hi folks,

I'm currently on OPT (expires on 01/11/08) and will be filing for H1B on April 1st.
My question :
Can I ask for a start date of 01/01/2008 instead of 01/10/2007?
If so, will that have any ramification on my H1B approval process?

The reason is that I don't want to file 2 Tax Returns next year and I don't want to pay for Social security and Medicare for 2007....

thanks.

yes you can

yes you can

Thanks Nirvana,

I think it's better to utilize my OPT fully....

Cheers!

Why don't you just go with October 2007 to start H1b. Stuffs like tax filing, etc are just your second priority. It is just my thought.

yes you can. use your OPT completely before using H1B. you dont need to pay for social security and medicare tax while you are in OPT. good luck.

tiger_daju ,your idea is very good forsaving some taxes money working in OPT.My understanding about specifying date is little different from other folks here.I think,you can specify the date not later than 6 months from your receipt date.(Please verify this input,I am not 100%sure coz they might have changed this criteria).If your receipt date of H1b petition is April 1,you can not specify the date later than October 1 .So,if you want to use your OPT fully, you have to apply for h1b around June.Since,there is chance of using all quotas before End of May(if you have undergrad degree only), you can not afford to wait).If you have Master degree from USA,u can afford to wait at least until May,i guess.

Best of Luck.

Thanks guys for your inputs.

Hi_nanu, the 6 months thingy is a new one for me. Will have to talk to the comapny lawyer about it.
BTW, I have a Masters but the company wants to file right away. One of the conditions for my new employment is that i get an approval asap (ie: premium processing).

cheers!