Today, USCIS announced that it has now returned all cap-subject H-1B petitions to employers or their representatives that were not selected in fiscal year 2018 following the lottery process.  Any employer that hasn’t received a receipt notice or returned H-1B petition by July 31, 2017, should contact USCIS for assistance.

The H-1B cap for fiscal year 2019 will open on April 2, 2018.  It will remain open for a mandated period of five business days.  We anticipate that demand for H-1B petitions will be very high again next year requiring USCIS to close the cap after the five-business-day period is completed.  All filed petitions will then be subject to a computer-generated random selection process shortly after the cap closes.

Employers should assess alternative visa options for any employee who wasn’t selected in this year’s H-1B cap.