The USCIS announced receipt of 30,300 cap-subject H-1B visa petitions as of April 13. Compared with the tally of 25,600 H-1B visa petitions filed as of April 9, it appears that USCIS received 4700 additional H-1B petitions over four days. Projecting from this, it appears that remaining H-1B petitions are being claimed at a rate of 1175 per day. If this rate remains constant, all H-1B numbers for the upcoming fiscal year may be gone by the end of May 2012. This is a much faster rate of H-1B visa consumption as compared with last year. Therefore, employers are urged to move as quickly as possible to file H-1B petitions for foreign professional candidates they hope to place in the coming year ahead. Once cap-subject H-1B visa numbers are exhausted, employers will be unable to hire new foreign workers in H-1B status until October 1, 2013. Please contact your Jackson & Hertogs attorney if you have questions about this year’s H-1B visa cap.

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