Hello and welcome to the April 2014 Immigration Newsletter!
In the run-up to the H-1B cap 2015 filing season, VisaPro had predicted that intense competition would significantly bring down the odds of winning the FY2015 H-1B lottery and that the odds of getting selected would be 2 out of 4. 10 days into April, it was proven that VisaPro’s H1B Predictions hit the bull’s-eye!
USCIS received approximately 172,500 H-1B petitions for the FY2015 H-1B cap for 85,000 H-1B visas (65,000 in general-category cap and 20,000 under the advanced degree exemption) during the filing period which began April 1, 2014. USCIS completed the computer-generated random selection process (“H-1B lottery”) on April 10, 2014 to select enough petitions to meet the 65,000 general-category cap and 20,000 cap under the advanced degree exemption. USCIS began premium processing for theseH-1B petitions on April 28, 2014.
With the H-1B cap exhausted, employers (except cap-exempt organizations) who want to file new H-1B petitions will now have to wait until April 1, 2015 for a start date no sooner than October 1, 2015! To learn more on how you must evaluate and utilize alternatives to the H-1B category, visit What Would You Do If the H-1B Cap is Reached?
In other news, April saw the Obama Administration announce a series of new steps aimed at strengthening entrepreneurship and accelerating the success of entrepreneurs in the United States. The While House also announced that DHS will soon publish several proposed rules that will make the U.S. more attractive to talented foreign entrepreneurs and other high-skill immigrants, including rules authorizing employment for individuals on H-4 status, as well as enhancing opportunities for outstanding professors and researchers. The Fact Sheet, however, did not outline any timeline for the implementation of the above proposals and it is unclear if one should expect much progress on these proposals in the immediate future. We at VisaPro continue to monitor these developments and will keep our readers updated.
In an employment-based Green Card update, the Department of State (DOS) Visa Bulletin for May 2014 saw the EB-2 priority date remain at 11/15/04 in respect to India and marginal advancement was witnessed in EB-2 dates in respect to mainland China. In the EB-3 category, the priority date remained at 10/01/12 in respect to all other countries other than India and the Philippines. The EB-3 priority dates advanced by about 2 weeks in respect to India and by about 4.5 months in respect to Philippines.
Immigration Articles and Other Fun Stuff:
Our ‘Featured Video’ for this month is “Opening a New Office in US using the L-1 Intra-Company Transfer Visa”, in which we showcase how the ‘New Office’ L-1 Visa offers a great way to start operations and gives senior managers and executives a fast track to the U.S. Green Card under the EB-1 category. Please check out and subscribe to our YouTub channel to take advantage of another great service provided to you by VisaPro.
Check out our ‘In Focus’ article for this month titled “H1B Cap Exempt – Are You Eligible?” in which we explain the several exemptions that raise the actual number of new H-1Bs each year and how employers and employees could accomplish H-1B filings without falling prey to the H-1B cap.
Every month we introduce a new and interesting question for our opinion poll. Results of our previous poll indicate that a majority of the respondents (60%) think that the increasing L-1B denial rates, as suggested by a recent NFAP report, will have a significant negative impact on the ability of U.S. businesses to compete and grow globally.We continue to appreciate that people take interest in the opinion question and cast their votes to give us their feedback. Keep it up! And continue to cast your vote to express Your Opinion.
We also congratulate Kim for winning last month’s Immigration Quiz. While we received more than one correct response to the quiz question, Kim gave the best answer and won a free online consultation to discuss the concerned Immigration issues. It’s time to get ready for this month’s quiz. If you know the correct answer your name might be featured in next month’s newsletter. All the Best!!!
See you next month with a lot more noise from the Immigration World!
