New information on H-1B petitions

The USCIS Office of Congressional Relations has prepared a draft notice advising that H-1B Visa Reform Act of 2004 petitions, for H-1Bs for U.S. advanced degree graduates, should not be filed until guidance is published in the Federal Register. Such guidance is not yet published. 

The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) is pressing the USCIS on the various issues concerning this notice and the filing of H-1B petitions under the H-1B Visa Reform Act of 2004. As soon as the USCIS releases additional information with respect to these filings, we will make the information immediately available to the public.

The following is the text of the draft USCIS notice on this subject - note that it provides that the USCIS "will reject any new H-1B petition that is filed in advance of the effective filing date as established in the forthcoming Federal Register notice." It is expected that this language will not change in the final notice.

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CIS TO IMPLEMENT H-1B VISA REFORM ACT OF 2004 Advises Employers Not to File Petitions Until New Guidance is Issued

Washington, D.C.- U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is currently preparing guidance for the implementation of the Omnibus Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2005 which created a new exemption from the annual H-1B congressionally mandated cap of 65,000 visas. While the applicable provisions of the H-1B Visa Reform Act become effective March 9, 2005, USCIS advises employers not to file H-1B petitions seeking to employ an H-1B worker who may benefit from these provisions until USCIS publishes guidance in the Federal Register. USCIS will reject any new H-1B petition that is filed in advance of the effective filing date as established in the forthcoming Federal Register notice.

(03/04/2005)