Reminder: H-1B Work Visa Quota Opens for New Filings on April 1; Last Call for New Filings

One of the most popular U.S. work visas, the H-1B, will start accepting filings for new H-1B employment on April 1.     Pursuant to each yearly H-1B quota, new H-1B filings can be filed on April 1, 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 (FY2014) starting on October 1, 2013.

As discussed above, the H-1B cap “opens” on April 1, 2013 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 FY2014 H-1B cap will be reached, it is helpful to provide some context.  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. For FY2012, the H-1B cap was open between April 1, 2011 and November 22, 2011 while last year, FY2013, the H-1B cap was open between April 2, 2012 and June 11, 2012, or for just over two months.

Given the improving economic outlook, it is our expectation that the H-1B cap will be reached very quickly after it opens on April 1st.   While it is impossible to predict how quickly the cap will be reached, the H-1B cap  may be open for as little as 5 days.

High H-1B Cap Demand Expected:   Last Call for Starting H-1B Cases

The expected heavy demand in this H-1B filing season means that all H-1B petitions should be submitted on or very shortly after April 1st.    It should be noted that it takes at least 10-14 days to prepare and file an H-1B petition (due to the LCA filing requirement, which takes up to 7 business days).   As a result, any new H-1B cases should be initiated over the next few days in order to have a decent chance of being accepted under the H-1B cap before it is reached.

Conclusion

We do not know yet how quickly would this year’s H-1B cap be reached.   But we do know that the demand this year is significant and we are preparing (and advising our clients accordingly) for a very short H-1B filing season and the possibility that the H-1B cap be reached in the first 5-10 days of April.

Assuming the H-1B cap remains open for longer,  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 as soon as possible.