May 4 2005

In May 12, 2005, the USCIS will reopen the filing period for FY2005 H-1B petitions solely to workers who received a Masters' or higher degree from a U.S. institution of higher education. Under the H-1B Visa Reform Act of 2004, 20,000 additional H-1B visas are to made available for qualified applicants.

The H-1B program has an annual cap of 65,000. For fiscal year 2005 (which began October 1, 2004), the 65,000 cap was reached on the first day. This has left employers unable to hire new H-1B workers who can start working before fiscal year 2006 begins on October 1, 2005. The H-1B Visa Reform Act of 2004 will allow those employers to submit a petition for a qualified worker with a requested start date now, instead of waiting until October 1st for workers to start.

Qualified applicants must follow explicit instructions set forth by the USCIS on their website at www.uscis.gov. Applications need to be sent in to be received on May 12, 2005, to the designated service center. The USCIS press release also provides detailed instructions for applicants to upgrade their petition if they have already have an H-1B with a start date of October 1, 2005.

Starting with fiscal year 2006, the first 20,000 H-1B applicant's with a Master's or higher degree from a U.S. university will not be counted towards the 65,000 cap. Once the 20,000 exemption is hit, all other H-1B applicants with a Masters' or higher degree will be counted towards the 65,000 cap.