H1B Visa Lottery Update

In the past few days we have been getting numerous questions from clients as to what is going on with their cases filed for fiscal year (FY) 2008. The fate of the cases is starting to be determined. We are continuing to receive receipt notices for our H1B cap subject cases that were selected in the lottery. The notifications for cases not selected in the lottery started to arrive on April 30, 2007. The USCIS has set May 11th as their deadline for issuing regular cap receipt notices.

If a case was selected in the regular H1B cap lottery, the USCIS will issue a receipt notice dated after April 12, 2007. As discussed above, they have set May 11th as their deadline for issuing receipt notices to the selected cases. The USCIS will also cash the filing fee checks. If a case was not accepted, the entire filing will be returned to the employer or employer's representative. The filing fee checks will not be cashed. So we will find out via snail mail. (Premium processing cases receive eMail notification of the receipt notice, so their answer may come via eMail.)

As for the Masters H1B cap, we are still waiting for the advanced-degree cap announcement. All cases filed before the cutoff date will have a cap number available to them. The most recent count available at this time is for April 30th. Therefore, all advanced-degree cases filed before that date have an H1B cap exemption number available.

Many clients feel that their life is on hold in this waiting period of uncertainty. Will they be selected in the lottery or not. Many good quality applicants will not get visas because of the broken system. There's just no excuse for keeping the door closed to so many of the world's best and brightest.