FY2012 H-1B Numbers Update – 46,200 Regular Cap Visas Used; Master’s Cap Reached (October 21, 2011)

USCIS just released the information on the numbers of cap-subject FY2012 H-1Bs filed since April 1.   As of October 21, 2011, USCIS has received approximately46,200 H-1B petitions counting toward the 65,000 cap (an increase of 2,900 over the previous week).  Similarly, as of October 21, there were 20,000 H-1B visas filed subject to the U.S. Masters cap which has 20,000 limit.

H-1B Quota Trends – Rate of Regular Cap H-1B Filings Increases; H-1B Masters Cap Reached;  Regular H-1B Cap Likely to Remain Open for 2 More Months

The numbers, as just reported for the past week, confirm that the rate of filing of new cap-subject H-1B filings is increasing slightly.  Now that the H-1B U.S. Master’s cap has been reached, all H-1B filings (regardless of level of education) will be counted under the regular H-1B cap.   As a result, we expect the average weekly rate of filings to be around 3,000-3,500, compared to 1,000-1,500 previously.   Given an estimated rate of H-1B filings of 3,500 for the next few weeks, it is likely that the H-1B cap for FY2012 will be reached towards the end of the year — likely in late December 2011 or early January 2012.

We invite you to subscribe to our free weekly immigration newsletter to receive timely updates on this and related topics.  In the meantime, if you are considering filing a cap-subject H-1B petition as part of the FY2012 quota, please contact us.