CAP-Subject H-1B Petitions for FY 2016 Will Be Accepted By USCIS as of Wednesday, April 1, 2015
Employers are encouraged to begin planning now for future H-1B hires, as cap-subject H-1B petitions will be accepted by USCIS as of Wednesday, April 1, 2015 for an employment start date of October 1, 2015, or later. Typically, individuals who are currently working in OPT status as F-1 students or J-1 trainees, or individuals seeking to change to H-1B status from another visa status, and individuals outside of the United States, commonly require a cap-subject H-1B petition be filed on their behalf.
The H-1B visa allows employers to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require the theoretical or practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge, and is typically used to sponsor a wide range of professional occupations such as engineers, pharmacists, physicians, scientists, computer programmers, and architects, among many other professions.
Federal law limits the number of new H-1B visas that are available each fiscal year to 65,000. Of that total, 6,800 visas are reserved for citizens of Chile and Singapore pursuant to Free Trade Agreements. In addition to the 65,000 H-1B visas made available each fiscal year under the “regular” cap, an additional 20,000 H-1B visas are made available for beneficiaries who have obtained an advanced degree (Master’s degree or higher) from a U.S. academic institution at the time of filing.
If the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) receives more cap-subject H-1B petitions than the annual fiscal year limitation, USCIS will conduct a computer-generated random selection process, or lottery.
Not all H-1B petitions are subject to the annual fiscal year limitation. H-1B petitions that are filed to extend or amend H-1B employment for foreign workers who are already in H-1B status either for the same or a different company, and petitions filed on behalf of new workers to be employed in H-1B status by institutions of higher education or related nonprofit entities, nonprofit research organizations, or governmental research organizations, are exempt from the H-1B annual cap.
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