If you were one of the unlucky ones not picked in whopping 233,000 H1B 2016 Lottery Applications , you might be already wondering when is the next H1B season going to start. Also, some of you may be studying in US and some working abroad and planning to work in US next year. This page will be constantly updated with the latest details and commonly asked questions around the next upcoming H1B Visa fiscal year of 2017 season news and updates.
[alert type=”warning” close=”false” heading=”H1B Visa Cap reached for FY 2017, Lottery Done “] On April 7th, H1B Cap for FY 2017 was reached. Lottery was done on April 9th. Read News Summary – Over 236,000 Petitions for FY2017 [/alert]
- H1B 2017 season start date ?
- H1B Cap for FY 2017- Regular ? Masters ?
- H1B 2017 Predictions? Lottery?
- H1B Lottery Myths ?
- How to plan for H1B FY 2017 ?
- How to find H1B Sponsors for FY 2017 ?
- What is H1B Fee ? Details
- Any impact of Comprehensive Immigration Reform(CIR) on H1B
- What is H1B LCA
- H1B 2017 Premium Processing
- H1B 2017 Case Tracker
- Latest News Update of H1B 2017
- When is the next H1B Season ?
- Sample H1B Reject Notices for FY 2017
When will the H1B visa 2017 season start ? Date ?
Short answer April 1st 2016. Typically, USCIS will start to accept petitions for the next fiscal year starting from April 1st of the previous fiscal year. USCIS fiscal year is from October 1st to September 30th. So, for H1B quota of fiscal year 2017, which starts from October 1st, 2017, USCIS would typically accept applications from April 1st, 2016. The H1B Visa 2016 season started on April 1st of 2015. Also, in the H1B Rejected Notices of 2016, USCIS mentioned that, the non-selected candidates can file H1B petitions for FY 2017 on or after April 1st, 2016.
USCIS announced on March 16th, 2016 that they will accept FY 2017 petitions from April 1st, 2016. Read Summary of USCIS press release FY 2017 .
Also, we have written an article summarizing on What to expect in H1B FY 2017 Season
What is H1B 2017 Cap ? What are the H1B 2017 Quota numbers ? Regular vs Masters ?
If you new to H1B, I suggest you read All about H1B Visa Cap- Regular vs Masters. In simple terms H1B cap is a congressional mandated maximum number of petitions that USCIS can accept in a year. As of now, below are the H1B cap number for fiscal year 2017. The below numbers are confirmed in press release by USCIS on Mar 16, 2016.
- Regular H1B Quota : 65,000
- H1B Master’s Degree Quota ( only US Master Degrees) : 20,000
- Out of the above, a total of 6,800 is usually set aside for Singapore and Chile citizens as part of the free trade agreement between them.
There have been many discussions around change in H1B cap numbers by Obama administration since 2013. The planned proposal was to increase the regular quota cap to 110,000 and Masters quota to 25,000. No changes for FY 2017, the above numbers of 65,000 and 20,000 are officially confirmed by USCIS in their press release.
What is H1B Visa 2017 Prediction? Will there be Lottery again for FY 2017
Update : USCIS Updated on April 12th, 2016 that they have received over 236,000 petitions for FY 2017 quota and the lottery was completed on April 9th.
Looking at the past trend of H1B season in the past three years, we could very likely have lottery for FY 2017. Last year for FY 2016 quota, there were 233,000 applications. We have done a detail analysis with the H4 Visa EAD rule in place considering the economy, students graduating, OPT news, etc. You should read article H1B Visa 2017 Lottery Prediction News, results, Date .
If H1B lottery, will there be any preference in lottery for Large companies ? Premium Processing
Well, no preference for anyone, all are treated equally, including premium processing. There are many such misconceptions about lottery process, we have compiled a list of such myths and criteria, you should read Myths of H1B Lottery, Criteria
When to plan for H1B visa 2017 Application ? How soon ? What should be the strategy ?
It is never too late to start planning for your H1B 2017 season. If you plan to work in US on H1B visa in the next coming fiscal year, below are some suggestions based on your situation.
- F1 Student in USA : If you are studying on F1 visa and about to graduate in next one year, you should seriously look at finding an internship or co-op at companies that can sponsor your H1B visa. You can search for H1B Sponsors in a particular area using our H1B Sponsors Search Tool and try to get an internship to work there on CPT or OPT after you graduate. This is a strategic move and will require sometime, so plan well.
- Professional from outside USA : If you are a working professional outside US, planning to work in US on H1B, your best bet is to find Multinational companies that have major US presence and secure a job there, so that you can position internally for applying to H1B visa, when the season starts. This is a very strategic decision, you need to carefully assess your options, speak to the company if such options exist and then only choose it.
- Other H4, L1 Visas : If you are on these visas, your best bet is to find companies just like I mentioned for F1 students that sponsor H1B visas and start interviewing and keeping the conversation going so that you can ask them to file H1B when the season starts.
We have put together a Step by Step Plan on How to apply for H1B 2017 Quota
How do I find a H1B Visa Sponsor – The most asked million dollar question ?
If you are student in the US, it is very straight forward, you find the list of H1B Sponsoring companies using the tool in an area as I mentioned above and get an internship in one of them so that they can sponsor your H1B visa. Unlike, if you are coming from outside US, it can be tricky. If you work for an Multinational company ( MNC), then they will have some internal process to pick the candidates and then process H1B visa for them…The other option that has been used and abused is the consulting companies route…Many a times, the H1B aspirants approach a body shop IT consulting company to file H1B for them and they apply for the same. It gets nasty with the body shop consulting companies. The comments on this H1B Companies Reviews article are quite eye opening. I advise, you beware of the consulting companies and avoid fraud. Also, WE as RedBus2US do NOT provide any guidance or assistance or sponsor anything. If someone claims that, it is pure fraud and they are trying to trick you, we are not responsible for that. Please be careful. Anyways, for various other options , You may read article How to find H1B 2017 Sponsors
What is the H1B visa 2017 filing fee ? Is it same or any changes ?
It changed slightly this year with the Omnibus Bill passed in December 2015, that will increase the H1B filing fee by $4000 for FY 2017, until 2025 for certain companies that have over 50 employees and have more than 50% of their employees as H1B or L1 visa holders in USA. Check USCIS Guidelines on H1B Fee increase. Depending on the size of the company, the H1B filing fee can vary anywhere from $1,600 USD to $7,400 USD + Attorney Fee. There are various fees components that make up this number range, for more details Read Summary of H1B Filing Fee 2017 – Who pays for What ? . Below is a high level summary. Also, one key change is that, there was $2000 USD additional filing fee as per Public Law 111-230, this law expired on Sep 30, 2015 and that is not included anymore.
| H1B Fee Component | Fee in USD |
| Base filing fee | $325 |
| AICWA Fee | $750 or $1,500 |
| Fraud prevent & detection fee | $500 |
| Fee based on Public Law 114-113 ( if applicable) | $4000 |
| Premium processing fee (Optional) | $1,225 |
| Immigration Attorney Fee | Varies from $500 to $3000 |
What about Comprehensive Immigration Reform(CIR) and Obama Executive Actions for H1B 2017 Quota Increase ?
There has been many articles and discussions since 2013 around immigration reform by President Obama and changes around and some like below have been discussed in the last couple of years, nothing moved significantly.
- H1B Cap to be increased from 65,000 to 110,000 per year. Also have provisions to have it up to 180,000 in case of extreme demand.
- Advanced degree from US cap quota to increase from 20,000 to 25,000
- The Filing fee for H1B could go up to 10,000 USD ( Part of this came up as the fee increase in Omnibus Bill )
- Additional H1B rules to avoid H1B Visa fraud by employers
- Mandatory LCA posting for 30 days before it is certified.
The current status on all of the above are basically “No updates”, there are no set deadlines for any of them and none of these are happening for FY 2017. You may read Summary of CIR Changes to H1B . Officially as per press release on March 16, 2016, the H1B cap is confirmed to be 65,000 for regular and 20,000 for masters…hence, no changes.
What is LCA for H1B Visa ? Processing times ?
LCA is a form that has to be filed with US Dept of Labor and get it certified before filing H1B petition with USCIS. It has to be sent along with H1B Package to USCIS. It has all the relevant information about the job position like wage, location, title, etc. It takes about 7 working days for processing of the LCA by US Dept of Labor (DOL). You can read complete details at Why is LCA Needed for H1B – Processing Time, Salary
USCIS Updated in their original press release on March 16, 2016 that the premium processing will begin no later than May 16, 2016. But, on April 22nd, they updated that the premium processing for FY 2017 will begin on May 12th, 2016. What it means is that the official 15 calendar day SLA for premium processing petitions will be starting from 12th. USCIS may process the petitions early as well, but officially their clock starts on that day.
H1B 2017 Case Tracker :
Did you apply for FY 2017 ? We have put together a tracker along with good graphs for analysis. It is completely anonymous as we do not capture your case number or any personal information. It is community contributed data, the more you add, the better for everyone, including You !
[prompt type=”left” title=”Track your H1B Case” message=” Anonymously Track your H1B Case – Share and Get updated from Community.” button_text=”H1B 2017 Case Tracker” href=”https://redbus2us.com/trackers/h1b-visa-tracker/”]
Most Recent News of FY 2017 H1B
Below is the most recent news regarding H1B 2017 season. You can check the updates page as indicated below for the full history and details.
- July 8th, 2016 ( Official ) : USCIS released a press note today indicating that they have completed returning all the petitions that were not selected in the H1B lottery for FY 2017. Read More details here
- May 2nd, 2016 ( Official Update ) : USCIS updated that data entry is complete for selected petitions in lottery. if you were selected, you should receive receipt notices in 2 to three weeks. If not, the chances are very slim to get selected. You should look at your plan B. Read H1B Data Entry Complete Article for full details
- April 22nd, 2016 : (Official Update) USCIS Updated that they will start premium processing from May 12th, instead of May 16th.
- April 12th, 2016 – 6:30 PM EST : Official Update : USCIS released a press note that H1B lottery was completed on April 9th and they received over 236,000 petitions for FY 2017 quota. Read Press Release Summary
- April 12th, 2016 – 11:50 AM CST ( Unofficial Update ) : It is reported on blog by attorney ( immigrationgirl ) that they have received about 40 email receipts of Premium Processing. What it means is that USCIS has already conducted lottery. We will keep you posted with updates. If I am not wrong, they are just drafting the press release now.
[prompt type=”left” title=”H1B 2017 – Latest News Updates” message=” Most recent and complete history of all latest breaking news updates from Official sources like USCIS and Unofficial sources for FY 2017 Season.” button_text=”Latest H1B 2017 News” href=”https://redbus2us.com/h1b-visa-2017-cap-count-updates-tracker-news/”]
When is the next H1B Season ?
The next H1B season starts on April 1st, 2017. Wondering about your next chance for H1B and various details about the next H1B season, check out H1B Visa 2018 FAQs
Sample H1B Reject Notices for FY 2017 ?
USCIS has started to mail out the reject notices for FY 2017 petitions that were not picked in lottery. It says that the start date for next year H1B season is April 1, 2017. You can check out the Sample Reject Notice for FY 2017, Details
We have many more FAQs around H1B Visa 2017. We will continue to keep updating the page with latest news and updates regarding FY 2017. Bookmark this page and keep checking for updates.
Hi Saurabh,
My H1B case status shows below date:
On April 11, 2016, we received your Form -129….EAC1614951*
The VSC processing timeframe shows that its processing I-129 cases as of date 11 Aug 2016.
Does this mean they are currently in the process of reviewing all the cases with receipt date 11 Aug 2016 and we can expect decision soon?
I wrongly mentioned dates as Aug instead of April, all the dates in my above query were 11 April 2016
I have mentioned dates as 11 Aug 2016 instead of 11 Apr 2016,
All the dates in my query are 11 Apr 2016
Sharu,
April 11 is the receipt date for all 85K cap-subject petitions. This means they are processing all those 85K petitions (well the ones at EAC of course). Within that batch, where your petition lies is anyone’s guess.
AUGUST 18, 2016 18:54:46 CDTREPLY JACK
Hi Saurabh,
I need your urgent help.
I am in USA on L1B visa right now with employer A.
I have applied for H1B with employer B with counselor processing and which got picked up in april 2016 but i have not received USCIS decision on my H1 yet.
My L1b extention got rejected today. In this scenario, if i leave USA before my H1 gets approve. Will my H1b also gets invalidated?.
Will my H1 have other adverse impact?
Please advice.
Thanks in advance.
Hi Jack,
As far as I know there won’t be any impact on your H1. However you need to leave USA and wait for your H1 approval. After you get your approval, resign with Employer A, go for stamping and then you can come to USA with your employer B on H1B visa.
Jack,
No impact on your H-1. You can leave US and it will have no impact on your petition. It will continue to be processed and may get approved. You can return to US after getting H-1 visa stamped.
According to tracking excel, Vermont center has processed only 54 cases yesterday. This is highly frustrating. At this rate, it’s going to take many more months to come to complete, as there are still 18872 applications pending.
H1 waiting
From where you got these details , could you please provide the link
This link was provided by someone else in this group,
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pMsGtKC6sGS2uj4JL3JX5IYytzU5jJO_qJ-UJKXiCr4/htmlview?pli=1#
Hi Saurabh,
My H1B petition got approved yesterday.
My wife’s sister is USA citizen. So she applied green card (I-130 F4-category, which is for siblings) in 2015 December. Will it have any impact when I will apply H4 for my wife.
Kindly suggest Saurabh.
Shyam,
No impact. When the wife appears for H-4 visa stamping, she will have to disclose that in her DS-160 form.
Mindtree Guys,
Anybody got approval/RFE till now? If so please update.
Thanks.
My case was picked up in lottery this year, but I got an RFE and my employer responded to the RFE. The RFE was mostly about the company. Now I got the decision that my H1b petition has been rejected . Now my employer is saying that they will re-appeal the descision. Does anybody have any idea if there is any chance to get the petition approved again and how long will it take now. I applied in premium processing through a consultant in US and last year my friend applied through the same consultant and he got his H1b approved and now he is in US. Any input will be highly appreciated.
you need to open MTR (Motion to reopen). my case is still under ‘case received’ since 8 months. it was last year’s denied petition.
did they applied your petition as inhouse project or did they provided any end client letter of your project?
if its as an inhouse project and the company tax filling is incorrect then forget about your petetion.
Most MNCs apply as inhouse project.
EXACTLY the same case with me. Got an RFE about the company. My company’s lawyer responded with all the required documents and then I got rejection mail. 🙁 🙁
Anyone from HCL got h1b approved?
Hi Saurabh,
My H1B petition got approved yesterday.
My wife’s sister is USA citizen. So she applied green card (I-130 F4-category, which is for siblings) in 2015 December. Will it have any impact when I will apply H4 for my wife.
Kindly suggest Saurabh.
Did any one from wipro got communication about approvals/RFE ?
Lot of people have got RFE, none have got the approval yet!
Oops..Figures crossed.
Mine got approved. Where to check for how long it is approved.
I got my H1B approved yesterday. But, it shows it’s been approved for 1 year and not 3 years as expected!
Hi Saurabh,
I need your urgent help.
I am in USA on L1B visa right now with employer A.
I have applied for H1B with employer B with counselor processing and which got picked up in april 2016 but i have not received USCIS decision on my H1 yet.
My L1b extention got rejected today. In this scenario, if i leave USA before my H1 gets approve. Will my H1b also gets invalidated?.
Will my H1 have other adverse impact?
Please advice.
Thanks in advance.
Hi,
Your l1 visa extension will not impact on your H1B processing.
L1 is for intra company transfer. And H1 is for completely different US based employer.
Hi,
Consular processing is for H1B interview at consulates in India,
So, for sure you have to go to india for stamping of H1B, hence no impact if you leave U.S. before H1b petition approved.
However, still check with your immigration department.
Every case is different so there might be some technicality.
Your immigration dept. should be able to guide you accordingly.
Slots..
When we book slot for B1 we are getting easily slots within 2days during this peak time as well, why not for L1 and H1?
If a software development + a staffing company gets RFE for its inhouse project , if necessary docs are submitted , will there be a chances of approval?Any inputs..thank you
There are high chances it will get rejected.
Br aware of in house projects.
Jack
Thank you very much 🙁
There are no real in-house projects in a staffing company, everybody (including USCIS) knows they are fake.
if they have good revenue i think 10-20 million dollars i guess, it would not be problem as long as they submit all proper docs
who else keep checking their status minimum 10 times in a day
if your one of those whose cases were transferred to another center, forget to bother because your the last in your series mostly.
@Suresh.
Who told you that transferred cases will be processed at last . USCIS ???
I know few cases which were transferred were received Approvals and few cases which got RFE.
So, Please don’t declare your own created rules here.
I do not talk BS. mine was transferred so i crawled all numbers to see the approval processing of each category . that is know i came to know.
its just 10mins task, no one needs USCIS permission nor yours
@Suresh
What do you mean by “so i crawled all numbers to see the approval processing of each category . that is know i came to know.” Can you explain plz.
Dude, are you the same guy who said you are a Data scientist at nights? We all are waiting for you to share your stats, bring them on man, what are you waiting for?
Atleast 20 times.
Even in midnight.
Hello All,
Could you please help me with the status on below series of receipt #EAC161475XXXX . I see many are getting approval in EAC16148 & EAC16149 series. I am worried, could you please help me on this.
Thanks in advance
how does it relate other numbers approval in your series to yours, even though all h1’s got approved except you what you will do then?
use your brain, wait until you got approved or just die .
Those are some really harsh words my friend…. calm down.
This has already been stated many times on this forum that cases are not picked or processed based on the series, how USCIS does it… nobody knows…
So the best option is to relax a bit, spend time with family/friends because once your approval comes you will travel soon….. the biggest gamble or uncertain thing was the lottery…. you have been lucky to be picked so there is not much to worry about (in some cases RFEs etc happen but those can be handled easily if your credentials are impeccable)
Again, relax…. your turn will come soon
Thanks a lot H1gyaani and much appreciated your kind words…:):)
same series don’t worry
Hello All,
Could you please help me with the approval status on below series of receipt #EAC161475XXXX . I see many are getting approval in EAC16148 & EAC16149 series. I am worried, could you please help me on this.
Thanks in advance
Check this to know how many others are in your shoes.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pMsGtKC6sGS2uj4JL3JX5IYytzU5jJO_qJ-UJKXiCr4/edit#gid=237954566
Enter your Number here
https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do
Anyone got update in series WAC161465xxxx
I am in the same series too and don’t have any updates till date…!!
am also same series. till now no update
Mine was in same series, i got RFE.
what is the difference between “Case Was Approved” and “Case Was Approved And My Decision Was Emailed”
The second one is for Premium people , those who are applied under premium processing and first one is for regular processing people
My Non-AD/RP/CA petition went into RFE in June. My company replied and upgraded to premium processing. Now the USCIS has denied my petition 🙁 🙁 🙁
My case number is WAC16135***** . Not sure about the reasons for denial since we are yet to receive the denial mail.
Hi saurabh ,
I got RFE , and in RFE many documents are required.
My concern are for 2 of the documents.
They asked for Statement of work and contract.
My project is saying the we can only give SOW and both are one of the same things.
They cannot share the contract because it is very confedential.
So if i share only the SOW and not the contrat, will my RFE get rejected? Or are there any chances that anything bad happens?
SOW and Contract are very different, you might get the petition denied if you fail to submit the required documentation.
@H1B RFE Please help urgent – They can easily provide the contract papers. Every company is aware of the documentation that gets asked on RFE’s and the HR’s do have the contract copies only for foreign workers like us to get cleared on Visa issues. My RFE was exactly the same USCIS mentioned that the current contract is yearly and will end in 2016 but the visa will be granted until 2017 so please assure on how will you continue the current job in 2017. My employer was very kind enough to share the master contract copy of the client and i furnished the same.
Sorry to hear that. What was your RFE about?
H1b_Denied
what was the reason given for Denial ? Did you submit the RFE documents correctly ?
All communication went through the company’s attorney. Documents requested the SOW and contract with the client and my company provided both. Still waiting for the denial package to arrive to know the exact reasons for denial.
I am highly skeptical of the way USCIS is functioning . This seems like a witch hunt. My company is a genuine IT company with legitimate clients.
https://cgifederal.secure.force.com/applicanthome
“First Available Appointment Is Tuesday August 23, 2016.”
I can see few people blocked slots for NOV/DEC in Hyderabad Consulate. How it is Possible ??
Visa Information
HYDERABAD
H&L visas
H-1B
If any of the officer is free at that day means if his booked slots got cancelled or rejected then he will update the day as available so the same goes in the website , whats their new in that ,use your baisc brain and knowledge
i check this site every year i apply.i know well how it works.
Any thing can happen in Hyderabad. If you known people you can even buy H1B visa instantly
Oh you do buy all h1s right. Mind your tongue
I agree with TLG, If you are from USA you can buy H1 and L1 visa easily, even you can get group discount if you are planning to buy more then 10 visas.
Hi Saurabh,
I recently got my H1B petition approved by USCIS. I am aware that the next steps would be to fill up the DS160 and then finally schedule the visa interview at the US consulate.I am aware that currently there are no open slots for interview until Dec 2nd week. I was going thru one of your posts where you have written that since class starts in US in Sept ,therefore, most of the resources are dedicated for F1/F2 or student visa processing and once these are over by Sept ,more slots would open up.In that regard I had a few questions.Would be nice if you can throw some light on them please?
1. Considering I take another 15 days to fill up DS160 and subsequently schedule the visa interview, i will not get a slot for interview before Dec end or Early Jan 2017. If slots open up after September will these interview dates that is scheduled already, be automatically preponed or the employer has to reschedule the interview with the consulate once again?
2. Can we have myself and dependents visa interview scheduled on the same date? Are seperate appointments needed for each?
3. Originally my petition or LCA was submitted and now approved for the project of client A. Looks like I will have to travel for a different project with different client B.I understand in that case, one can file an H1B Amendment and while that is in progress one may travel to US. It normally takes 2 weeks to 90 days for its approval.Is that the correct understanding or am I missing something here? Are there any chances of rejections here?
4. Are seperate DS 160s needs to be filled up for me and my dependents?
I appreciate your help in this blog till now and it had really enlightened people like us on the H1B process.
Hi,
1) I think you can reschedule once after booking. So, keep checking for free early dates daily and reschedule. Nothing happens automatically.
2) It is always good to visit with family. Appointment can be booked for family on same time.
3) New client may need new LCA and related documentation. It is best not to go for interview before that.
4) When you fill your DS160, You will enter all those family members info.
For more info, Google!
ctsh1b3rd time,
1. They are not automatically advanced. One has to reschedule the interview if they want to use an earlier slot that becomes available.
2. You should start w/ H-1B holders appointment. Later in the process it will ask if this is a family application and you can add dependents at that point. You would get same slot and will appear together. The fees and DS form needs to be done separately though.
3. Yes, LCA and amendment is required. Like any other petition, this will be reviewed and can result in denial also.
4. Yes, and separate fees as well.
Hi Saurabh,
There are 10 cases before my EAC approved and 10 cases after mine approved.
But my case is just received. Can you please let me know on what basis they approve cases leaving mine alone. Worried. Do they take any other criteria for approving apart from case series??
My case series is EAC16148*****
Are you from consultancies ? MNC?
Do it matters ? I mean if you filled from Consultancy or MNC.
I filed from a consultancy
Suddenly the interview available date is shown as November 4, 2016. wondering , any idea how it came down from Dec to Nov?
Now it show as First Available Appointment Is Monday August 22, 2016.
Where we need to see this?
I can see that “The next available appointment date is August 23” How it is possible ?
https://cgifederal.secure.force.com/applicanthome
First Available Appointment Is Tuesday August 23, 2016.
How it is Possible.
Visa Information
HYDERABAD
H&L visas
H-1B
CTS,
I suspected that the delay was b/c preference was being given to F-1/2 visa holders whose classes start in September. As they are seeing less number of F-1/2 applicants, they are opening up the slots to other applicants.
Hi Saurabh,
I received RFE on my case from the California Centre. They specifically need SOW and the PO’s. However, the projected client has changed the location and I can get the SOW and the PO’s for the new location.
How do I proceed?
Thanks in advance!!
Best of luck with that. New location needs new LCA. Sending new client details might screwup your chances.
Need Help,
It may not work as the original LCA was for a different location.
My case (EAC161495****) got approved today. Thank you Saurabh for your help and all the best who are waiting for approval.
Can u please let me know next three digits,my series also 149 and waiting for approval.
Hi,
Is there any updates on WAC1614351xxx receipt number? Still waiting for approval.
Greetings from Latvia. 🙂
Hi Sandra, I also fall in the same series as you are .. It’s been the same for last 4 months . The sad part is before and after my number many got approved.
Still waiting for the case to be approved. Can I attend the visa interview from Dubai where I currently live or attend only from home country?
Finally after a really long wait….magical words appeared….”case was approved”
This was a Non AD/RP/CA application from the series WAC16144*****
This was my fifth attempt…now thats what i call perseverance…here is the story in the chronological order
1) 2006 – by the application was ready….quota got over (by Jul-Aug if I recall correctly)
2) 2007 – No luck in the lottery
3) 2008 – No luck in the lottery
4) 2015 – No luck in the lottery
5) 2015 – B.I.N.G.O
In between, travelled on short term a few times between (06-08), worked long term in the US from 2008-2014 on the bonded labor visa [they call it L1 🙂 ], after the allowed visa duration got over, worked in Europe for some time but realized that there is nothing better than the US when it comes to living a quality life (this is very subjective opinion and others can have their own ideas about life in the US)
To all waiting for the results…please have lots of patience, keep yourself busy, meditate, learn new technologies, soft skills. In short: utilize this time for the betterment…its difficult but can be done.
All these years, have read so many forums and material on the internet for the visa process that i can start a rival blog now…just kidding Saurabh 🙂
Hey… FYI, Happy to see your comments…!!
To h1gyaani
Congrats and my best wishes..
Hi saurabh ,
I got RFE , and in RFE many documents are required.
My concern are for 2 of the documents.
They asked for Statement of work and contract.
My project is saying the we can only give SOW and both are one of the same things.
They cannot share the contract because it is very confedential.
So if i share only the SOW and not the contrat, will my RFE get rejected? Or are there any chances that anything bad happens?
Happy to see your comment!!!
Hard work and Patience rewards!!!
@ h1gyaani
Finally your wait is over.. You seem to be relieved now 🙂 Good luck and the best for stamping.
Regards,
Sun
h1gyaani,
Congrats, and glad you are finally on H-1. Many thanks for answering the questions on the blog 🙂
hi h1gyaani,
Many many congrats and kudos to your patience.
Can i get your email id ? Looking for some information.
Thanks
BB
WAC1614250***
https://worktheme.com/tracker/#/vcases/WAC1614250
Anyone got the approval for WAC16141***** series?
Currently this series is not tracked on http://worktheme.com/tracker. You can add it and see if any approvals are there.
Have you filed under counselor processing?.
Does it make sense to convert to premium processing at this stage?.
Regular processing should hear from uscis till sep?
Plz help and provide guidance.
Its late
Why do you say it’s late?
Then till when should i expect approval decision from USCIS?
If you want convert it to pp. Don’t ask for suggestions
Some petetions will go to a year to approve just check this same redbus site for those kind of cases
Jack,
It makes sense to upgrade to premium at any point
1. You will get the result in 15 days for sure.
2. You will get to know the results soon so that you can plan accordingly for RFE if in case(Hope it gets approved directly)
3. Visa stamping dates are already gone to December now (this can help in scheduling the Visa stamping ASAP)
4. You be relieved and can become tension free mainly 🙂
These are just my thoughts and finally you are the decision maker. All the best.
Regards
http://www.thehindu.com/sport/other-sports/sakshi-malik-wins-bronze-for-india/article9000162.ece
What the heck Vermont guys are doing ? I almost forgot how I applied for H1. No change in case status.
Same here. Series 16144*
same series 1614451XXX
Yes. In 147 series still around 1800 cases . Moving very slow.
Same here. series 142..
The pace seems to be reduced especially in Vermont SC both for both approval & RFE’s. Unsure if its because of F1 visa season been started.
EAC 16 148 52 ###
Never waited like this before. Patience tested to the core.
And after this, if you get an RFE, wait for another 2 months.
Hi saurabh ,
I got RFE , and in RFE many documents are required.
My concern are for 2 of the documents.
They asked for Statement of work and contract.
My project is saying the we can only give SOW and both are one of the same things.
They cannot share the contract because it is very confedential.
So if i share only the SOW and not the contrat, will my RFE get rejected? Or are there any chances that anything bad happens?
pls don’t take the chance. If you get RFE and you dont send with required documents, it might result into multiple RFEs and your petition might get denied.
SOW and contract are not same. Please ask your employer to submit it to USCIS directly if it is confidential. Many employers are doing the same.
Speak to a lawyer, they can give you a better picture.
I can see people posted series that got approval recently.
16155*
16175*
16185*
Mine is 16145* and no update yet….any one with same series number as mine?.
Will i come to know the result by oct 1st?.
Thanks.
Hey,
I’m EAC 16 145 too and still received.
This series is going really really slow… I wonder if we’ll get approved soon too.. Doesn’t seem like it. But you’re not alone 😉
Finally got the approval. Approved on 15th Aug. I have been following this site from 3 years now and it has been of great great help. Thanks all and I wish everyone the best.
Hi All,
My case was approved today. Series: EAC161495*****
Good luck to those who’re waiting!
Are you applied for inhouse project.
He were applied to inhouse project
Hello H1B_CTS,
Please share 2 more digits of your reciept no.
Congrats and All the best for all your future endorsements.
Mine too approved yesterday. Thankyou all for helping during the wait time.
Receipt no. please?
lucky you man..
More than 90 days, no status change.
As all know , interview slots are booked till Dec mid , Is there any hope for adding additional interview slot for coming months by 2016 .
Delhi consulate is available in october month, it doesn’t matter where you attend visa interview until you have a valid reason.
sorry I replied to some other comments earlier (blame mbile browsing 😉
Hello Saurabh/other knowledgeable members here,
Maybe this question has come up already or maybe not but here’s my situation –
My H1 petition is selected in the lottery but it hasn’t yet been approved by uscis. I do have the application receipt number available with me. I have resigned from my current organization and not sure if petition will get approved till the time I serve notice period and if I would have the approval notice available with me when I switch company.
what happens to my H1 in that case? can I possibly put transfer request with uscis (without hard copy of approval) to the new organization??
your inputs and help is greatly appreciated ?
ps. i work for indian service based org.
You should have waited till approval. Your company can revoke petition, also in case of rfe they may not respond. Poor time for resignation i believe
Anybody has latest updates on receipt number EAC1614153*** series?
No updates buddy ! We are on the same boat.
what man.. why did you resign when your petition is under processing? utter blunder..
As other friend suggested here, your company can cancel your petition as part of your separation policy. and if you get rfe, the company wont bother to respond back..
Let see if you can withdraw your resignation paper and be with this company for some time.
Hi Saurabh,
I recently got my H1B petition approved by USCIS. I am aware that the next steps would be to fill up the DS160 and then finally schedule the visa interview at the US consulate.I am aware that currently there are no open slots for interview until Dec 2nd week. I was going thru one of your posts where you have written that since class starts in US in Sept ,therefore, most of the resources are dedicated for F1/F2 or student visa processing and once these are over by Sept ,more slots would open up.In that regard I had a few questions.Would be nice if you can throw some light on them please?
1. Considering I take another 15 days to fill up DS160 and subsequently schedule the visa interview, i will not get a slot for interview before Dec end or Early Jan 2017. If slots open up after September will these interview dates that is scheduled already, be automatically preponed or the employer has to reschedule the interview with the consulate once again?
2. Can we have myself and dependents visa interview scheduled on the same date? Are seperate appointments needed for each?
3. Originally my petition or LCA was submitted and now approved for the project of client A. Looks like I will have to travel for a different project with different client B.I understand in that case, one can file an H1B Amendment and while that is in progress one may travel to US. It normally takes 2 weeks to 90 days for its approval.Is that the correct understanding or am I missing something here? Are there any chances of rejections here?
4. Are seperate DS 160s needs to be filled up for me and my dependents?
I appreciate your help in this blog till now and it had really enlightened people like us on the H1B process.
Hello Saurabh/other knowledgeable members here,
Maybe this question has come up already or maybe not but here’s my situation –
My H1 petition is selected in the lottery but it hasn’t yet been approved by uscis. I do have the application receipt number available with me. I have resigned from my current organization and not sure if petition will get approved till the time I serve notice period and if I would have the approval notice available with me when I switch company.
what happens to my H1 in that case? can I possibly put transfer request with uscis (without hard copy of approval) to the new organization??
your inputs and help is greatly appreciated 🙂
ps. i work for indian service based org.
Just got the soft copy of H1B approval notice. Approved on 9th August and got the soft copy today 17th August.
@ APN
Congrats buddy. Now on it should be a smooth ride. All the best and keep us posted with your interview schedule.
Thanks
Hi Saurabh,
I have been following this forum since long time and you and all experts responses were Very Very helpful for all H1B fighters, On behalf of everyone here “Thanks you very much for all you support”.
Here I have few clarifications on H1b processing,
1. If I look at all the series’s, there is no particular order of processing and there is no clear steps given how the process will be moving forward on each case, Would you be able to give some insight on this ?
2. They have not declared any deadline of processing these cases so far, since there are around 30000 cases still left to process, I hope it will not be finished by December even. Would you please share your thoughts on this ?
Many of the old H1b’s are responded to me, saying that, This is the first time it’s taking longer than what it is.
Thanks.
Waiting for Approval,
Thanks for the kind words.
1. There is no clarity on how they process the petitions when lottery in conducted. I have seen instances when they follow receipt number, and instances when they don’t. My guess is that they divide the petitions into bunches and distribute among officers who look at them at their own pace. So it is possible that an officer has reach 150th day petition, while another one is still looking at 148th day one.
2. They strive to finish at least 1st round (i.e. approve or issue RFE) by Sep end. However, in the past I have seen some of them lingering around until end of year. And then there are few unlucky ones who are stuck for a year or so (security check). Upgrading to PP is the only way to timebox this thing.
Hi Saurabh,
My company told me that the next slot for H1b Visa interview is available for Chennai location only after December 2nd week, Last year people just had to wait for 20 days max but this time its almost 4 months waiting time for Visa interview.Any idea why such a long wait this time specifically ?? for tourist and student visa the wait time is just 15 days.
Thanks,
Sun
Sun,
There was a huge uptick in number of tourist and student visas in the summer. As classes start from September, consulate diverted most of the resources to F-1 and F-2 visa stamping. I assume once this load of F-1/2 has passed, more H-1 interview slots will open-up.
Have anyone got ur stamping appointment booked from infosys?
Still waiting for approval bra
Hi
Anybody has latest updates on receipt number EAC1614254*** series?
im also waiting buddy. i have the same series, transferred to Cali though.
Uscis mentioned in his website as they started processing April 11 ,2016 h1b cases on both change of status and visas to abroad . so we can expect atleast some updates from uscis . The above is specific to vermont center only . i dont know regular or premium or rfe or rfe responded like that .
But i saw most of the cases in april 11 , 2016 was regular . So my guess VT / RP will get more updates . GOOD LUCK TO ALL WAITING
Thank you very much for the information. Can you please provide the link where you got this information..?
https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/processTimesDisplayInit.do
select Vermont from service centers and click the service center processing dates . It will show the full list of cases .
I got it.Thank you very much for your response.
Hi Experts,
Shell i Book H1B Visa appointment Using Receipt Number?.
I will try to give a serious answer (though I wanted to give a funny one)…
You cannot book an appointment with just a receipt number, you “must” wait for the petition to get approved and then only you can move forward.
Patience is an important aspect when it comes to everything around US visa process. (you will need lots of it when you go for GC processing as well)
h1gyaani,
Actually s/he can book the appointment with just the receipt number, as that doesn’t change. However, he can only appear for interview iff the petition has been approved.
I tried booking the appointment, they need DS 160 number and in DS 160, you need the approval’s approval number or something mentioned in the receipt.
Tried already,
If you have the receipt number, that would be same the petition approval number. That number doesn’t change.
The only issue would be approval notice expiration date which you won’t know until petition has been approved. You can make a guess of 3 years (or whatever was requested) and if it is something different then get DS form corrected when appearing for biometrics. All this is if you really want to book a slot now for Nov/Dec. However, someone posted that earlier slots have started to show up for certain consulates.
@ Srav,
First you need to get your petition approved, then you need to get your approved petition form from USCIS, later you need to fill up DS160 and then finally schedule for the VISA interview with the DS160 form, Buddy there are lot of steps and you need more patience when it comes US visa. All the best and good luck for your case.
Regards
Status updated to RFE on Aug 15th. Mine is H4 to H1. Awaiting RFE notice.
Anyone in same boat. Can you please share the RFE you received ?
Receipt # EAC1614050***
Do any TCS guy knows their petition number?? If so can someone please share the first 8 digit’s .
Visa cell is not revealing any information..
TCS doesnot share petition no with the associates unless you get an RFE.
I am also in the same boat waiting for reply from FDFU.
My h1b petition is approved. But only till 9/30/2017. Can the validity period be extended upto 3 years (2019) at the time stamping? I had submitted an old sow with the original h1b application which was till march 2017 but now i have an updated sow which is till 2018. can the h1b valid dates be extended now or later?
When you did get your H1B approved and the soft copy of approval notice?
i got my approval last week (USCIS site) and soft copy from cts yesterday
Cts,
Visa will be issued only until petition expiration date. What needs to happen is that employer needs to apply for H-1 extension in future, and can avail a longer period. The petition can be extended as many times, until you have exhausted 6 years inside US on H-1. If the Green Card process has reached a certain stage, then you can get extensions beyond the 6th year.
my receipt no is EAC1614654***.still case received status. Any one is waiting in this series
There is no update in my case it shows “Case Received” recepit number EAC 161455####.
Can i go with premium processing now?
Or should i wait for status to change in regular process.
We are in mid August now i dont think ill get approval in end of August.
Guys, need your suggestions on this please.
Eventhough you got approved tomorrow you cant travel before december because no consulate dates are available in India until december.
Mine is EAC1614652*** series and waiting for long