H-1B Quota Steadily Filling

The H-1B quota for the 2013 fiscal year opened on April 1st, 2012, and after a month, it appears demand is greater than in recent years past, probably due to the improving economy and perhaps technology industry growth. Originally I anticipated that H-1Bs would be available at least through the end of the summer, but that may not be the case now.

Specifically, as of April 20th—only 20 days into the annual year—25,000 out of 65,000 cap eligible applications had been receipted under the general quota, and 10,900 applications out of 20,000 for the U.S. Masters Degree or higher quota. As the numbers diminish, there tends to be a rush by employers to capture the remaining numbers.