On April 13, 2015, the United States Citizenship and Immigration services (USCIS) announced that it had completed the H-1B Cap Random Selection Process for Fiscal Year 2016.
USCIS received nearly 233,000 H-1B petitions during the filing period, which began April 1, including petitions filed for the advanced degree exemption. Using a computer-generated random selection process, or lottery, USCIS selected enough petitions to meet the 65,000 general-category cap and the 20,000 cap under the advanced degree exemption.
USCIS first selected petitions for the advanced degree exemption. All unselected advanced degree petitions then became part of the random selection process for the 65,000 general category limit. USCIS will reject all unselected H-1B cap petitions and return all filing fees.
On April 27, 2015, USCIS will begin the 15-day premium processing period for cap-subject H-1B petitions requesting premium processing, including petitions seeking an exemption for individuals with a U.S. master’s degree or higher, regardless of the date on the Form I-797 receipt notice, which indicates the date that the premium processing fee was received.
Please note that USCIS will continue to accept petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap and did not include them in the lottery process These include:
- Requests for extension of stay for current H-1B workers;
- Change in terms of employment for current H-1B workers;
- Change of employer petitions for individuals already in H-1B status; and
- Petitions to allow H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second position.
In addition, petitions for new H-1B employment are not subject to the annual quota if the foreign professional will be employed at an institution of higher education or a related or affiliated nonprofit entity, or at a nonprofit research organization or a governmental research organization.
For more information: USCIS completes the H-1B cap random selection process for FY 2016 (USCIS website, 4/13/15)
