Based on an update from the USCIS issued today, there were 172,500 H-1B petitions received under the Fiscal Year 2015 Quota Count during this year's filing period from April 1 to April 7, 2014. This final official cutoff figure included both the regular cap-subject H-1B filing and the advanced degree holders' cap filings, 48,500 more than the total for the same period last year.
Today, April 10, 2014, USCIS completed a computer-generated random selection process, or lottery, to have selected enough petitions to meet the 65,000 general-category cap and 20,000 cap under the advanced degree exemption, out of those 172,500 total H-1B petitions received during the filing period before the cutoff date. For cap-subject petitions not randomly selected, USCIS will reject and return them to the petitioners or petitioners' attorneys along with original filing fees, unless it is found to be a duplicate filing.
So, in the next few weeks, if you do not receive the returned package, it is probably good news that your petition might have been selected for continued processing. For those who might be receiving the rejected packages from the USCIS, it is imperative that you maintain your nonimmigrant status while in the US before the next year's filing season arrives in about a year, and we will keep you updated as more information becomes available.
If you have any questions about this posting or are concerned about your chances of being rejected, you can email your questions to us here at:
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