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I am currently working in the US. My H1B has been approved but it has not been stamped yet. (I do have the approval papers. I will be getting it stamped by the end of November when I visit India.)

My student visa is expiring in January.

In this situation, I am planning to visit Norway in December and need a Schengen visa for the same. I will be travelling from and to the US.

Is it possible for me to get a Schengen visa approved with the student visa that's expiring in January?

If it will be a problem, will my H1B approval papers/letter of employment/pay stubs/return tickets help me get it approved?

Edit: A couple of weeks before the Norway trip, I will get the H1B stamped in India. But I'm not sure if I'll have enough time to get a Schengen visa approved during those two weeks. That is why I'm exploring the possibility of getting Schengen with my current student status itself.

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  • You probably would get the visa but would need to show that you are going to your country after visiting Norway. They would not give you a visa without showing the flights home to get the U.S. visa stamped.
    – edocetirwi
    Commented Aug 29, 2016 at 21:16
  • Is your current work in the US legal under your current immigration status?
    – Peter Green
    Commented Aug 29, 2016 at 21:28
  • @PeterGreen If it's a graduate degree, highly likely.
    – Andrew Lazarus
    Commented Aug 29, 2016 at 23:21
  • Did you file I-539 to change your nonimmigrant status? Was the change approved? If so, you are already in H-1B status and you will need an H-1B visa to return to the US in December. You will need to get that visa while you are in Norway. You will not be able to use your student visa to reenter the US.
    – phoog
    Commented Aug 30, 2016 at 3:25
  • @PeterGreen it seems likely that the status has already been changed to H-1B.
    – phoog
    Commented Aug 30, 2016 at 3:26

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The Schengen visa itself is not directly dependant on your status in the United States. They want to see two things:

  1. To apply in the US, you must be legally residing in the US. It shouldn't be a problem if your immigration status changes between the application and the trip, as long as you can show that the change is already approved.

  2. You need to show ties to your place of residence to support your assertion that you plan to leave the Schengen area. Again, it shouldn't matter that your immigration status is changing. In fact it might even help since it shows your commitment to remaining in the US. The most important thing here is to have a consistent, coherent story.

Your application should therefore include all of your immigration-related documents, pertaining both to the student visa and the H-1B status. The student status is relevant because it justifies your applying in the US; the H-1B status is relevant because it will be your status at the time of the trip.

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    I spoke people at Travisa who said that it will be necessary to have the H1B stamped during the time the Schengen application. I also contacted the consulate who also told the same thing. But the guy I spoke to, at VFS, said if I attach the H1B documents like you said, I MIGHT get it, but no guarantees.
    – Naren
    Commented Aug 31, 2016 at 16:29

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