Attention employers and professionals: H-1B visa numbers will become available again soon! The H-1B classification is the most popular temporary work status for professional positions. This news is important for both employers who plan on hiring foreign-national professionals and foreign-nationals who have a U.S. job offer and a Bachelor’s degree (or equivalent work experience). The application should be submitted April 1, 2015 (the government will reject applications submitted earlier.) If approved, work authorization will begin October 1, 2015. It is important to prepare these applications packages thoroughly. To ensure timely filing of an H-1B application and avoid a rush service fee, we should start by January 20, 2015.
The government will hold a lottery to determine which applications will be adjudicated for one of the coveted H-1B visa numbers. In recent years, 30%-50% of applications were rejected after losing this lottery. As the economy improves and demand for H-1B visas increases, the odds of obtaining an H-1B visa number will decrease. If your employee is in a temporary work status that will end in the next few years, it may be advisable to apply for an H-1B visa this year.
We recommend that you request premium processing. For an additional fee, the application is more likely to be adjudicated by a more senior officer, and a decision will be made in approximately 1 month. (Last year, some H-1B applications were not adjudicated by the October 1 start date. Many of these applicants ended up requesting premium processing anyway.) Anecdotal evidence suggests that premium processing results in a higher chance of winning the H-1B visa number lottery—though officially premium processing should not affect the lottery.