H-1B visa application process to begin from April 2
What's the story
The H-1B petitions for the fiscal year 2019 beginning October 1, 2018, will be accepted from April 2, a federal agency announced.
The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.
Technology companies depend on it to hire employees each year from countries like India and China.
Here's more.
Suspension
USCIS suspended premium processing of all H-1B petitions
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) also announced the suspension of premium processing of all H-1B petitions which are subject to the annual caps and is expected to last until September 10, 2018.
During this time, the USCIS said it will continue to accept premium processing requests for H-1B petitions that are not subject to the fiscal 2019 cap.
Premium processing
Public to be notified before premium processing is resumed
"We will notify the public before resuming premium processing for cap-subject H-1B petitions or making any other premium processing updates," the USCIS said.
It also said while premium processing is suspended, a petitioner may submit a request to expedite an FY 2019 cap-subject H-1B petition if it meets the expedited criteria.
The temporary suspension will help it reduce the overall H-1B processing time.
The visas
H-1B visa has an annual numerical limit of 65,000 visas
The H-1B visa has an annual numerical limit cap of 65,000 visas each fiscal year as mandated by the Congress.
First 20,000 petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries with a US master's degree or higher are exempt from the cap.
Between 2007-2017, the USCIS received the maximum number of 2.2 million H-1B petitions from high-skilled Indians. India was followed by China with 301,000 petitions.