Lottery for H1B Cap Cases Updated April 12, 2007
Posted Apr 20, 2007
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The USCIS announced on April 13, 2007, that the process of random selection of cap-subject H1B petitions is complete. This process is generally referred to as the lottery. The USCIS received 123,480 cap-subject H1B cases on April 2 and 3, 2007. Since this greatly exceeds the H1B cap allocation, the cases underwent a lottery selection to determine which H1B petitions would be selected by the USCIS for review. The lottery was explained in our April 13, 2007 article, H1B Lottery Starting April 12, 2007, available on MurthyDotCom.
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Premium Processing for Regular H1Bs & Advanced-Degree Cap Approvals
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These cases are ready for processing now that the lottery is complete. The premium processing 15-day deadline for regular H1B cap cases began on April 12, 2007. The delay in starting premium processing was covered in our April 13, 2007 MurthyBulletin article, Premium Processing for H1B Cap Cases, also available on MurthyDotCom. Those U.S. advanced-degree cap cases that filed under premium processing on April 2nd or 3rd for Fiscal year (FY) 2008, are being processed by the USCIS with the 15-day processing time. The Murthy Law Firm and others have already started receiving those approvals for the U.S. advanced-degree quota cases.
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USCIS Issuance of Duplicate H1B Receipt Notices
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The USCIS has stated that the properly-filed H1B cases accepted for adjudication will be issued new receipt notices. It should be noted that we at the Murthy Law Firm had already received receipt notices for some of our regular and premium-processing H1B cap cases prior to the lottery selection process. Thus, a receipt alone does not mean that the case has been correctly accepted, particularly those issued before April 12, 2007. The USCIS clarified this matter on April 16, 2007. Essentially, they started issuing receipt notices initially, but subsequently changed their procedure. The initial receipts have been voided, and those H1B petitions selected in the computer-generated lottery on April 12, 2007, will be (or have already been) issued new receipt notices with new receipt numbers. More information on this can be found in our April 20, 2007 MurthyBulletin article, Confusion with H1B Cases Being Issued Two Receipts, available on MurthyDotCom.
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Cases Not Selected will be Returned with Filing Fees
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If a case is not selected in the lottery, it will be rejected and returned in its entirety with the filing fees. The case will be transmitted to the petitioning employer or employer's representative. The USCIS expects this process to take up to four weeks. In cases for which the filing fee checks were cashed by the USCIS, the U.S. Department of the Treasury will have to refund the employer, if the case was not selected under the April 12, 2007 lottery.
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Wait and Hope
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Over the next few weeks, the mail will hold good news and relief for some, and devastation for others. We will continue to provide information to MurthyDotCom and MurthyBulletin readers as it is made available throughout this difficult time of waiting.