This Article is From Mar 21, 2018

H-1B Application Process To Begin From April 2; Premium Processing Suspended

According to the USCIS, between 2007 and 2017, it received the maximum number of 2.2 million H-1B petitions from high-skilled Indians.

H-1B Application Process To Begin From April 2; Premium Processing Suspended

The H-1B petition filing is for the fiscal year 2019 beginning October 1, 2018.

Washington: The United States has announced the suspension of premium processing of all H-1B visa petitions for fiscal year 2019. The  US Citizenship and Immigration Services or USCIS said it will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year 2019 cap. The move is aimed at reducing "overall H-1B processing times", it said.

"We will notify the public before resuming premium processing for cap-subject H-1B petitions or making any other premium processing updates," the federal agency announced today.

The USCIS also announced petitions for H1-B visas will be accepted from April 2.

The H1B visa - popular among Indian IT professionals - is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China 

The H-1B petition filing is for the fiscal year 2019 beginning October 1, 2018.

The suspension of premium processing of all H-1B petitions which are subject to the annual caps is expected to last until September 10, 2018. During this time, the USCIS said it will continue to accept premium processing requests for H-1B petitions that are not subject to the fiscal 2019 cap.
 
h1 b visa

The H1-B visa has an annual numerical limit cap of 65,000 visas each fiscal year as mandated by the Congress.

At the same time, the USCIS said while premium processing is suspended, a petitioner may submit a request to expedite an FY 2019 cap-subject H-1B petition if it meets the expedited criteria.

The USCIS said it has currently been unable to process due to the high volume of incoming petitions and the significant surge in premium processing requests over the past few years.

As an H-1B non-immigrant, the applicant may be admitted for a period of up to three years. The time period may be extended, but generally cannot go beyond a total of six years. However, there are some exceptions to it.

The H1-B visa has an annual cap of 65,000 visas each fiscal year as mandated by the Congress. The first 20,000 petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries with a US master's degree or higher are exempt from the cap.

Additionally, H1-B workers who are petitioned for or employed at an institution of higher education or its affiliated or related nonprofit entities or a nonprofit research organisation or a government research organisation are not subject to this numerical cap.

According to the USCIS, between 2007 and 2017, it received the maximum number of 2.2 million H-1B petitions from high-skilled Indians. India was followed by China with 301,000 H-1B petitions during the same period.

(with inputs from PTI)
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