Today, USCIS reported that, as of April 5, 2013, it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for Fiscal Year 2014. As of April 5, 2013, USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions on behalf of persons exempt from the regular cap under the advanced degree exemption. USCIS has reported that cap-subject petitions received after April 5, 2013 for H-1B specialty occupation workers seeking an employment start date in FY 2014 (October 1, 2013 or after) will be rejected. USCIS will use a computer-generated random selection process (commonly known as the “lottery”) for all FY 2014 cap-subject petitions received through April 5, 2013.
USCIS will announce the exact day of the random selection process and provide more detailed information regarding the total number of H-1B cap petitions next week. We will monitor USCIS communications and keep you apprised of any developments as they become available. Please contact your GT attorney if you have questions about your specific case. To access the USCIS announcement, please click here.
UPDATE: According to the USCIS, the agency has received approximately 124,000 H-1B petitions during the filing period, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption. On April 7, 2013, USCIS used a computer-generated random selection process (commonly known as a “lottery”) to select a sufficient number of petitions for the caps of 65,000 for the general category and 20,000 under the advanced degree exemption limit. For cap-subject petitions that were not randomly selected, USCIS will reject and return the petition with filing fees, unless it is found to be a duplicate filing. The agency conducted the selection process for advanced degree exemption petitions first. All advanced degree petitions not selected during the initial lottery were part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit.