On April 17, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the H-1B work visa lottery for the 2018 fiscal year had concluded. Since the agency began accepting applications for the new fiscal year on the 3rd of this month, it has received a total of 199,000 applications. This figure is far below the 300,000 to 400,000 originally predicted by outside observers and marks the first time the number has fallen below 200,000 since 2014. The H-1B is the most commonly used non-immigrant visa for foreign high-tech workers. The original intent behind the U.S. issuing these visas was to allow American employers to find high-tech talent that is urgently needed but in short supply domestically. However, due to the abuse of this visa in recent years, some members of Congress and political figures have called for raising the threshold and implementing stricter reviews.
President Trump has consistently emphasized "America First," urging companies to hire more Americans. After USCIS began accepting H-1B work visa applications for the 2018 fiscal year, it specifically reminded the public that it is closely monitoring the application process and stated that it would conduct targeted site visits to the workplaces of visa applicants. The U.S. Department of Justice has also issued a warning to employers filing H-1B petitions for foreign workers not to discriminate against American workers, with a focus on outsourcing firms. This atmosphere may have had a dampening effect on this year's H-1B visa applications.
USCIS: H-1B Work Visa Lottery Concluded
On Monday, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the H-1B work visa lottery for the 2018 fiscal year has concluded. This year, the agency received a total of 199,000 work visa applications. Through a random selection process, 65,000 regular cap applications and 20,000 advanced degree (master's or higher) exemption applications were selected. Unselected applications will be returned in due course. USCIS began accepting H-1B applications for the 2018 fiscal year on the 3rd of this month and announced on April 7 that the cap had been reached. Out of the 199,000 H-1B applications received, USCIS conducted a computer-generated random lottery on April 11 to select the 65,000 regular quota spots and 20,000 advanced degree exemption spots. The selection process involved first drawing 20,000 spots from the applications meeting the advanced degree exemption requirements, and then drawing the remaining 65,000 spots from the pool of all other applications. Compared to previous years, this lottery process remained unchanged.
In just a few days, the 65,000 regular quota spots for H-1B visas were exhausted.
USCIS will return unselected applications and filing fees, but specifically emphasized that "duplicate filings" are an exception (filing fees will not be refunded).
On March 3 of this year, USCIS issued a notice announcing the suspension of premium processing for H-1B visa applications. The suspension may last for up to six months, as the agency aims to reduce overall processing times for all H-1B applications and address long-pending (approaching 240 days) H-1B extension cases. In the "lottery concluded" notice, USCIS specifically reiterated and emphasized this point.
The agency stated on the same day that H-1B applications exempt from the cap may continue to be submitted. Furthermore, USCIS will continue to accept H-1B extension applications, as well as applications from H-1B holders regarding changes in employment conditions, changes of employer, and second H-1B positions. (Reported by Qiaobao reporter Xu Yifan)
Stricter Scrutiny: H-1B Visa Applications Fall Below 200,000 for the First Time in 5 Years
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on Monday that H-1B work visa applications for the 2018 fiscal year totaled less than 200,000, the first time this has occurred since 2014.
It appears that the number of foreigners wishing to work in the United States has decreased significantly.
According to a report by CNNMoney, the U.S. only issues 85,000 H-1B work visas annually, but demand has surged over the past few years.
This year, USCIS began accepting applications on April 3 and stopped accepting them on April 7, marking the fifth consecutive year that the cap was reached in less than five days. In just five days, USCIS received a total of 199,000 H-1B work visa applications.
Since 2013, the number of H-1B applications has been steadily increasing. In 2016, the agency received 236,000 H-1B applications during the same period. The drop to below 200,000 this year caught many by surprise, as many had previously predicted that H-1B applications would surge to between 300,000 and 400,000 this year.
The H-1B is the most commonly used visa for foreign high-tech workers, but it is receiving increasing attention. This visa was originally intended to fill the gap in skilled workers in the U.S., but critics, including the Trump administration, are concerned about its abuse.