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6 Dec 20242 min readsitemanager

FY2025 US H-1B visa quota reached: What should candidates do and are Indians still able to apply? Check details

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the US immigration oversight agency, has declared that it has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular…

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the US immigration oversight agency, has declared that it has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa US advanced degree exemption, also known as the master's cap, for fiscal year (FY) 2025. Accordingly, for FY25, USCIS will grant 20,000 H-1B visas with US advanced degree exemptions and 65,000 H-1B visas with a standard ceiling. In the next days, registered candidates will get non-selection messages via their online accounts, the agency announced. The non-chosen registered applicants for the FY 2025 H-1B numerical allocations will have the status "Not Selected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration" following the distribution of these notices, according to an official notification issued on December 2, 2024. Nonetheless, petitions exempt from the cap will still be accepted and processed by USCIS. “Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, are exempt from the FY 2025 H-1B cap,” the notification said. USCIS states that it will keep receiving and processing petitions submitted to:
  1. Extend the period of time that an existing H-1B employee is permitted to stay in the United States.
  2. Modify the current H-1B employees' terms of employment;
  3. Permit existing H-1B employees to switch employers; and
  4. Permit current H-1B employees to hold additional H-1B jobs concurrently.
To receive email updates on the H-1 B Cap season, H-1B applicants must subscribe on the H-1B Cap Season page.

What should an applicant do now?

According to Rajiv S. Khanna, managing attorney at Immigration.com, the Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna, PC, “Foreign workers and employers who are interested in H1B visas should stay informed and continue to monitor USCIS updates to ensure they do not miss any important deadlines or information.” “The H1B visa lottery is a complex process that requires careful attention and planning, and any changes or updates to the process should be taken seriously,” he added.

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