Reminder: H-1B Work Visa Quota Opens for New Filings on April 2

One of the most popular U.S. work visas, the H-1B, will start accepting filings for new H-1B employment on April 2.     Pursuant to each yearly H-1B quota, new H-1B filings can be filed on April 1 (April 2nd this year because April 1st is a Sunday), at the earliest, for a starting date of employment on or after October 1.

The H-1B Quota and Expectations for This Year

When the H-1B visa category was created in 1990, Congress imposed an annual cap on the number of new H-1B visas which can be issued.  Although the cap has varied through the years, it is set to 65,000 per year plus 20,000 for graduates of U.S. masters programs for the new fiscal year (FY2013) starting on October 1, 2012.

As discussed above, the H-1B cap “opens” on April 2, 2012 and will remain open for new H-1B filings until the 65,000 H-1B limit is reached.  While it is impossible to predict exactly when the FY2013 H-1B cap will be reached, it is helpful to provide some context.  For FY2009, filing made on or after April 1, 2008, caused the H-1B cap to be reached in eight (8) days.   For the FY2010, the H-1B cap was open between April 1, 2009 and December 22, 2009.  For FY2011, the H-1B cap was open between April 1, 2010 and January 25, 2011 and last year, FY2012, the H-1B cap was open between April 1, 2011 and November 2, 2011.

Conclusion

We do not know yet how quickly would this year’s H-1B cap be reached.   On one hand, the US economy and hiring is improving; on the other hand, it is not improving that fast.    While we see higher H-1B work visa demand this year, compared to last, we do not anticipate that the H-1B cap will  be reached in the first few weeks of this year’s filing season.

Throughout the H-1B season, we will be providing bi-weekly updates (as soon as USCIS released the H-1B numbers, which they normally do every two weeks) on the H-1B cap.  We will also be providing updates on the number of H-1B cap filings and will be revising (hopefully by making them more accurate) our estimates of how long the H-1B cap would last.  To ensure you receive these updates, please sign up to our free weekly newsletter.  If you wish to start a new H-1B work visa petition under this year’s quota, or if our office can be of any help, please contact us.

By | Last Updated: March 29th, 2012| Categories: Articles, Employees, Employers, H-1B, News, USCIS|

About the Author: Dimo Michailov

Dimo Michailov
Dimo has over 15 years of experience in US immigration including employment-based immigration benefits, corporate compliance and family based immigration. He represents corporate and individual clients in a wide range of cross-border immigration matters including mobility of key foreign executives and managers, specialized knowledge workers, and foreign nationals with extraordinary ability.

The Capitol Immigration Law Group has been serving the business community for over 15 years and is one of the most widely respected immigration law firms focused solely on U.S. employment-based immigration.   Disclaimer:  we make all efforts to provide timely and accurate information; however, the information in this article may become outdated or may not be applicable to a specific set of facts.  It is not to be construed as legal advice.