1B cap cases are not the time to be booking international trips. Here’s why:

Before the H-1B Petition is Filed

• If the employee leaves the country before the petition is filed, they might lose eligibility for a Change of Status(COS) within the U.S.

• This could require consular processing, adding delays and uncertainty.

While Waiting on the Decision

• If the petition is filed and the employee travels before a decision is made, USCIS may consider them to have abandoned the COS request.

• Even with Premium Processing, leaving the country can nullify the change-of-status portion of the approval.

After Approval, But Before October 1 Start Date

Even if the case is approved, employees cannot start working on H-1B status until October 1. If they leave and re-enter before then:

• They may face visa stamping issues abroad.

• They might trigger an entry on the wrong status (like F-1 instead of H-1B), making onboarding complicated or invalid.

📌 HR takeaway: Ask employees to avoid all non-emergency travel during the H-1B cap process, from filing through to the October 1 start.

How HR Can Stay Ahead

• Ask early: Include address and travel questions in your H-1B kickoff checklists.

• Build templates: Create email templates that explain why these restrictions matter, so employees take them seriously.

• Coordinate closely with your immigration provider to flag any logistical changes as soon as they happen.

• Inform employees that they should not change address or make any non-emergency travel plans outside the U.S. once they are picked in the lottery.

Understanding and communicating H-1B address change travel rules can be the difference between a smooth approval and a preventable delay. Make it a part of your internal HR checklist.

Final Thoughts

The H-1B cap process isn’t just about forms—it’s about timing, coordination, and minimizing avoidable risks. As HR, your proactive communication can prevent weeks of delay or even denial.

Need help building a compliant H-1B strategy your employees can trust? That’s what we’re here for.