Can You Onboard Without H-1B Receipt?

A job offer has been made, onboarding is being initiated, and the employer has asked to complete Form I-9 and schedule a Fieldprint appointment. But wait—the H-1B transfer has not been filed yet.

The candidate already possesses an unused passport and an I-797A from the previous employer, to which it will expire in September 2027. These are signs that they are already present in the U.S. legally, but not guarantees of authorization to work for the new employer.

That’s the primary problem. For the person to work for a new H-1B employer, the transfer petition must first be filed. After that has occurred, the person is free to start working based on the receipt notice from USCIS—this is H-1B portability.

Without that filing, the employer to be does not have the authority under the law to verify work authorization on the I-9. Asking someone to submit to I-9 verification before the filing of the transfer can be risky and premature.

This has been raised with HR, which is proper. Until the transfer is effected, there’s no work authorization with the new employer, and completing the I-9 using old employer documents could lead to compliance problems.