Comprehensive Immigration Reform (CIR) is on the minds of millions of U.S. citizens and foreign nationals alike. Currently, the bill is in a somewhat compromising situation. At this point currently, the legislation in question will fall to the House of Representatives where the Republican party holds a slight majority.
New H-1B Hiring Provisions Under 2013 Immigration Reform
There exists some language in the bill which if ratified would prohibit H1B-dependent employers from outplacing, outsourcing, leasing, or otherwise contracting for services or placement of an H1B worker. Under immigration reform, the term “H1-B Dependent” applies to companies whose workforce is made up of at least 15% H-1B workers.
Immigration Modernization Act (S.744) Pros and Cons
The “Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act” or Senate Immigration bill 7.44 would provide for the best and most positive effects for businesses in particular and would facilitate substantial positive reform in the permanent resident (green card) category. On the other hand, S.744 would complicate the process of acquiring temporary workers such as H1-Bs and L-1s.
2014 H-1B Lottery Rejections
USCIS reached the statutory H-1B cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2014 within the first week of the filing period, which ended on April 5, 2013. Currently, it begun returning H-1B petitions that were not selected in the FY14 lottery..
2014 H-1B Cap Case Processing Time
The data entry process for 2014 H-1B cases selected in the lottery is now underway. As stated by USCIS, all premium processing cases are being managed first and their processing is not expected be completed until April 15.
H1B 2014 Cap – Potentially Most Competitive Year for Workers
H1B applicants should be aware of the competition as the April 1st deadline for the 2014 H1B Cap season approaches