H-1B Cap Lottery Concluded, Unselected Cases Being Returned

In a statement on May 3rd, USCIS announced the completion of data entry for all fiscal year 2018 H-1B cap-subject petitions.  Applications were selected in a computer-generated random process.

The Service has begun returning all H-1B cap-subject petitions that were not selected. Because it cannot provide a definite time frame on how long it will take to return these petitions, the USCIS has asked the public not to inquire regarding rejected cases.

Receipt notices are expected to continue trickling in for the next 10 days.

USCIS also announced that it will transfer many H-1B cap subject petitions from the Vermont Service Center to the California Service Center.  This will improve case processing times by balancing the distribution of cap cases. Those with transferred cases will receive written notification.

Questions about what to do if your H-1B cap petition was not selected? 
Contact your Ellis Porter attorney and we will be happy to discuss alternate strategies with you.