Editor-DN
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services or USCIS has announced that they have received enough applications to meet the H-1B visa cap.
So, can more people apply or will they be rejected?
The US government has mandated a congressional cap of 65,000 H-1B visas for regular applicants and an additional 20,000 visas for US advanced degree holders.
The agency has informed that it will send non-election notices to registered candidates through their online accounts. After the notification is complete the status will later read, “Not Selected: Not Selected – Not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration”.
The H-1B cap lottery comes into the picture after applications exceed the annual cap set by the US government. After that, a lottery system is used to process the applications.
The deadline for submitting H-1B cap petitions was June 30, 2024, but since the date falls on a Sunday, properly registered petitions received on July 1, 2024 will also be considered in time.
However, USCIS will continue to accept and process applications that are exempt from the cap.
“We will continue to accept and process petitions filed by current H-1B workers to extend their stay in the United States; to modify the terms of employment for current H-1B workers; to allow current H-1B workers to remain in the United States; Employers will allow replacement ; and allow existing H-1B workers to work in additional H-1B positions,” USCIS said.
The visa lottery is a complex process and must be followed in detail. It is advisable to keep an eye on the notifications sent by USCIS and not miss important deadlines or information.
In general, the majority of H-1B visa holders are Indians (72.3% of the total 386,000 H-1B visas issued), however USCIS data shows a decline in sponsorship at large firms such as Google, Amazon, Infosys and IBM.
