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.
I received RFE on my H1B petition. Global Immigration Team asked me to get the SOW and the US Manager Letter. Now I have moved out of the client and project for which my H1B was initially filed. I would be able to submit SOW and the US Manager letter but the SOW of the client ends on 31st Dec 2016. I won’t be able to get client letter since I have moved out of the client. However GIT Team didn’t ask/mention anything about client letter.
Please anyone let me know what are my chances of H1B approval..
If there is no requirement why did the company sponsor H1?
very valid question… its really not possible that there are 85k position lying vacant in the US… but in the mad rush of grabbing visas, companies are filing crazy numbers and that in turn is adding to frenzy and exhausting 85k on day one itself resulting in the lottery.
the visa fee increase was supposed to reduce this craziness a bit but look at this years number… it has increased from last year…
so no solution in sight this shall continue…
No wonder why so many petitions are going to RFE
you can’t submit a sow having end dt as 31st dec 2016. It might run into RFE/Rejection. because by the time USCIS verify the SOW, it would have been already expired. You could process in Premium process and submit SOW, client letter and other required doc. you will get the response in 2 weeks time. you should act it upon immediately.
Or you find another project which has an extended end dt and submit it. But respond to RFE soon.
@ Reply_Need Help_RFE_CTS
Didn’t you keep the onsite manager letter at the time of filing the document petition? They would have asked for it right ? If you had kept that it would have got approved directly.
Thanks
I am waiting for USCIS, but my case is same as you….
Curios about what step you are taking now…
Next step is denial as there is no actual requirement.
Hi Saurabh and Experts,
Could you please advise me here?
My I-129 (H1B Non-AD RP) approved 2 days back and yet to receive approved notice.
Actually I do have 10 years multiple Business visa but haven’t traveled to USA so far, now my current (other) working employer asking me to travel to US and Mexico for 2-3 months.
I will be stay in USA for 2 days only and 2-3 months in Mexico during this trip.
I will be having all paper evidences as proof of trip details to show Immigration guy.
Is it fine if I travel now? or any other issues raise either in POE or during H1B visa stamping at my home country?
Kindly explain me consequences and share your thoughts ASAP.
Thanks
Sri
Sri,
As long as you have valid reason to travel on B-1/2, it should be ok and not impacted by your H-1 approval.
Thank you Saurabh.
Thanks
Sri
Hello Saurabh
My H1B extension was accepted by USCIS on May 18th (EAC16173XXXXX). Are extensions processed together with new H1B applications? If yes, it would mean that there will be a long wait until my application is processed, since they are still working on case numbers around EAC1614XXXXXX). My status will expire on 9/1/2016 and so will my driver’s license. I believe I can stay in the US while my H1B extension is being processed, but what about my driver’s license? If I don’t receive the approval and new I979C before 9/1, does that mean that I won’t be able to drive?
Tha
@Cheegs,
My opinion will be to change your extension petition from regular to premium.
I remember one of my friend applied for extension on 2015 March and didn’t get any response till 2015 December. So, he finally gave up and converted from regular to premium. Then he got approval in 15 days of that conversion.
Since USCIS needs to clear up all the cap subjective petition before Oct 2016, they might be busy on that and will give less priority over extensions.
Cheegs,
Extensions have a separate processing swim lane. If you look o USCIS site, you will see different rows for I-129 – one with extension of status and another with cap-subject petitions.
Upgrade to PP if you want to receive an earlier approval and have enough time to apply for DL renewal.
Hi sourabh,
I got an RFE for the following
QUERY 1: EMPLOYER- EMPLOYEE RELATIONSHIP
Documents Required
Client documents
a) Client Letter
b) Valid Master service agreement
c) Valid SOW (supposed to be valid for next 6 months ) or Work order or change orders
The issue is that MSA for the client has expired in June 2016 and the discussions is still in progress.Due to some billing issues, its taking a lot more time than usual and management is not sure when the agreement will be signed. Immigration team has asked to submit a offical letter from Delivery Manager in case MSA/SOW cant be provided and this will submitted to USCIS.
My question is that , will this alernative work or is it suggested that i talk to my management and get all the document for another client and then submit it.
Can you please help herr?
thanks for your time
I faced the similar type of situation…Answer what I got from the GIT Team is that if your new client and project location is within 150 miles distance of the location of the client mentioned in the initial petition, then this is fine. Otherwise it is not advisable to change the client and project location.
hman1718_infosys,
Submitting another client’s information may not work especially if that client is at a different location, as this would require new LCA. If you cannot get documents from this client, then next best option is to get another client at the same location; if not then submit the delivery manager’s letter as suggested by your immigration team.
Hi Saurabh,
I have done a H4 stamping last year(Dec 2015) along with wife’s H1b stamping. but we didn’t travel to US yet. My H1b petition got picked and approved this year and received I797. but have read over some forum that I94 also will be available with the petition for h1b to be active, but i didnt receive. is my understanding correct? can you please guide?
Rijo, the updated I94 is applicable in the case where the application is Change of status (COS) i. e the applicant is in the US. in your case what you have received is good.
Thank you H1gyaani
Hi,
I have one more doubt regarding DS160. does the client address mentioned in I-129 and DS160 need to match exactly?. though the city,state and the lane are same , building is different(just opposite).
Rijo,
See my response to this question in Q&A forum.
Person receives i-94 when he enters the US
You can get your I94 online
https://i94.cbp.dhs.gov/I94/consent.html;jsessionid=W9L2XynGYdvgPTRsYSK7xrK6TNpZ7s5hj6JqmVTCnZlqn7zQG2P2!122191775
Thanks for the response.
Dear Saurabh,
I read in a blog that all petitions WILL be approved before September. Is that accurate?
While most of the applications are processed by September, there is no guarantee it should be complete by then, there are still some applications pending processing from 2016 (due to RFEs etc though)
Any updates TCSers? Anyone got the lottery results last week or this week?
yes i got my status from my manager today as not selected.
i am from GE capital. Thanks @Saurabh and team for maintaining this forum.
You are from which location?
anyone got updates for series WAC16144****???
Mine is WAC16143***** and everyday, the status is same – “Case was received.”
Same for me as well. My series is same as yours
California Processing times is so slow. Also waiting WAC16143XXXXX.
Many people got their cases approved from this series. I am awaiting mine though
Hi Saurabh,
what this means?.
On May 20, 2016, we transferred your Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, Receipt Number EAC161495****, to another USCIS office. That office now has jurisdiction over your case. We sent you a notice that explains why we moved your case. Please follow the instructions in the notice. If you do not receive your notice by June 19, 2016, please go to www.uscis.gov/e-request to request a copy of the notice. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address
With great respect, why do not you google before posting here or go through comments to find it out on your own.
many people posted this question and many answered.
it means, some cases were transferred to another center to balance the work load.
My thoughts exactly.
Sorry for this.
satya
Thanks for the info Suresh & Shital.
Hi Saurabh and Experts,
Could you please advise me here? my I-129 (H1B Non-AD RP) approved 2 days back and yet to receive approved notice.
I do have 10 years multiple Business visa but haven’t traveled to USA so far, now my current (other) working employer asking me to travel to US and Mexico for 2-3 months.
Is it fine if I can travel now? or any other issues raise either in POE or during H1B visa stamping at my home country?
Kindly explain me consequences and share your thoughts.
Thanks
Sri
can someone advise me? I got to give my decision to current employer by tomorrow..
Thanks
Sri
Hi Saurabh,
Can we update the petition start and expiration date after scheduling visa interview in below site?
https://cgifederal.secure.force.com
Visa Appointment Update,
You cannot change the DS form once interview has been scheduled. When you appear for biometrics, ask the person at the counter to make these changes for you.
Received my receipt number (EAC161435****)today and the status says:
“Case Was Transferred And A New Office Has Jurisdiction”.
Could anyone please let me know what does mean?
Thanks in advance.
Vermont center is moving very slow. All the best to everyone nd keep fingers crossed
what is the full form of “non ad” ?
non-advanced degree (those without a US Masters degree)
Hi Saurabh,
Thanks for patiently replying to our questions.
I got RFE for “specialty occupation”. I am a High Tech Marketer with B.Tech and MBA, from a top US university. Probably, CIS doesn’t believe that a Marketing professional needs Tech Bachelors to perform his duties.
Is it allowed for me to assist my company and attorney, to prepare the response. My organization, although large, usually file H-1B for Engineering professions, so my attorney may not be whole lot experienced in preparing petition for Marketing, leading to this RFE.
Appreciate your comments.
Thanks.
Rajesh
Rajesh,
Yes, you can work with them to file the response. Ultimately, the attorney and employer have to make the call on what needs to be submitted as response, but you can provide them help.
Million thanks, Rajesh. Your input is much appreciated. God bless you.
When I put the case status for about 1000 cases into a visual form, the randomness appears quite striking.
Have a look at https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html
Great job!
Could you please provide a one for EAC1614251***?
Just did for EAC1614653***. Will do other request also.
https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html
EAC1614653XXX…..
as per https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html my case is approved but online status still received ……..which I should follow
I belong to the same series 14653. According to that chart it says approved, but it’s actually not.
Well, I believe there is a small bug in his application. After numerous trail and errors i found that the one before your’s is the actual one.
EAC1614653XXX…..
before me is RFE……online status is received still not actual
Now fixed.
https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html
How to interpret this
For example, if the case number is EAC1614653805, then you should look at row numbered “8” and column “05”. In this case, it is in “Recieved” status.
Colors:
Received
Approved
Approved and my decison …
RFE
Other
Not valid number
Answer should be RFE…..not Received
Could you provide same url for the below series.
EAC161495****
Regards,
Sorry – the data for different series was copied earlier for 653. Now it was fixed. Please check again and comment. Thanks!
I’m sorry, Yes the data up to date now…..Thank you to fix the bug.
Dont follow this….is not true = Please follow its true
Can you please provide the updates for EAC1614252***
Could you do it for this EAC1614755*** serious ?
Status is beautiful,
can you please send for EAC1614651***?
Could you please help me with the following series?
EAC161435****
Hi Could you put the below series also please:
EAC161495****
Can you please also do for EAC1614651****.. please help
My Employer told me last week my application picked in lottery, thnak God, waiting for approval
My employer notified me last april27 that i got picked in the lottery. Provided that they filed for regular processing, when can i expect for the approval of my petition? Is this this august or until september? If there is no rfe.
Camile,
No set processing time. Most of them should be processed by Oct, but some may be delayed beyond that month.
Thank you saurabh! I guess patience is the key.
Hi Saurabh,
Yesterday I got RFE status in Uscis site. How many days would take to reach the details to my Company. So that the needed doc. I could provide to my employer. Mine is RP/ca/ non ad.
RFEChanged,
Usually it is received within 1-2 weeks but the SLA is 30 days.
Hi Saurabh,
How long it will take to get an approval for the RFE response?
RFE response,
Could take few months, but there is no SLA.
Hi Saurabh,
Is it wise to convert RP to PP at this stage ? Will it lead to any unnecessary issues ?
It depends on what company sponsored your H1 and your qualifications.
just processing time varies, rest is same
Does anyone know what is the typical timeperiod USCIS sets for an employer to respond to a RFE?
Mine just went into RFE yesterday and I am not sure if I will get the full details from my employer. .
3 months
Hmmm..ok. Thanks.
3 months for the employer to respond. Hmmm.
For those with this special seres (I mean slowest), here is a full view of status for the range of EAC1614550001 to EAC1614550199
https://worktheme.com/views/eac145.txt
Summary: Out of 191, 126 are in Received, 11 are in approved.
Will do next range also.
Thank you. Could you please share for EAC1614655*** series as well ?
Done
https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html
Hey, can you do the same for the EAC 142 series too if you dont mind? 🙂
Can you ask for more specific range (leaving out last 3 digits)?
Can you give for WAC161415* series
Thanks for the update.
How you got these updates.
Could you help this series also please (EAC161495****).
I can only process a range size of 100 cases. So please specify one more digit of your series, leaving out the last 3 digits.
H1b Aspirant
Can you please help with EAC1614651***
mine is EAC1614953***
Can you please do for this series as well EAC1614651***
hi,
Can you do for EAC1614653***
Thanks !!!
Done.
https://worktheme.com/views/case_status.html
Case before me is approved and previous to that is also approved , case after me is approved and next to it is RFE…only my case is not approved yet bcos it’s RP..not sure wats the pattern they use for approving….WAC161475####
How can one know if the approved case was premium?
dude, if you’re really worried, you would have gone in the PP path.
Just Chill, if your not married yet, go through and try to find a date online.
That makes you feel there are a lot of things harder than H1b.
Awesome response, @Suresh 🙂
True and true!! I would recommend Tinder..
?
Hi, Any one from consultancies got approvals?
consultancies petitions have very low approval rates. i would say less than 30%.
According to what i heard from petitioners for last 4 years
@Suresh – What do you mean by consultancies? Infosys, TCS, Wipro etc? or the smaller unknown services companies?
Infosys and tcs are MNCs.
Small unknown with low balance sheets. in short parasites
Infosys and TCS are parasites, taking all the quota which could be used by real companies like Microsoft and IBM.
Suresh, may be its overall approval percentage.
But till now, any update for 2017 h1 b approvals from consultancies?
My employer has filled H1B for me for FY 2017. My H1B hasn’t picked up in lottery but my packet didn’t return either. Suddenly, On 13th July My employer told me that my check has been cashed but till now my attorney haven’t got any receipt or email and neither I. My employer said, Attorney has filled query regarding my issue. I asked in College regarding my status but they said, They are not seeing any H1B pending on my SEVIS. What do you think about it ? What are my chances ? Would you please tell me how to see case number from check ?
less than 1%
Js,
Looks suspicious. If the check was cashed, then the receipt number should be present behind the check. Did you pay the money to the employer and now employer is looking for excuses to not issue the refund?
I do not want to make case for the employer but just trying to show another point of view. If the cheque was chased as electronic cheque then the bank does not show the image of the cheque now days so may be the employer is not able to see it.
Just trying to play devil’s advocate here. You should wait a week or so because the attorney should receive a paper receipt if it was selected.
Thank you for your response. But I have found out WAC number from my check and check online status ” Case was received”….It says , case was received on 11th April 2016 and my check got cashed on 14th June (I did mistake on last message)2016. Employer called USCIS and ask for update, they said, :”they have only data for case received and check cashed, Nothing else. ” What should I do next ??
Js,
There are several others waiting in similar status message. You need to continue to wait for USCIS to process the petition. It all looks normal at the moment.
I have received the rejection receipt it has a case number starting with VRN…. How do I check the same on uscis website. Please share your thoughts
No way to check it online as it is not a regular application receipt.
Why do you want to check it online if you already have received the rejection
Hi All,
Happy to share with you all, My case EAC1614354XXX has been approved on Aug 4th.
Thanks
H1B_Apr22
Congrats!
Folks, what is the source of the excel sheet below? How far can we believe it?
The source is uscis.gov, data is extracted from it daily using some homebrew parser application, it can easily be verified.
Hi,Any idea if this link is genuine?
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pMsGtKC6sGS2uj4JL3JX5IYytzU5jJO_qJ-UJKXiCr4/htmlview?pli=1#
Looks like the processing is going on in full swing, if this continues we may get to know the result within 10 days.
How 10 days man? Just see total count of visa left. It will still take around 2 months to complete all if they will go to same pace.
Even I doubt if it’s genuine or fake . How could this information get out ? Is it not supposed to be confidential ?
Its dead easy with a simple crawler. spin 10 ec2 spot instances with hundreds of 100s of tor nodes
In less than 10 mins u will know the statuses of all 85k petitions.
all this would cost less than $1 per day. so thank him for doing a free service
Confidentiality ?, others just cant know the person details but approved, denied or RFE status.
Thank who ? I was thinking it was from a different source . So you mean to say anyone can generate it ?
any have idea from last year approval (FY2016) what was the percentage of approval by this time around?
Still waiting since april 11.
42%
Just kidding, no body except USCIS can tell you that and unfortunately, they won’t release the data
i just checked above and below 200 numbers near my number, only 2-3 got approved.rest are all case received status
Good analysis, so what is your conclusion?
My petition is denied today on directly from case was received status . my consultancies are legal and their are few petition got approved from the same consultancies.
My consultancies was ask the reason and we didn’t get any reply from USCIS.
sorry to hear the news ….which consultancy it is
so in place of your petition one guy will get lucky to come in.
what is your case number
its sad to hear. please, reveal such consultancies’ names and save others from those
RIP English,,,, USCIS somehow got to know your English skills. hence the result.
Don’t worry, apply through the same consultancy again next year
H1B_Disappointed,
If no RFE was issued, then your attorney has a good case to argue. They should have issued RFE before denying the case. Did you do single filing or multiple?
@Saurabh
If we are filling multiple application from different consultancies ..What kind of RFE questions will be asked?
H1bNextTime,
USCIS may issue RFE to show that the companies are really not related and haven’t conspired to file multiple petitions for their employees together.
Hello Sourabh,
While I was working for the company A, a desi consultancy has filed the I-129 petition for me and it got picked in the lottery and waiting in the “Received” status. Meanwhile, I changed job from company A to company B (current company). Now I wonder whether I should file an amendment stating my current employment. Do the USICS/India consulate really care about where I’m currently working?
no one cares abt your current company. its all about between u and ur sponsor.
current_company,
Change in employers has no impact on your processing.
Hello– Pls help
Hello All/Saurabh,
Could you please help one below. Urgent pls.
1) My USCIS case # EAC16147XXXXX. My case not yet approved. Could you please help me any one have any idea why it takes so long.
2) Currently i am on L1 visa and it will expire on 5th Aug 2016 ( Processed L1 Extension). If my H1B get approved, do i need to withdrew my L1 extension or will it get automatically cancelled.
3) Before approving the H1B will USCIS go to client location and do any Inspection?
4) Can we change the current company after H1B approved or we need to wait for I-797?
Hi All,
My case has been approved yesterday (4th Aug). Case Number : EAC16143XXXXX
Why are you scared of Inspection?
You aren’t doing a crime. No need to change company, cheap labor.
Hello– Pls help,
1. Based upon historical data, this processing time is normal and not delayed. Every year it takes these many months.
2. L-1 extension is not automatically canceled. You will have to cancel it if you want to continue working on H-1
3. It varies from case to case. They may or may not in your case
4. Who is your current employer – L-1 employer or H-1 employer or are both the same? Assuming they are different and you want to leave L-1 employer, then you need to join H-1 employer from COS effective date which is mentioned in 797 approval document.
Directly my petition is denied on today (Aug 4) . Any idea how it happened
Did you apply through one of the blacklisted consultancies?
Fake Consultancy …….why you say is blacklisted consultancies? it can be some other reason like documents fake, not up to date documents for H1B qualifications and can be many reason….need to find out….. 😛
Well if you think about it, the documents are fake – the guy would not have asked the question, h1b qualifications – it would go to RFE first unless he submitted petition will just 10th grade degree.
@Ramesh,
You will get an mail from USCIS stating what was the reason for rejection.
Get in touch with who ever applied for you, mail will be sent to them.
Ramesh,
Get details from official communication from USCIS about the reason for denial, your employer can apply for MTR (Motion to reconsider) if you think that denial was in error or you can provide them valid reasons to reconsider.
whats your number?
ramesh k,
They shouldn’t have denied it w/o issuing RFE first. Did you file multiple petitions?
My employer has filled H1B for me for FY 2016. My H1B hasn’t picked up in lottery but my packet didn’t return either. Suddenly, My employer told me that my check has been cashed but still now my attorney haven’t got any receipt or email and neither I. My employer said, Attorney has filled query regarding my issue. I asked in College regarding my status but they said, They are not seeing any H1B pending on my SEVIS. What do you think about it ? What are my chances ? Would you please tell me how to see case number from check ?
My employer has filled H1B for me for FY 2016. My H1B hasn’t picked up in lottery but my packet didn’t return either. Suddenly, On 13th July My employer told me that my check has been cashed but still now my attorney haven’t got any receipt or email and neither I. My employer said, Attorney has filled query regarding my issue. I asked in College regarding my status but they said, They are not seeing any H1B pending on my SEVIS. What do you think about it ? What are my chances ? Would you please tell me how to see case number from check ?
Hello All/Saurabh,
Could you please help one below. Urgent pls.
1) My USCIS case # EAC16147XXXXX. My case not yet approved. Could you please help me any one have any idea why it takes so long.
2) Currently i am on L1 visa and it will expire on 5th Aug 2016 ( Processed L1 Extension). If my H1B get approved, do i need to withdrew my L1 extension or will it get automatically cancelled.
3) Before approving the H1B will USCIS go to client location and do any Inspection?
4) Can we change the current company after H1B approved or we need to wait for I-797?
Admin need to clear the irrelevant messages.
Hi All,
My H1B visa got approved last month. I would like to know will it be an issue if i renew my passport before the Visa Stamping. My passport gets expire by end of 2017, also I want to add spouse name in my passport. Can you please advise ?
Thanks
H1B_and_Passport_Renewal,
No issue. Update the passport and then appear for visa stamping.
Thanks a lot Saurabh for the update.
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1pMsGtKC6sGS2uj4JL3JX5IYytzU5jJO_qJ-UJKXiCr4/htmlview?pli=1#
I do not understand the excel, why do you have DAY column with 125 – 149 are those the series?
All,
This is what I am seeing still, I am not sure if its picked or not, please helps.
*****************
On April 14, 2016, we received your Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, Receipt Number WAC1614****, and sent you the receipt notice that describes how we will process your case. Please follow the instructions in the notice. If you do not receive your receipt notice by May 11, 2016, please call Customer Service at 1-800-375-5283. If you move, go to www.uscis.gov/addresschange to give us your new mailing address.
Oh my God..Did u really Get this mail..It means you are granted Visa of Uganda..and the job u seek is sprinting in front of with a fast train with a torch in hand..since trains torch doesnt work..hadd hoti hai
This proves dumb people apply for h1 visa,once the visa got picked then they will get trained in technology,proxy interview and then backup support job.
Why? Just because someone is not aware of the H1B process does not mean they are not good engineers. H1B is a complicated process and is not easy to follow for the first timers.
You guys have been applying for multiple years with multiple consultancies and think you know everything about H1B because you have some experience of the process.
Hello 1st Time.
It means that you petition was picked in the lottery.
Your case number is WAC1614****
The service center that will be processing your petition is California Service Center
So far your petition has not been reviewed. Nothing to worry at this point. Looks like many people are still waiting for the approval. Good Luck
This means you r a Chutiyaa…..
Hello All,
My L1B individual petition status change to “Request for Additional Evidence Was Mailed” and my H1b petition status is still “Case Was Received”.
My concern is that my L1B petition will affect my H1B petition approval process?
If you dont respond to L1 RFE, it gets expired. Choice is urs. L1 or H1, you cannot have both.
L1B and H1B,
One petition won’t impact the other. The only impact could be on COS (if applied w/ H-1). When did your L-1 expired?
Thanks Everyone for reply!
@Saurabh: My L1 is not expired, my Company file my L1- individual on Jan 2016 and in Aug I got RFE.
And in April my company applied for H1 as well and it got picked in lottery and status is “Case received”.
I want to go for H1 as I can switch job with this visa, and with L1 i have to be stick with my current company.
So my query is should I respond to L1 individual and go for it, and once H1 is approved I will cancel my L1. Is this makes sense.
L1B and H1B,
Wait!!! Are you inside US or not? If not, then one’s denial doesn’t impact the other. Let both of them process and they will meet their own individual mutually exclusive fate.
Thanks Saurabh!
I am not in US. I’ll respond to RFE for L1B individual and also wait for status change in H1B and let it process with L1B.
Latest update
My H1 is approved
My L1b is in RFE
I am still planning to respond to L1b RFE.
Anyone here received approval after RFE?
I did 🙂
was it on speciality occupation?
How much time it took to get approval after submitting rfe response?
Was it regarding speciality occupation?
How much time it took to get approval once RFE response sent?
i did. My RFE was for in house employment….The RFE response was received by USCIS on last Friday and I got the approval notice email on Wednesday.
Atlast my petition got approved .This is my second time .Non AD/RP/VT
Congrats! Your receipt num series?
EAC16143******…..
Hi Sourabh
Company A (different from my current company) sponsored my H1. My case has been selected in H1 lottery for 2017. But I am waiting for petition approval and subsequent Visa stamping
Meanwhile my current company is willing to send me to US on L1. If I travel to US on this L1 and in future can I switch to H1 which is already picked up in 2016 lottery?
If yes do I have to go through lottery again?
What is the procedure?
L1 is not garenteed , Most of my colleagues who applied on L1 are rejected, H1b has more probability than L1.
You can travel on L1, you can transfer to h1 there as CAP exempt-COS case (in other words, you won’t have to go through lottery).
Word of caution : During this time, IT services companies dangle this L1 carrot when they come to know about H1 selection, however L1 approval rate is still not good and there are many rejections.
Choose wisely!
You cannot go on a L1, as H1 preceeds L1 in any case. Once your H1 is approved, you will have to stay on H1 status unless you forfeit/withdraw your H1 and move to L1. I also faced similar situation so answering based on what happened to me.
Neeraj,
I agree w/ H1gyaani’s response. You can enter on L-1 and then apply H-1 COS cap-exempt. No need to go through the lottery again. This can be done by any employer (old or new).
If there is a change in the status, say from pending to approved or RFE , how soon will it be reflected in the USCIS page? Will it be done immediately or it takes time for it to be updated.
Mostly, immediately.
Has anybody from TCS has heard anything about H1-B petition? None of my friend s in TCS who are selected in lottery has got any update be it RFE or approval…
No update bro. Didn’t heard from any of my frnds in TCS who got selected in lottery.
Frustratation Level increasing day by day.
I have not even got my lottery result 🙁 Really frustrating.. Anyone please share your thoughts..
They have the receipt numbers but not sharing .I dont know what kindoff TCS senior management is there.
Hi,
CapGemini had filed my visa. I spoke to the concerned person, he told me that they havent recieved anything for my name. Neither the rejection letter nor the acceptance letter. Neither did they share the petition number. Does that mean there is still a ray of hope?
If you didn’t get receipt number i.e. the game was over long back.
Leave all the hope. Everyone got petition number who has been picked in lottery.
I am also from Capgemini. They have shared Receipt number via HCM portal for those who are selected in Lottery.
Hello Nero,
Are you from Capgemini FS? do you know anybody got Approval/REF?
KK,
Well, the employer should contact USCIS and follow-up on the case.
Hello KK,
Capgemini FS has already informed candiadate about his/her status. They have sent mail for selection first and then they shared mail of receipt number. They have also processed my h1b and sent every details till date.
Hi Saurabh,
I received RFE for Specialty occupation. I am US Masters, working in Marketing domain, with a large Tech employer.
May I request your advice on how to respond to this particular category of RFE.
Would providing job req, against which I was hired, that had requirement for B.Tech, be beneficial. What would be other documents, that can help me.
Thank you so much.
Best.
Rajesh
Rajesh,
In addition to that submit job openings for similar positions for your employer or their peers. This would show that people with your profile are eligible for this position elsewhere as well. You can also show how your skills are relevant to the offered position.
I have got RFE(employee-employer relationship) for my H1B petition. Can somebody tell me how much time is provided to submit the response of RFE as my employer is not telling me the last date.
3 months it will take, better make it premium it will take max 20 days.
Ajay Garg,
Exact time is mentioned in the RFE document. I think it is 90 days (or may be 60).
I am Non-Ad/RP/VT. My receipt number is EAC1614852XXX series. Anyone got any update in this series……? Really its frustrating now… more than 3months after lottery result. Hope we start to get the positive updates soon
No updates yaaar..
148 series.
Patience tested to the core
I have EAC1614851XXX and I’m still waiting
Whats your third last number.. I think our series almost matches
EAC16148524XX
i am also in the same boat(148 series )
will wait and watch