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H1B Visa 2015 – Frequently Asked Questions – Updates

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Updated : Dec 9, 2014 (H1B 2016 FAQs )

H1B Visa 2015 season is over. Check below for H1B Visa 2016 Season.

Applying for H1B Visa 2016 ? Did you miss FY 2015 lottery ?

Check out -> H1B Visa 2016 – Start Info, Sponsos, Fees, News , FAQs 

Flash News Update  : 

  • May 5th : USCIS announced today that data entry of all FY15 H-1B cap petitions has been completed. USCIS will now begin returning all H-1B cap petitions that were not selected in the lottery. They have announced it on their twitter and facebook pages.
  • April 18th : USCIS announced that they will begin H1B FY 2015 premium processing from April 28th, 2014. Previously they announced that they will begin, ‘no later than April 28th’. They just clarified that. You can read on USCIS website  
  • April 11th : USCIS announced that it received about 172,500 petitions for the H1B Visa 2015 Quota. Read USCIS : 172,500 Received – H1B Lottery Summary 
  • April 7th :  USCIS H1B Visa 2015 Cap Reached on April 7th. 

H1B Visa 2015 – Latest News Updates , Articles 

Looking for H1B Cap Daily Updates ?  Check  H1B Visa 2015 Cap count Updates Page 

Frequently Asked Questions about H1B Visa FY 2015 

When will H1B Visa 2015 Season Begin ?

USCIS accepted H1B Visa 2015 applications from April 1st, 2014. They had the window open for 5 working days. USCIS stopped accepting H1B Petitions for FY 2015 from Monday April 7th as more applications were received than the required cap of 85,000 petitions.

What would be the Cap count for H1B Visa 2015 quota ?

No changes to the H1B Cap for FY15, the immigration reform discussions did not go through, the cap limit remained same as last year.

  • Regular H1B Quota : 65,000
  • Masters H1B Quota : 20,000
  • It is to be noted that 6,800 visas every year are set aside for Singapore and Chile Free trade agreement filings, which is called as H1B1 program.

Would there be lottery for H1B Visa 2015 ?

We had H1B visa Lottery for fiscal year 2014. USCIS received about 172,500 petitions for FY 2015 . Our predictions were right, you can read the article H1B Visa 2015 Lottery Prediction analysis 

How soon should I start planning for H1B Visa 2015 ?

[ Updated : H1B Sesaon is over for FY 15, plan for next year FY 2016 ] Well, there is nothing like too early… Getting a good H1B Sponsor can be a challenge these days. You need to find a job that fits your profile and find a sponsor that has a job for you.  Some employers want to test out the capabilities of the candidate before they plan to sponsor H1B Visa. Typically, they would like students with masters from US work for them on internship or co-op.  If they like the candidate then they will sponsor H1B visa.  If you are planning to land in US from overseas countries like India, it could be even challenging to find a good sponsor. Maybe you would need to work with global IT services companies and make your way up. It can involve lot of internal process to get the process initiated… You are never early…. Read Step by Step Plan to Apply for H1B 2015 

How do I find Sponsors for H1B visa 2015 ?

This is probably the most asked question.  It can be a challenge to find a good sponsor. We have written quite a few articles on this topic. The fundamental concept of finding a good employer does not change.  You can use our H1B Visa Sponsors Database  and search for sponsors in a city or zip code. Check out the above links under 2015 latest news and updates for the current year’s article to find sponsors. You can also, read our last year’s article :  How to find H1B Visa sponsors, avoid fraud 

What would be the H1B Filing fee for Fiscal year 2015 ? 

There has not been any changes in the filing fee for the past couple of years. It did not change for fiscal year 2014.  The  H1B Visa 2015 filing fee can range anywhere from  $1,575 to $4,325  based on the size of the company (number of employees ). Also, the attorney fee can range from $700 to $3000. If you go for premium processing again that is $1225.  You can check out the detail break up of fee at : H1B Visa Filing Fee Details – Who Pays for What ?  

H1B Visa Immigration Reform – CIR – Proposed Changes ? The comprehensive immigration reform has not passed yet.  But, lets say, if it gets passed, the below changes may happen.

  • Annual H1B Cap will be increased from 65,000 per year to 110,000. If exteme demand, it can go up to a maximum of 180,000.
  • The H1B quota for STEM degree holders from American Schools will increase from 20,000 to 25,000
  • H1B Visa fees can up to USD $10,000.
  • More stringent rules on H1B visa adjudication.
  • Mandatory LCA posting on DOL website for at least 30 days, before it is certified.

You can read Summary of CIR – Immigration reform – H1B Visa and Green Card  . We will keep you posted with updates on CIR and H1B visa changes for this year, if any. Did I miss anything ?  Do you have any other questions ?

Note :  Some of the below comments about H1B Sponsors are negative.  Please be aware that these are comments added by individuals of companies, competitors and many others that may hate such companies. We do NOT vouch for any of the comments made as they are not made by us.

Under federal law (Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act), our Blog RedBus2US.com is NOT legally liable or responsible for information posted by public, general users or third parties that contains remarks that are defamatory for a company or individual.

Photo of author
Satheesh Kumar Ilu, commonly known as Kumar, is the founder of RedBus2US.com. He is an Immigration and Study Abroad expert. He holds an MS from the University of Houston–Clear Lake and an MBA from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. He studied, lived, and worked in the U.S. and Singapore for nearly two decades, and has traveled to over 25 countries.

   

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23,888 Comments

  1. ‘Before running a random selection process, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today. Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date on which it will conduct the random selection process.’

    Please google: USCIS Reaches FY 2015 H-1B Cap

    Petitions are high enough and lottery date is not announced because of that.

    Reply

  4. Ronkonkoma immigration lawyer Mitchell Zwaik, whose firm helped clients apply for 14 H-1B visas in the latest round, estimated that the U.S. received 200,000 to 250,000 applications since April 1 before choosing 85,000 in a random computer lottery.

    http://www.newsday.com/business/85-000-skilled-worker-visas-snatched-by-us-companies-including-li-firms-1.7637176

    Reply

    • “Mitchell Zwaik, whose firm helped clients apply for 14 H-1B visas in the latest round…” So his firm submitted 14 applications but is somehow able to say that 200,000 to 250,000 applications are received.

      I asked my attorney as well, BAL Global – one of the top global corporate immigration law firms – the same question. BAL Global has submitted thousands of H-1B applications this year, but they would not comment nor speculate the total application number.

      Everything is speculation at this time.

      Reply

  5. We need to build “HQ Innovation Center”/”HQ Development Center”/”HQ Quality Assurance Center” here, and lure the clients from through out the world – for our offerings.

    I am so fed up with this craziness of H1B!!! (going through this for 2nd time)
    why Lottery?
    why not – logic?? why not high tech interviews at US Consulates (one employer and one USCIS interviewer)??

    I feel so desperate for a better work culture, better recognition, better life!!!

    why am I not proud of my post independence country? where is the zeal in us which was once present in our freedom fighters? May be, we have not reached that level of desperation which our freedom fighters had, for better world where we live.

    I wish all of us here, who are feeling cranky from inside for the result to be out.. to do really well in our careers and one day will build great things to make each other, and our countries proud…

    TC

    Goodbye until I get my result.. which I will share either ways (like before ;))

    Reply

  6. We all know that by just asking in this forum the same question again and again, USCIS is not going to expedite the process. No one else would know until it is announced by USCIS on http://www.uscis.gov/. Whatever should happen will happen. You have done your part. Just chill till then!

    Reply

  7. Does not seems like there will be any further Press release dictating Count of Applications Recieved. As last year also, there was a similar release but they disclosed the Applicaiton received. Due to huge number they did not released any number this time.

    The final news now would be either you are through by God’s grace or not!!!

    Reply

    • They announced twice last year that the cap was met. Initial announcement from yesterday had the same content as the initial announcement on 5th april 2013. The second announcement was released on 8th april 2013 notifying that the number of applications and conclusion of the lottery process.

      They will likely release another announcement today afternoon or tomorrow on more details about this year’s cap.

      Reply

      • You mentioned that they made two announcements last year (Apr 5 and Apr 8). I checked their archive. I only saw one article dated Apr 8, 2013. I did not see made on Apr 5, 2013. Can you double-check ?

        It appears that they make a second announcement this year (unlike last year) before or after the lottery about the total number of applications received.

        Reply

        • You mentioned that they made two announcements last year (Apr 5 and Apr 8). I checked their archive. I only saw one article dated Apr 8, 2013. I did not see any article dated Apr 5, 2013. Can you double-check ?

          It appears that they can make a second announcement about the total number of applications received this year (unlike last year) before or after the lottery.

          Reply

          • @usgrad

            They did make two announcements:

            http://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap

            http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap

          • I’ve also seen that there was 2 news according to the cap. On the filtering form leave filtering to all types of news and narrow only by month to april and year to 2013

          • check the “news release” and “alerts” section!

            First announcement released in “alerts” section and second in the “news release” section.

          • Guys – regardless of whether they issued one or two press releases last year, there is no rule saying USCIS has to follow the same pattern this year…

            USCIS will announce when they finish the lottery. It could be today, tomorrow, or at the end of this week on April 11th. Again, USCIS can make decisions on their own timeline, at their own discretion, whether or not it follows their historical pattern.

          • Shiv you’re right – it was in alerts: http://www.uscis.gov/news/alerts/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap

          • FYI, this is the news alert by USCIS from April 5, 2013. All in all, very very similar in content as this year’s press release. We can also expect that the lottery be completed in the next day or two (if USCIS follows last year’s pattern):

            April 5, 2013: USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap

            “U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2014. USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption. After today, USCIS will not accept H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2014 cap or the advanced degree exemption.

            USCIS will use a computer-generated random selection process (commonly known as the “lottery”) for all FY 2014 cap-subject petitions received through April 5, 2013. The agency will conduct the selection process for advanced degree exemption petitions first. All advanced degree petitions not selected will be part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit. Due to the high number of petitions received, USCIS is not yet able to announce the exact day of the random selection process. Also, USCIS is currently not providing the total number of petitions received, as we continue to accept filings today. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap.

            USCIS will provide more detailed information about the H-1B cap next week.”

  8. This is what I got from chinadaily website

    Fang Peng, a New York-based lawyer whose office handles visa applications, said that politicians saying they are working on immigration-reform legislation is simply a strategy to attract more votes.
    Fang said the competition for an H-1B working visa is getting fierce this year and the chance to receive one is getting smaller.
    “We received almost double H-1B cases in 2013 compared with the previous two years. But this year we received 35 to 40 percent more compared with last year.”
    Fang also noted that in the past most Chinese students who sought the H-1B visa were computer and electrical engineering majors, but that this year many students majored in business, video production and architecture.

    Looks like no hope this year :(.. Need to pray

    Reply

    • They are conducting the lottery or might they already done. They not gonna announce this. As they did last year. They will just give update that gradually by gradually they will let people know who picked up in lottery. So be very patience as I went through this process last year was not so lucky to select in lottery. You know what, They sent me update on mid of July yes mid of July.

      Reply

  13. Balu and Veldita have been banned and their recent comments have been deleted.

    This is not a forum for fake news or your theatrics or your conspiracy theories. If you want to post something, provide appropriate links or simply stay away from the keyboard.

    Reply

  14. IMHO, the procedure could be as follows:
    1. Assign a number for each application with some prefix for each type (Say G and AD)
    2. Select 20,000 random numbers from the total number of US Masters Cap applications (prefixed AD) through a lottery.
    3. Begin review by looking at each and every selected application number in the AD selected pool for review. They may look for employer-employee relation, appropriate university status, wage and other pertinent information in every selected application number. If it passes the review, they may encash the check and mail the approval letter. If it fails the review, they reject it and keep it in a different room to be mailed to the sender later. In this way, they may select and send 17,500 (just an example) approvals. Now, they may be randomly pull another 2500 to fill the remaining slot and continue the review process. The process will complete when they finally select 20,000 AD approvals.
    4. Put the unselected Masters application numbers in the general pool and select 65,000 application numbers.
    5. They may follow the same procedure to select 65,000 approvals from the general category.
    6. Mail all un-selected application numbers to the sender.
    7. Mail all rejected ones to the sender in batches.
    8. The question is how stringent can they verify the information with the resources and time they have.

    Reply

    • Seriously…???? LOL.. In another 20 to 80 hours you are going to laugh at why you made such a big post that with huge wrong guess.. Because the “review” that you mentioned or the “go through” part that Veldita mentioned are NOT gonna happen for every application… Gonna happen only for the selected 85K application NO matter if they are from consultants or from highly reputed companies with well deserved candidates..

      Reply

      • Tell me how they will proceed once they select 85000. Do they just send approval letter without seeing anything inside the application package ?

        Reply

    • Hi usgrad,
      Thanks for this but As you said they review employer-employee relation wages etc so if my wages is going to be 90k and other person have filled with 70K so doest it make difference in lottery ? what if 70K guy selected in lottery and 90k could not ? will they reverse it ?

      Thanks

      Reply

  15. All,

    I am a silent follower of this forum. While the other folks are very serious and waiting for some real news, this idiot Balu is poking his nose again and again with some crap news. Admin please shut him down. BTW I am GC and watching this thread for my brother. Balu, if you have any shame left, please get lost from this thread.

    Reply

    • Sant Gada-Dharee Bheem shant…. but pl dont kill your brother if he wont get selected in lottery. I can see your desperation…

      Reply

  16. As a goodwill gesture to India and to improve bilateral ties with India, USA has declared addition 15k H1 visa for India this year. Additional 15k visa will collected in lottery only for Indian citizens.

    Reply

      • Balu,

        You are such a crap. Why can’t you realize that people in here are waiting for their H1b which is a big step in their life. With so much of tense in their minds, they are here just to share their thoughts. And you are simply posting some NONSENSE.. You are totally NUTS dude..!!

        Reply

  17. Read this statement on USCIS site :
    Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date on which it will conduct the random selection process.

    This means its way too high than 124K that they received last year so 140K is reasonable figure for Open category…

    Reply

    • Balu,

      Everyone knows that the cap is reached and no one knows the exact number of applications received. Everyone has a little hope of being picked up in lottery. So can you please stop giggling around with the count. And to folks who say the count is so and so, you have no idea what the count would be until and unless there is an official statement from USCIS. There is no way you can get the count from any sources other than USCIS.

      Wishing everyone good luck

      Reply

  18. if they conduct lottery…..when they will get to know that their aplication is picked for Premium Process people …please let me know…thanks

    Reply

  19. Extremely nervous about the count guys. I hope it is not as high as people are speculating. Good luck to all those who applied under Masters quota. I hope everyone gets in 🙂

    Reply

  21. Those opted for Premium Processing , receipts will be sent with in couple of days from lottery .. and maximum in 15 days to all PP cases.

    Reply

    • I agree, those with PP who are selected for lottery will receive their Case Receipt # at the latest before April 28 – the date on which USCIS will officially start processing PP cases (as per USCIS March 25 announcement).

      Reply

      • when we will know that our application is picked or not after lottery has been conducted for premium process people please let me know….

        Reply

        • There is no particular date announced by USICS as to when the lottery is gonna take place. Once they are done with the lottery, they will send out a receipt number. If you applied in PP, your clock starts from then and you should have a decision in 15 days. This year USCIS did anticipate a large number of PP application, just to be on the better side they issued that the PP application will be processes no later than 28th of this month.

          Reply

          • H1bGuru,
            Actually they said that they will begin processing by April 28th. So the receipt notice date will be April 28th and 15 calendar day window starts from that day.

            This doesn’t mean they will not process any PP application b/w lottery day and April 28th, but just that employers/lawyers cannot ask for PP status until May 12th (15 days from April 28th).

          • Hi,

            My employer said, they can process premium only after my application got selected in lottery. Is this true?

            Thanks.

          • It is true, if you not get selected, then they are just going to send you back your application

    • They will start sending out the receipts on and after April 28th. The 15 day window starts from 28th which will be considered as the receipt date.

      However, USCIS has kept enough buffer for them to tackle the huge load of PP applications. Last year the processing start date was April 15 and there were PP applications that weren’t processed by April 30. So they are keeping more margin this time. I wouldn’t be surprised if they process some of the PP applications before April 28th because of this huge buffer.

      They kept the date of April 28th, so that employers and lawyers do not bother them with PP cases until May 12th.

      Reply

        • Hopeless,
          I **think** the lottery should be conducted sometime this week.

          Their release says that PP applications will be processed from April 28th. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if they process some of the PP applications even before that. They have mentioned 28th so that they have enough time to process all PP applications and don’t run into PP SLA issues.

          Reply

  22. The filing did end by the time announcement came , There were sat/sun in between so they should have got ample time to sort applications and prepare for the lottery inspite of non-working days .. note laste year lottery was done on Sunday 7th April . So lottery will be mostly be done tonight hopes so …

    Reply

  23. Have a question on multiple H1 – B

    Can we apply for multiple H1 B? If yes, does USCIS approve only one of them and reject others?

    Thanks

    Reply

    • Yes. You can. From different employer. And USCIS take take them all and count them all. If you all of them are picked in lottery, you can chose one of them and all the rest of the cap is wasted. That’s how ICCs make their money… The real number of people get into the industrious is way lower than the cap number .

      Reply

  24. This is for Last year :
    For the first time since 2008, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reached the statutory H-1B cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2014 within the first week of the filing period. USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption.

    USCIS received approximately 124,000 H-1B petitions during the filing period, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption.

    http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap

    Reply

  25. USCIS says it received a sufficient number of petitions for the general cap and more than the limit for the master’s cap . So may be the count is just around 65000 ??

    Reply

        • This is for Last year :
          For the first time since 2008, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reached the statutory H-1B cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2014 within the first week of the filing period. USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption.

          USCIS received approximately 124,000 H-1B petitions during the filing period, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption.

          Reply

        • never mind, found it.

          Here you go:

          USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap
          Release Date: April 08, 2013

          WASHINGTON—For the first time since 2008, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has reached the statutory H-1B cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2014 within the first week of the filing period. USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption.

          USCIS received approximately 124,000 H-1B petitions during the filing period, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption. On April 7, 2013, USCIS used a computer-generated random selection process (commonly known as a “lottery”) to select a sufficient number of petitions needed to meet the caps of 65,000 for the general category and 20,000 under the advanced degree exemption limit. For cap-subject petitions not randomly selected, USCIS will reject and return the petition with filing fees, unless it is found to be a duplicate filing.

          The agency conducted the selection process for advanced degree exemption petitions first. All advanced degree petitions not selected were part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit.

          As announced on March 15, 2013, USCIS has temporarily adjusted its premium processing practice. To facilitate the prioritized data entry of cap-subject petitions requesting premium processing, USCIS will begin premium processing for H-1B cap cases on April 15, 2013. For more information on premium processing for FY 2014 cap-subject petitions, please see the related USCIS Alert.

          USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap will not be counted towards the congressionally-mandated FY 2014 H-1B cap. Accordingly, USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

          extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the U.S.;
          change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
          allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and
          allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position.

          U.S. businesses use the H-1B programto employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields including, but not limited to: scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.

          For more information on USCIS and its programs, please visit www.uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon

          Reply

    • We can definitely expect much more than the 65k allotment. Last year, on April 5th 2013, USCIS made a similar announcement that they had already received 125,000 applications at the end of the 5th business day.

      We can expect that number to be significantly higher this year, otherwise they would not have delayed this year’s lottery until a later date due to high application number.

      Reply

      • Last year the announcement was on 8th April , Monday , after the 5 day filing period ended on 5th April Friday . and the announcement was made after the lottery was conducted on 7th April .

        This year the announcement came in the middle of the 5th business day itself , stating a sufficient number of petitions received . so cannot make any conclusions as yet ..

        Reply

  26. “Before running a random selection process, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today.”

    “Ended today”??? I thought they will take all applications till today.. But they are saying that they already stopped taking applications?

    May be they intended to release that news after EOD today?

    Reply

    • Usually they receive all the application by 12 noon beit from FedEx,UPS or USPS. That’s why they have released the statement. 🙂

      Reply

      • Makes sense..

        Last year they released just one news on April 8th (6th business day) and that had the approximate count (124K) and also mentioned that lottery was completed on April 7 (Sunday… Really???)..

        Releasing a update date and then another update tomorrow or later is definitely different this time.. May be they got toooooo much apps.. Who knows..

        Reply

    • The wording in their website could have been clear. They could have used terms like “will close the filing period after 4/7/14”.

      Reply

      • It is quite clear actually if you read it carefully. “USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today.”

        – Notice the use of past-tense “ended today”. Meaning they have already stopped receiving new applications sometime earlier today.

        -At this point, the only information missing from the press release is the total number of applications. Lottery is for certain.

        Reply

        • The announcement came at about 12 noon (Eastern) or 9.00 AM (Pacific). Did UPS, FedEx, USPS and others have completed delivery (all of today’s mail to USCIS) by this time ?

          If yes, then it means they stopped taking new applications.

          Reply

  28. Hello Guys,

    Anyone wanna guess, how many H1B petitions for regular quota and advanced degree.

    Servant for your love,
    Sampu.

    Reply

  33. USCIS Reaches FY 2015 H-1B Cap
    Release Date: April 07, 2014
    WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2015. USCIS has also received more than the limit of 20,000 H-1B petitions filed under the U. S. advanced degree exemption.

    Before running a random selection process, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today. Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date on which it will conduct the random selection process.

    A computer-generated process will randomly select the number of petitions needed to meet the caps of 65,000 visas for the general category and 20,000 under the advanced degree exemption. USCIS will reject and return filing fees for all cap-subject petitions that are not selected, unless found to be a duplicate filing.

    The agency will conduct the selection process for the advanced degree exemption first. All advanced degree petitions not selected will become part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit.

    USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap will not be counted towards the congressionally mandated FY 2015 H-1B cap. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

    •Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;
    •Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
    •Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and
    •Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position.
    U.S. businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in occupations that require highly specialized knowledge in fields such as science, engineering and computer programming.

    Reply

      • Yes. Random selection for sure. And due to the high number of applications, it looks like they are delaying the lottery process as well…

        Reply

      • Yes it is … Please read the news on the USCIS website and also it has been posted on this page.

        They havent released the official number yet, but the news release says they have sufficient applications… So lets not speculate on the numbers , but there will definitely be lottery selection as per the release.

        Reply

    • I want to emphasize again that there is no official announcement as of now from USCIS. Any comment on the number of applications or the outcome of the lottery is all pure speculation.

      Like the 2014 H-1B season, USCIS will announce their official updates on application number and cap-reach date only AFTER the 5-day application window, and that is Tuesday April 8th or possibly later.

      Reply

      • Update as of April 7, 2015 (12:25 PM EST) – USCIS has officially announced that FY 2015 Cap has been reached.

        For full press release: http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2015-h-1b-cap

        Reply

      • Update as of April 7, 2015 (12:25 PM EST) – USCIS has officially announced that FY 2015 Cap has been reached.

        For full press release: USCIS official website – News section.

        Reply

        • Whoever isnt able to go through the website of USICS .. Heres the news

          USCIS Reaches FY 2015 H-1B Cap

          Release Date: April 07, 2014
          WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2015. USCIS has also received more than the limit of 20,000 H-1B petitions filed under the U. S. advanced degree exemption.

          Before running a random selection process, USCIS will complete initial intake for all filings received during the filing period which ended today. Due to the high number of petitions, USCIS is not yet able to announce the date on which it will conduct the random selection process.

          A computer-generated process will randomly select the number of petitions needed to meet the caps of 65,000 visas for the general category and 20,000 under the advanced degree exemption. USCIS will reject and return filing fees for all cap-subject petitions that are not selected, unless found to be a duplicate filing.

          The agency will conduct the selection process for the advanced degree exemption first. All advanced degree petitions not selected will become part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit.

          Reply

  36. Good luck to everyone under H-1B cap! USCIS will most likely release their official update sometime during the day on Tuesday, April 8.

    I know it’s just sit and wait while some computer determines the fate of our careers, but also realize that H-1B is not some magic ticket to success. There are lots of successful people in this world who go about building their lives and careers without H-1B. So, for those not selected in the lottery, it’s not end of the world 🙂 Your attitude and response to adversity are what really matters.

    Reply

    • Hi all,

      check the below but no numbers yet.

      http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2015-h-1b-cap

      WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2015. USCIS has also received more than the limit of 20,000 H-1B petitions filed under the U. S. advanced degree exemption.

      Regards
      GS

      Reply

        • Shankar,

          USCIS is starting premium processing not later than Apr 28th. That means, all PP applicants should know the lottery result before that. Isn’t it?

          Reply

          • this was my understanding too. which is why I didn’t apply for premium processing. but now what I’m told is that you will only be notified once your application starts being processed, which can take months. so apparently, you don’t find out about lottery results after the lottery, but whenever your file gets picked up. I’m not sure anymore which version is true, I’m kind of hoping that we all find out by Apr 28 if we got selected in the lottery.

          • They have declared 28th as the start date for PP to keep enough buffer for the huge number of PP applications. Some of the PP applications will be processed even before 28th.

            In general, they will start notifying selected PP applications around April 28th. After that, they will start notifying selected non-PP applications, which last year took 2-3 months. After that they will start sending out rejection letters to the petitions that didn’t make through the lottery.

  38. LCA details:
    Is it possible to view the form submitted by my attorney for LCA approval? I want to see the wage and other details submitted to DOL. For last year, I can see the details from a website.

    Reply

    • You can ask your employer to send you a coply. Infact it is better for you to get a copy as you may need it later. My employer sent me a copy before I even asked and I read somewhere that it is mandatory for them to send you a copy (Not sure if this is true though)

      Reply

  39. I see a lot new H1B applicants for last year got approvals as late as Oct 2013 to Feb 2014 (from the following link). Some of these did not get any RFEs even to assume the delay is due to response / verification of RFEs. What could be the reason for such delay?
    http://www.trackitt.com/usa-immigration-trackers/h1b/page/2

    Reply

  40. is there any advantage in lottery system for premium process, i heared from one consultancy that premium process applications will be having edge over regular process applications.

    Please clarify me

    Reply

    • No advantage !!! Only if you get selected in the lotter USCIS will either give their decision or a RFE within 15 business days

      Reply

  41. Has anyone had ever seen a case, where an employer filled a single petition and it didn’t get selected in lottery. Almost all rejection cases belongs to employers who had filled multiple petitions.

    Pls confirm if your had any such example.

    Reply

      • LCA is required for H1-B application. Without it, the application will be rejected. Please read the para “Preferred order of documents at time of submission:” in the following link

        http://www.uscis.gov/working-united-states/temporary-workers/h-1b-specialty-occupations-and-fashion-models/h-1b-fiscal-year-fy-2015-cap-season

        Reply

  44. Hi

    can anyone answer about this ?

    I am not working in USA , if company wants to provide employment with GREEN card ! should I have experience in USA ?

    I am bachelor degree holder have skilled experience

    this is from uscis

    Green Card through a Job Offer

    If you want to apply for a green card (permanent residence) based on the fact that you have a permanent employment opportunity in the United States, or if you are an employer that wants to sponsor someone for a green card based on permanent employment in the United States, you must go through the following processes.

    Reply

    • GC through employment means you should be working in the US as a full time employee for a US company. It is the employer (The company) that will be applying for your GC and not you.

      Reply

        • Only way of getting GC from outside USA is through family or lottery. For persons with extraordinary ability like athletes, sports person, musicians and some other people with exceptional background who have performed well in the international arena can apply for GC on their own. Otherwise you can’t get GC by working outside the USA. You have to be in the USA under company’s payroll.

          Reply

    • In order to apply for a L1 you need to be employed with that company for at least 1 year. If your employer has intl. branches this might be an alternative. The processing time is relatively short – a few weeks. The L1 has the advantage that if you go with your partner he/she can apply for a work permit as well (takes approx. 3 months). Also, getting a green card with a L1 seems easier than with a H1B. However, there are reports of high rejection rates, especially from india.

      Reply

      • Only L1-A has the benefit of getting GC faster i.e. under EB-1 category. BTW, company like Congnizant has misused it so much that USCIS is having higher level of scrutiny. L1-A is for executives but Cognizant used it for developers and without any actual management experience, many have been granted GC. In L1-B, one have to apply for either EB-3 or EB-2 based on the ones educational qualification. If you are a Master’s then you might qualify for EB-2, for 4 years degree it will be EB-3.

        Reply

  47. 1) Job Offer
    2) LCA
    3) Letter from the employer to USCIS for the job detailing all the roles and responsibility, justifying the need for petition
    4) Education certificate copy, degrees
    5) Passport copy
    6) Copy of all the prior petitions on which candidate stayed in the US specifying date of entry and exit if any.

    Reply

    • Yeah, according to USCIS all applications will be numbered and an algorithm is selecting based on that number. If you search long enough you’ll find guys claiming there are differences based on the company etc but imho that’s all just assumptions. I’ve also read, that they’re selecting 85K + X to fill the gap of selected applications that (for what ever reason) get rejected at a later stage. I wonder why it’s a simple lottery instead of a smarter algorithm that is based on degree / wage / experience / …. There’s plenty of time till October and I guess the US would benefit more from guys with higher experience / education. Australia’s visa process is far more advanced imo.

      Reply

      • Yeah, I am too feeling there is some degree of fixing in some sense. Must be having some quota based on number of applications, industry, company etc. Algorithm must be selecting applications based on function of these various factors. At the end of day they would want to see benefit of big tax payers and US economy boosters also and may not want to give via randomly in true sense.

        Reply

      • I am also wondering if it is purely random. I also wonder if USCIS place more scrutiny/limit on companies (especially the large Indian consultancies) that file tens of thousands of applications every year. For example, Infosys in 2013 only had 32,379 LCAs certified for H-1B visas, according to Department of Labor. Assuming a large portion of them actually got selected by last year’s lottery, that means a company like Infosys along is taking up over 50% of the ENTIRE annual quota allotted for thousands of U.S. companies.

        If that’s the case, what chance does a smaller company stand when trying to file few applications when most of the quota is taken up by a few large players… incredibly biased system.

        Reply

        • Guys,

          The reason I think it’s random is because my petition was not picked up in the lottery in spite of the following facts:

          * Top-10 US B-school MBA
          * Employed by one of the Big 4
          * Six-figure salary
          * 8+ years of work experience in MNCs

          I’m not saying I’m anything special, but I think these credentials should’ve got me in if the lottery wasn’t random.

          My ex-employer has kindly agreed to petition this year again, so I’m praying……hard.

          Reply

          • Chances are your employer did not send your H1B petition with the Advanced Degree last year since I guess you graduated after April 1st 2013.
            I know some people in the same category.

          • Dont worry!!!, i saw your post on other forum as well!, you deserve a chance this year!, its not based on your qualification, its based on the Employer, least petitioning employer will get a fair chance than the Big IT Co’s. Do not lose your hope when diploma holders getting GCs. There are ways!!!

        • yes they should do lottery only for all the IT bullshit companies !!!!! they need to have separate temp. visas , most of the IT companies getting th H1 B they don’t send IT stupid guys to usa . wasting visas

          system has to be changed for IT guys

          Reply

          • The best thing should be companies with 50% or more H1B and L1 employees should not be allowed to file on the first 5 days.then this problem with lottery will be solved and if there are visas left behind with unfilled quota after first 5 day let them apply.

            This would give a fair change to all other countries and mid size companies with fewer visas.

            It is true that biggies have employees with visa but not working in US, i know guys like that….

        • While I am not sure about the source of your count for the LCA.

          This would be based on various things and not all LCA’s would be for fresh applicants for this year. I believe. Infosys might have not applied any thing more than 6K this year.

          Reply

    • For filing h1b petition passport copy is sufiicient to employer along wth resume..else degree scand copy also reuired?

      Reply

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