H1B Cap Reached for FY2009
Posted Apr 08, 2008; updated Apr 14, 2008

H1B Lottery Completed!
Posted Apr 14, 2008
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On April 14, 2008, the USCIS conducted two random selections of H1B petitions to determine which cases will be eligible for the Fiscal Year 2009 (FY09) cap numbers. The first selection determined which of the cases will be eligible to receive one of the 20,000 advance degree cap exemptions. The second selection, consisted of all regular cap cases, and any cases not included in the first selection.
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The selected cases will now be reviewed and adjudicated. Cases which utilized the premium processing procedure will be reviewed within 15 days of the completion of the April 14th lottery.
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Some cases have been placed on a waiting list. These cases were not selected in either lottery, but still have the potential to receive an H1B cap number. A case on the waiting list will replace a selected case in the event of a denial, withdrawal, or other ineligibility. The USCIS will issue an advisement letter to all cases on the list. The USCIS expects to determine the fate of the waitlisted cases within a six to eight-week timeframe.



H-1 Preliminary Cap Numbers
Posted Apr 10, 2008
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The USCIS released a preliminary count of the FY2009 cap filings on April 10, 2008. They received approximately 163,000 total H-1 cap petitions between April 1 and April 7, 2008. Of these, over 31,200 requested one of the 20,000 advanced-degree cap exemptions.
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The USCIS expects to complete the lottery of the cases, starting with the advanced-degree cases, during the week starting April 14th. More updates will be provided as this process continues.



H-1 Cap Met for FY2009
Posted Apr 08, 2008
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The USCIS announced on April 8, 2008 that a sufficient number of H1B filings had been received to meet the Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 annual limit, known as the "cap." Also received were more than 20,000 cases requesting advanced-degree exemptions, meeting that cap for FY2009, as well. The announcement did not specify the date/s on which the regular and advanced degree limits were met. However, it must have been within the first five days of filing, which ended April 7th. This is indicated by the announcement of a lottery of cases filed between April 1 and 7, 2008, under revised procedures for FY2009. The date for the lottery has not been announced, nor has the total number of cases received.