Under the interim final regulation, if USCIS receives a sufficient number of petitions
to satisfy the cap at any time during the first five business days on which petitions
for the upcoming fiscal year may be received, all cap-subject petitions received
during the first five business days will be included in the random-selection lottery.
Stakeholders should anticipate that there will be sufficient cap-subject H-1B
petitions filed for the H-1B cap to be met on April 1, thus triggering the regulation
that includes all petitions filed on April 1st though April 7th.
Question 1. Will the California Service Center and Vermont Service
Center be accepting deliveries from courier services (e.g., DHL, FedEx, UPS, other
approved couriers, etc.) throughout the day on April 1 though April 7?
Answer: Yes. USCIS will accept deliveries through close of business
from April 1-7, 2008, based on the recent press release. Close of business means
5:00 pm local time at the location of the Service Center. However, on the last
day (April 7, 2008), USCIS will accept deliveries from couriers until 7 pm local
time.
Question 2. During what hours will California Service Center
and Vermont Service Center be accepting deliveries from courier services (e.g.,
DHL, FedEx, UPS, other approved couriers, etc.) on April 1 through April 7?
Answer: USCIS will accept deliveries from 6 am through 5 pm,
local time. However, on the last day (April 7, 2008), USCIS will accept deliveries
from couriers until 7 pm, local time.
Question 3. How will USCIS handle petitions filed via U.S. Postal
Service (USPS)? If a petition is delivered to the P.O. Box designated by the USCIS
on April 1 through April 7, will USCIS treat those petitions as timely filed and
include thim in the random selection process?
Answer: USCIS does not consider the package received or timely
filed until it is actually on-site at the Service Center. The service centers
pick up orrespondence delivered to the P.O. Box at one or more scheduled times
during the day. Therefore, while customers may file applications by USPS at the
P.O. Box, delivery to that P.O. Box does not ensure that the filing will be picked
up by the USCIS the same day it is placed in the P.O. Box by the USPS, and thus,
will not be considered timely filed.
Question 4. Will the California Service Center and the Vermont
Service Center accept as timely filed a cap-subject H-1B petition that is aboard
a delivery truck and in line for delivery prior to the time that the Service Centers
stop accepting deliveries.
Answer: If at 7 pm on April 7, 2008 there are still trucks attempting
to deliver packages, the Service Centers will work out a process to get those
packages into the system.
Question 5. What are the accepted methods of delivery of petition
packages to the Service Centers?
Answer: Due to security concerns packages are only accepted using
the specific delivery methods noted below. Attempted delivery by any other method
will result in rejection of the petition package. The following delivery methods
are acceptable:
- United States Postal Service
- Private Couriers that are bonded (eg. DHL, Federal Express, United Parcel
Service.)
Common mistakes are packages that filed using the following methods:
- Hand delivered to the Service Center
- Sent via taxi cab to the Service Center
- Sent via private courier that is not bonded
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