HAPPY NEW YEAR PEOPLE!

HAPPY NEW YEAR PEOPLE!

Below is something , if you are not doing anything this New Years Eve, so please give it a serious thought! If you do! then you would be partying at this time.

As we all know that it is going to be the end of another year. With this brings a new one to live our dreams and aspirations. Its time to make some new goals and look forward to the challenges of struggling economy and its effects. So my friends, I wish you Good Luck and STOP what you are doing and go to that party or if you don’t have an invitation, just indulge in your own or have a fun family time. Sit back, make some good food ( if you cook), or get some drinks out ( if you drink) and call that special friend and just have a good time WHAT EVER WORKS. If you are stuck alone, then just sit and recap all the good and bad times and off-course don’t feel sad, if you do call me .
Party PPL!!! ., this day comes only once a year!

* DO NOT SIT and THINK Later ” I did not do anything for this new year”.
Have a Blast.
PARTY NOW!
Happy New Year.
* Issued in Public and Private interests.

How I got out of Bally Total Fitness Contract

After a 8 month long Battle with Customer care and Membership department. I finally got out of the Contract.

The problem: Click here to see why I had a problem and how bally total fitness had made my life miserable.

Month 1: January

It was January of 2008. My fiancee, who was going to Bally Total Fitness with me as a add on member had to leave to India after finishing her studies in March.

I requested for cancellation of the membership for her. A 50 Dollar Check was required and evidence ( her one-way ticket to India) to show that she would not be near a Bally Total Fitness Centre ( One of the ridiculous conditions in the Bally Total Fitness Contract.)
After sending , a request for cancellation via Fax and then sending the same with a check by mail. ( Please note, there is no Telephone number to Bally Fitness Cancellation Department – Ridiculous!) Anyways, I did not receive any conformation about the cancellation for over 2 months and I was being charged the total amount of 65 dollars a month. The check of 50 dollars was en cashed the week I had sent the mail. This gave me a bad message, as there was no way I could contact the cancellation department, I called the customer care. All they said was ” We will get with the cancellation department and check why it was not canceled.” )

Month 4:April

I completed my studies and was planning to leave to India for good 3 plus months. As I was still paying, unsuccessful in canceling my Fiancees membership thought, canceling my would finally cancel my contract. So I called the customer care to find out what I needed to send them.

List of Documents:

1. Leasing Document of the new Home address/ new postal forwarding slip/ new drivers license with new address.

Or

2. A one way ticket ( as I was traveling out of the country)

Month 6: June

There I was, happy and finally thought that it will be all over. Drafted a letter, attached my one-way ticket and sent it to the Cancellation Department with a request to cancel the membership and contract and that I was traveling in July for good.

I waited for some confirmation of my cancellation but instead I received a Letter from the cancellation department that they needed my fiancee’s one-way ticket. I was furious as I had sent it long time back. It also asked for a 50 dollar in check to cancel. This was really not making sense because, I had done this in January.

Thank God!, I had all the copies of all the documents I had sent them, so I made copies of all that sent it across and also attached my one-way ticket, my parents address ( note,I did not have a leasing document because I would be living at my parents home.) and the Copy of the Check and the bank transaction. I called the member services and found that they had received all that in Jan, and then in June and also I told them, that I was sending everything again as I received that letter. The member service assured me that it will all be taken care. I left the country and was in India for 3 months.

Month 8: Sept

I got my work Visa and decided to come back. Came back and everything was good. Started all my services, like Phone, Electricity etc, then I remembered Bally Total Fitness. Contacted them just to check if everything alright. First I got a message on my account that I owe them over 300 Dollars. Then my address was updated and when I spoke to the agent, told me that I owe them over 300 dollars and I a credit of about 2300 in debt, which I had to pay off or else my credit score would be affected.

The days that followed were nothing but a painful and stressful calling the member support, sending faxes to cancellation, etc. After sending over 10 Letters, 3 Faxes,18 calls to Bally Total Fitness in 2 months, I was finally able to get out of the contract. I read somewhere that ” Just by never giving up and sticking to your point, one can achieve a difficult goal” and this is what I did.

The Solution that worked for me:

1. Writing letters once every week. Started as a Request to Cancel Letter, slowly transferred to a letter of ordering the cancellation that extreme steps would be taken such as legal action. Made sure I sent a copy of the previous letter every time I sent a new one.

2.  Calling customer care and making them contact the cancellation and speaking to supervisors. Every time I called, I recorded every word I spoke and documented it.

3. Sent Faxes and letters of how their mistake is affecting and giving them time.

Finally,

They heard my message, I was not ready to give up. They knew that had no choice but do the right thing. In December first week, they finally canceled my contract, canceled my membership and refunded me some  12 dollars, some account, what ever it is,I can say that the persistent calling, mailing and faxing helped!

Good Luck to you. Hope you win your case.

-Cheers.
Durgesh

Review of Bally Total Fitness.

Hey finally I got out of the contract. How? Find out here

Hello Folks,

Please do not join Bally Total Fitness if you dont think you can be with them for 3 Years. I am suffering sometimes sleep less nights and frustrating phone calls to customer care and sometimes I fight with my wife because I have a bad mood. Thanks to BALLY TOTAL FITNESS.

What Sucks?
Its Cancellation Department.

Why?
Because they really do not exist.

Why do I feel this way?
In Nov, 2007, I and my wife ( then my fiancée) joined Bally Total Fitness and after going through the Contract and speaking to the Dude Trainer at the Webster Center, Houston Tx and reconfirming with him that we can break the contract in the condition that,

1. We will be going to India, may be for good or come back after more than 3-4 months, depending upon our Visa. We were then on Student Visa and I was going back in July.

2. If I relocate to an address in which there is NO Bally Total Fitness, then I get to break the contract. Allright.

What actually happens?
The cancellation department tells me ( Snail Mails me) that insufficient information. ( I had sent a one way Ticket to India and my Indian Drivers Licence)

What did I do?
I sent a letter, with everything, they needed,

• Indian Address Proof,
• My Graduation Degree,
• Information about my Flight which I am taking to India for good.

I called Bally Total Fitness, before I boarded the flight to ask ” Is every formality taken care?” Their reply was ” YES, we will process your cancellation”

What did I do?
Kept all my documents, Faxes that I had sent and left for INDIA in the second week of July 2008.

Now what Happened?
I got a Work VISA and my wife and I got back to US again!. but to my dismay, I found BALLY TOTAL FITNESS Reporting bad Credit and then after several calls found out that my Contract was not COMPLETELY canceled.

What a word is that? NOT COMPLETELY Canceled?
Its been over a month and I am still fighting and will continue to. Fraud is intolerable and I know I am not wrong. Then why should I give up.

I believe that I will get justice because my Wife believes in it and most importantly she believes in me and I believe that truth is always difficult to handle but glory will be of him, who speaks the truth.

This is a lesson for us and a warning to everyone before getting into any organization as a member. Please GOOGLE the name of the Organization before joining them, you will find Reviews, complaints etc,

Bally Total Fitness is a Fraud company with non reachable cancellation department and now has filed for bankruptcy and has traumatized me for several months now and keep harassing m by reporting bad credit to my credit bureau.  Why should I be at loss for no mistake of mine.

Here is the website for your verification..

https://www.ballyfitness.com

Note TO BALLY TOTAL FITNESS:

If you feel that I am propagating a wrong information or you want to sue me, then call me on my number ( I know you guys have it) so that ” At least I will be able to get to speak to You and ask for my Money and feel good that at least I was able to speak with someone”

Cheers

The Author

My First Snow

The first Snow in Houston in many many years. The temperature was below Zero and Houstonians Saw Snow! Its a special Christmas this year. For my wife and me, it was a wonderful feeling. It was my first snow everr! I enjoyed it to the core. A real 2 inch of ice formed at the end of the whole snowing process.
Pictures: Having fun with snow and making the best of the time.

Check Your Status of APPLICATION [H1B or OPT]

Its simple

Go to https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/jsps/index.jsp or Click Here

Have your application number [Alpha numeric number] ready.

You will be able to do the following:

1. Finding the Status of Your Case
   
2. Case Status Portfolio with Updates via Email

You can add any number of application numbers. For Eg: I have added my H1b Application and the OPT extension application number and configured it to my email.

Good Luck!

-D

OPT Extension Options

So last year you filed for your H1 and it came back saying, “You’ve been approved”, but hey wait… in not so small writing is “We have denied your H1 because you never had your graduation certificate”. Well just dandy I say… Why do you even bother to tell me I was approved in the first place.

A year goes by with you as God (as all of us on OPT feel), and then it dawns on you that your OPT is expiring and you fall to a status a little less Godly. H1 time is around again and God forbid we (in Masters quota) fall prey to the lottery system. But it happened.

Our situation now is worse than being stuck between a rock and a hard place. In order to stick around we have to be picked in the lottery. Of course there are other ways to stick around (remember, the hardest part is making it to the US. After which you are in a state of perpetual bedlam bliss), but you are trying to get the smoothest, cheapest way out.

What ensues is short of a roller coaster ride (not circles, but highs and lows).

H1 applied for – Nail biting tension

H1 goes into lottery – Hair pulling tension

H1 selected – Rejoice!! Nothing can stop us now

Cap Gap – Just when I thought we were through

USCIS Interim Rule release – Yaaay!!! Party again

OPT Extension requires H1 Approval (not receipt) – Gloom again

E-verify done- Finally!!! 17 month extension obtained.

So what’s the final verdict? There are currently 2 ways to extend your OPT.

Method 1

Get your company to E-verify and then give this information to the school along with an OPT application fee of ~370$. Your OPT is now magically extended to 17 months and will get terminated when the COS of your H1 is applied.

Method 2

Get your H1 approval (via premium processing) and submit those documents to your school (read Intl Advisor) and they should be able to get you an extension up until October.

Hope this helped. Good luck.

“May the EAD be with you!”

- Author of blog.rameshbhaskar.com

OPT EXTENSION PROCEDURE

Hey this is an update to H1b Application News for FY 2009

OPT Extension Confusion – !!!

USCIS announced on Friday ( when everybody was planning to take some time off and relax) the new OPT Rule which sounds very good and too good to be true. Yes, everybody who is on OPT and is going to face a GAP from the time OPT expires to the time when the H1 comes into effect will have an extension ‘Automatically’ applied to their OPT which means, he/she be living in status and be working peacefully till October 1st. ( This is for all F-1 Students, any major and remember-its automatic)

The rule (Click here for more info on OPT Extension Policy) also states that OPT, which was 12 months has been extended to 29 months ( 12 , default for all STEM Deg Students + 17 , Extension ) which means 17 months of extension is provided to all the F-1 Students with a STEM degree ( Click Here for more Info on STEM).

Now the question, how to avail this? Who can avail it? When can one apply for extension? USCIS has answers to these question and hopefully will release them ASAP. Another aspect to look at or look for is ” Who needs to apply for this extension? ” because the letter clearly states that all F-1 Students will get a extension of OPT till Oct 1 2008, which is what student is looking for. The 17 month Extension will be useful for students who were not able to apply for FY 2009, students who’s application did not make it through the selection process and others who were not granted H1s for any reason.

However, USCIS states that an extension can be filed 90 Days prior to the expiration of OPT.

- Once these answers are found and got from the correct sources, I will update this blog with utter clarity. Meanwhile please leave as many questions as possible.

Targetted Sources to answer these Questions:

1. USCIS Press Notes
2. International advisors from Universities
3. Immigration Lawyers.

-Db

H1B VISA THOUGHTS ON THE PROCESS

http://www.durgeshbhat.com

H1b Rush is because of people sending in applications all at once. The panic feeling has made it more like a race than a formality. Everybody looks at previous years records and often conclude that its getting messier. I think there is so much exaggeration and unnecessary hype and heat created by people in the government and among applicants and has now lead to such a situation.

I wouldn’t want to get the hopes high for people considering to apply but here is my theory. Every year, say a X number apply for H1 Visas, out which majority come under the 65 K quota and a small population comes under the exempt MS Degree Quote of 20 K and plus there are H1b holders who apply for extension etc.. Last year, this number was about 150 K application in just 2 days. Thanks to media and other factors which made it happen in two days rather than 30 plus days.The cap exempt Visa (20K) did not fill until April 30. I guess the MS applicants took it a little lighter. This year, everybody is speeding and I am pretty sure everybody has sent his/her application in and there will be no application floating after April 1st outside USCIS and hence I feel the USCIS will go nuts trying to go through them all at once instead of a months time.

So, it is very clear, (there might have been an increase in the number of applicants ), that its not so bad as we think. This effect is because of the cautious applicants who over whelm USCIS with their applications by sending it all at once. I am not saying that we should be cool and send them late but be cool and take it easy after you sent it. I am hoping it to be positive for me (not high in hopes but keeping my fingers crossed).
So Good Luck for those applications which go into the random selection.
-
www.durgeshbhat.com

H1B VISA RACE START APRIL 1 2008

Hello H1b Applicants.

Here are some update so far on the H1b 2008 for the Fiscal year 2009.

Rules Changedd!

1. No more multiple filings by a same employe.
2. [No Change] Cap Limit is 65,000 and first 20,000 applicants holding Masters are exempt from this cap.
3. The rule is, if USCIS receives 20,000, all the applications for MS degree quota or higher will be then considered with the 65,000. If the 65,000 Cap is reached for a fiscal year, USCIS will announce that the cap has been filled and reject further petitions subject to the cap.
4. US Lottery!

If H-1B petitions received meets the cap within the first 5 business days of accepting applications for the coming fiscal year, USCIS will apply a random selection process (LOTTERY) among all H-1B petitions received during this time period.

If the 20,000 advanced degree limit is reached during the first five business days, USCIS will randomly select from those petitions ahead of conducting the random selection for the 65,000 limit.

Petitions subject to the 20,000 limit that are not selected in that random selection will be considered with the other H-1B petitions in the random selection for the 65,000 limit.

The rule further clarifies that USCIS will deny petitions that incorrectly claim an exemption from any H-1B numerical limits.

For more info visit: http://www.uscis.gov/