Update on H-1B Cap Count - May 11, 2009

Murali Bashyam of Bashyam & Spiro

On May 11, 2009, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it still has received only 45,000 H-1B petitions counting toward the 65,000 regular H-1B cap. Additionally, USCIS has received approximately 20,000 petitions for aliens with advanced degrees. They will continue to accept H-1B applications for both the regular and advanced-degree H-1B caps until the caps are reached.

At this rate, it is unclear whether the H-1B cap will even be reached this year.   With the USCIS targeting the Information Technology Consulting industry with Requests for Evidence, it's quite likely that companies will refrain from filing new H-1B applications in the near future.  Our guess is that some companies will think twice before filing new H-1B petitions over the summer. 

www.bashyamspiro.com.