Further to our December 3rd story “The H-1B Visa Cap: The Grinch Is Coming!”, USCIS has once again updated its announcement regarding the number of H-1B petitions it has received and counted towards the H-1B cap. As of December 8, USCIS has received approximately 61,500 H-1B petitions counting toward the Congressionally-mandated 65,000 cap. As such, although USCIS continues to accept petitions subject to the general H-1B cap, the cap is clearly nearing exhaustion.
Since the available H-1B visas under the cap are quickly disappearing, we would highly recommend that you act promptly if you are contemplating the sponsorship of a foreign national for an H-1B visa under the cap. Over the past several weeks, the cap has been filled at an increasing rate of nearly 2,000 petitions per week. At this rate, the FY 2010 H-1B cap could be reached at any moment if this increased demand continues, so time is of the essence!