Today, USCIS finally released news about H1b petitions received on Monday and during the week. They have received more petitions than visas available. The USCIS will now conduct a lottery of all petitions.
Many people have asked me about likely timing of receiving receipt notices. My guess is that it will take at least 4-5 weeks to receive receipt notices to know if one is lucky or not to be in the pool of adjudications. If your petition is not picked in the lottery, your petition will be returned with the filing fees.
I have also been asked about premium processing. Premium processing has been suspended until April 15. So, for those who have filed for premium processing will learn about those after April 15.
It is noteworthy that last year, when such a high number was not received, processing time was well over 5-6 months. I had a case when the request for further evidence was received post-October. Please be prepared for that too.
As more news develops, we will be sure to update you. Below is a copy of the notice from USCIS.
USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2014. USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption. After today, USCIS will not accept H-1B petitions subject to the FY 2014 cap or the advanced degree exemption.
USCIS will use a computer-generated random selection process (commonly known as the “lottery”) for all FY 2014 cap-subject petitions received through April 5, 2013. The agency will conduct the selection process for advanced degree exemption petitions first. All advanced degree petitions not selected will be part of the random selection process for the 65,000 limit. Due to the high number of petitions received, USCIS is not yet able to announce the exact day of the random selection process. Also, USCIS is currently not providing the total number of petitions received, as we continue to accept filings today. USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap.
USCIS will provide more detailed information about the H-1B cap next week.
For more information about USCIS and its programs, please visit www.uscis.gov or follow us on Twitter (@uscis), YouTube (/uscis) and the USCIS blog The Beacon.