Last year, USCIS introduced the electronic filing process where H-1B petitioners file a short, electronic application with basic information about the business and the beneficiaries along with a $10 fee. If selected, the petitioner would have 90 days to complete and submit the full petition. This process will continue this year and expected to be the new normal. However, along with this change come two others that will significantly impact the H-1B visa program.
1. Regular cap petitions will be selected first, followed by the advanced degree exception selections. Reversing this process gives petitioners with advanced degrees a higher chance of being selected.
2. The petition selection process will prioritize higher wages. This will be the case for both the regular cap and the advanced degree exception. This means no more randomized lottery. Selections will be made to prioritize advanced degrees and high-paid workers.
These rules will only impact cap-subject H-1B petitioners, and they may not last through the change of presidential administrations. They are also vulnerable to challenge in court. We hope that these two changes don’t survive long enough to impact the H-1B program, STEM industries, and the US academic system in the damaging ways they threaten to.
At CCI TheDegreePeople.com, we will continue to follow any new rules that will impact the H-1B cap-subject filing process for FY2022. We anticipate high levels of RFEs again this season as the general trend throughout the exiting administration has been to restrict the H-1B visa program.
For a free review of your case visit www.ccifree.com. We will respond in 4 hours or less.
Sheila Danzig
Sheila Danzig is the director of CCI TheDegreePeople.com. Sheila specializes in overturning RFEs and Denials for work visas.