Difference between revisions of "Timeline of H-1B"

From Timelines
Jump to: navigation, search
(→‎H-1B annual cycle dates)
Line 43: Line 43:
  
 
This data is taken from Wikipedia's {{w|Premium Processing Service#Pre-announced delays for processing cap-subject petitions}} page, and is subject to the same CC-by-SA license. However, the original table was mostly constructed by the author of this Timelines wiki page.
 
This data is taken from Wikipedia's {{w|Premium Processing Service#Pre-announced delays for processing cap-subject petitions}} page, and is subject to the same CC-by-SA license. However, the original table was mostly constructed by the author of this Timelines wiki page.
 +
 +
For context: the annual quotas for H-1B apply every Fiscal Year. A Fiscal Year begins on October 1 of the previous calendar year and ends on September 30 of the same calendar. For instance, Fiscal Year 2004 is from October 1, 2003 to September 30, 2004.
 +
 +
The H-1B petition is filed using {{w|Form I-129}}, and any Form I-129 petition can be submitted at most six months in advance of the indicated start date. Therefore, petitions for cap-subject petitions in a given Fiscal Year start on April 1 of the preceding calendar year. Once USCIS has received enough petitions that it has approved (or knows it will approve, based on the petitions already received) enough petitions to meet the quota, it stops receiving petitions.
 +
 +
Due to the huge influx of petitions right around April 1, USCIS has, from Fiscal Years 2014 to 2017, pre-announced delays in the start date for the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing. In other words, even if your petition is received on April 1 and you request Premium Processing Service, the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing Service only begins on the later date indicated by USCIS.
 +
 +
Early April is sometimes called "H-1B cap season" and is the subject of much informal discussion among petitioners, beneficiaries, and commentators.
  
 
{| class="wikitable"
 
{| class="wikitable"
−
! Year for which the applications are made !! Date of announcement !! Date of delayed start for the 15-day countdown !! Date that the USCIS opened applications !! Date that the USCIS stopped accepting cap-subject petitions
+
! Year for which the applications are made !! Date of announcement !! Date of delayed start for the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing Service !! Date that the USCIS opened applications !! Date that the USCIS stopped accepting cap-subject petitions
 
|-
 
|-
 
| Fiscal Year 2014 (begins October 1, 2013) || March 15, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement>{{cite web|url=http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-accept-h-1b-petitions-fiscal-year-2014-april-1-2013|title = USCIS to Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2014 on April 1, 2013|date = March 15, 2013|accessdate = April 20, 2015|publisher = United States Citizenship and Immigration Services}}</ref><ref name=aila-h-1b-pps-delay>{{cite web|url=http://www.aila.org/infonet/uscis-delay-processing-h-1b-cap-subject-petitions|title = USCIS to Delay Premium Processing for H-1B Cap-Subject Petitions Until April 15, 2013|publisher = American Immigration Lawyers Association|accessdate = April 5, 2015}}</ref> || April 15, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement/><ref name=aila-h-1b-pps-delay/> || April 1, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement/> || April 8, 2013<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap|title = USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap|date = April 8, 2013|accessdate = April 20, 2015}}</ref>
 
| Fiscal Year 2014 (begins October 1, 2013) || March 15, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement>{{cite web|url=http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-accept-h-1b-petitions-fiscal-year-2014-april-1-2013|title = USCIS to Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2014 on April 1, 2013|date = March 15, 2013|accessdate = April 20, 2015|publisher = United States Citizenship and Immigration Services}}</ref><ref name=aila-h-1b-pps-delay>{{cite web|url=http://www.aila.org/infonet/uscis-delay-processing-h-1b-cap-subject-petitions|title = USCIS to Delay Premium Processing for H-1B Cap-Subject Petitions Until April 15, 2013|publisher = American Immigration Lawyers Association|accessdate = April 5, 2015}}</ref> || April 15, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement/><ref name=aila-h-1b-pps-delay/> || April 1, 2013<ref name=fy-14-h-1b-announcement/> || April 8, 2013<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uscis.gov/news/uscis-reaches-fy-2014-h-1b-cap|title = USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap|date = April 8, 2013|accessdate = April 20, 2015}}</ref>

Revision as of 17:11, 12 August 2017

This timeline covers the history of the H-1B visa and associated work status. The timeline incorporates some content from H-1B visa#Changes to legal and administrative rules and Premium Processing Service#Pre-announced delays for processing cap-subject petitions. Although much of the copied content was added by the author of the current Timelines wiki page, it also incorporates edits from others. The original content was released under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License (CC-BY-SA), so this page inherits this license.

Full timeline

When inline citations are missing, this is usually because the Wikipedia article for the subject of that row has adequate detail and its own citations.

Year Month and date (if available) Event type Event name Authorities in power Effect on fees Effect on cap Effect on LCA attestations and DOL investigative authority Effect on adjudication process Details
1952 June 27 Legislation Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 82nd United States Congress, President Harry S. Truman (vetoed but overridden) Creates the H-1 and H-2 visa categories for skilled and unskilled workers; the H-1 would give rise to the modern H-1B visa.
1982 INS/USCIS guidance In response to Matter of Srinivasan N/A N/A N/A N/A An internal memo of the Immigration and Naturalization Services (INS, the precursor to United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) provides guidance regarding issuance of B-1 in lieu of H-1.[1][2]
1990 November 29 Legislation Immigration Act of 1990 101st United States Congress, President George H. W. Bush Only a base filing fee Set an annual cap of 65,000 on new 3-year H-1Bs, including transfer applications and extensions of stay. Set up the basic rules for the Labor Condition Application Defines adjudication process The old H-1 visa is split into the H-1A visa for nurses (which would be discontinued and replaced by the H-1C visa, which would also be discontinued) and the H-1B visa. Additionally, the Immigration Act of 1990 also creates the employment-based (EB) immigration category for permanent immigration. The H-1B and EB would play an important symbiotic role.
1998 October 21 Legislation American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act (ACWIA) 105th United States Congress, President Bill Clinton Additional $500 fee to train U.S. workers to reduce the shortage of skilled workers, and therefore reduce the need for H-1B Temporary increase in caps to 115,000 for 1999 and 2000 Introduces the concept of H-1B-dependent employer and required additional attestations about non-displacement of U.S. workers from employers who were H-1B-dependent or had committed a willful misrepresentation in an application in the recent past. Also gives investigative authority to the United States Department of Labor No change The legislation is mostly a victory for restrictionists and labor advocates, with the main concession to expansionists being the temporary quota increase
2000 October 17 Legislation American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21) 106th United States Congress, President Bill Clinton Increase of fee for training U.S. workers from $500 to $1000 Increase in caps to 195,000 for Fiscal Years 2001, 2002, and 2003.
Creation of an uncapped category for non-profit research institutions.
Exemption from the cap for people who had already been cap-subject. This includes people on cap-subject H-1Bs who are switching jobs, as well as people applying for a 3-year extension of their current 3-year H-1B. Also, people with pending green card applications on EB-1,2,3 statuses can keep extending their H-1B (without being cap-subject) while waiting 		No change No change The legislation paves the way for a significant de facto expansion of the H-1B program, despite no permanent increase in the annual cap.
2001 July 30 INS/USCIS guidance Premium Processing Service launch Additional fee of $1000 for using the Premium Processing Service; those not using it see no fee change No change No change Those who pay for the Premium Processing Service should receive an initial adjudication in 15 calendar days from the later of the time of petition receipt or time of Premium Processing Service filing and fee receipt.[3]
2004 January 1 Treaty or trade agreement Singapore–United States Free Trade Agreement United States and Singapore governments; President George W. Bush and 108th United States Congress on the United States side No change H-1B cap reduced by the number of H-1B1 visas issued No change No change The Singapore–United States Free Trade Agreement (signed May 6, 2003, ratified July 24, 2003) includes provisions for the H-1B1 visa category for Singapore
2004 January 1 Treaty or trade agreement Chile–United States Free Trade Agreement United States and Chile governments; President George W. Bush on the United States side No change H-1B cap reduced by the number of H-1B1 visas issued No change No change The Chile–United States Free Trade Agreement (signed June 6, 2003, active starting January 1, 2004) includes provisions for the H-1B1 visa category for Chile
2004 December 6 Legislation H-1 Visa Reform Act of 2004, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005 108th United States Congress, President George W. Bush Increase of fee for retraining US workers to $1500 for companies with 26 or more employees, reduction to $750 for small companies. Addition of anti-fraud fee of $500 Bachelor's degree cap returns to 65,000 with added 20,000 visas for applicants with U.S. postgraduate degrees. Additional exemptions for non-profit research and governmental entities. Expands the Department of Labor's investigative authority, but also provides two standard lines of defense to employers (the Good Faith Compliance Defense and the Recognized Industry Standards Defense). No change
2009 February 17 Legislation Employ American Workers Act, part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 111th United States Congress, President Barack Obama No change No change All recipients of Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) or Federal Reserve Act Section 13 are required to file the additional attestations required of H-1B-dependent employers, for any employee who had not yet started on a H-1B visa. No change Sunset after two years, on February 17, 2011.
2010 January 8 INS/USCIS guidance Determining Employer-Employee Relationships for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions, Including Third-Party Site Placements Donald Neufeld (Associate Director, Service Center Operations) No change No change No change Memo updates Adjudication Field Manual (AFM) Chapter 31.3(g)(15) (AFM Update 10-24) with clearer guidance on determining if petitioner and beneficiary have an employer/employee relationship The memo uses the employer's "right to control" as a key criterion for an employer/employee relationship. USCIS also publishes a FAQ on the memo.[4][5][6]
2010 August 13 Legislation Public Law 111-230 (Section 402) 111th United States Congress, President Barack Obama Additional fee of $2,000 for employers with more than 50 employees and more than 50% of their workforce either H-1B or L-1 No change No change No change The fee would apply only to petitions on postmarked on or after August 14, 2010, and until September 30, 2014.[7][8] See H-1B-dependent employer#Additional fees for more.
2010 November Fee increase Fee increases across the board as part of a regular fee increase.[9] No change No change No change
2011 January 2 Legislation Public Law 111-347 (Section 302) 111th United States Congress, President Barack Obama No change No change No change No change The end date for the increased fees imposed by P.L. 111-230 is extended from September 30, 2014 to September 30, 2015.[10][11]
2015 December 18 Legislation Public Law 114-113, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 Additional fee of $4,000 for employers with more than 50 employees and more than 50% of their workforce either H-1B or L-1 No change No change No change No change This applies to all petitions postmarked on or after December 18, 2015 and until September 30, 2025.[12][13] It replaces a similar $2,000 fee that applied till September 30, 2015. See H-1B-dependent employer#Additional fees for more.
2017 March 3 INS/USCIS guidance Temporary Suspension of H-1B Premium Processing USCIS Premium Processing Service no longer available, so that fee component does not apply No change No change Premium Processing Service no longer applies, so all petitions are processed in the order they are received (see USCIS processing times for more).[14][15] Petitioners can still make discretionary expedite requests subject to the usual constraints on such requests.[14][16] The suspension of Premium Processing is believed to be related to work under President Donald Trump to change the regulations and procedures surrounding immigration, as well as legislation under discussion that would alter the working of the H-1B program.[17][18][19]

H-1B annual cycle dates

This data is taken from Wikipedia's Premium Processing Service#Pre-announced delays for processing cap-subject petitions page, and is subject to the same CC-by-SA license. However, the original table was mostly constructed by the author of this Timelines wiki page.

For context: the annual quotas for H-1B apply every Fiscal Year. A Fiscal Year begins on October 1 of the previous calendar year and ends on September 30 of the same calendar. For instance, Fiscal Year 2004 is from October 1, 2003 to September 30, 2004.

The H-1B petition is filed using Form I-129, and any Form I-129 petition can be submitted at most six months in advance of the indicated start date. Therefore, petitions for cap-subject petitions in a given Fiscal Year start on April 1 of the preceding calendar year. Once USCIS has received enough petitions that it has approved (or knows it will approve, based on the petitions already received) enough petitions to meet the quota, it stops receiving petitions.

Due to the huge influx of petitions right around April 1, USCIS has, from Fiscal Years 2014 to 2017, pre-announced delays in the start date for the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing. In other words, even if your petition is received on April 1 and you request Premium Processing Service, the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing Service only begins on the later date indicated by USCIS.

Early April is sometimes called "H-1B cap season" and is the subject of much informal discussion among petitioners, beneficiaries, and commentators.

Year for which the applications are made Date of announcement Date of delayed start for the 15-day countdown for Premium Processing Service Date that the USCIS opened applications Date that the USCIS stopped accepting cap-subject petitions
Fiscal Year 2014 (begins October 1, 2013) March 15, 2013[20][21] April 15, 2013[20][21] April 1, 2013[20] April 8, 2013[22]
Fiscal Year 2015 (begins October 1, 2014) March 25, 2014[23] April 28, 2014[23] April 1, 2014[24] April 7, 2014[25]
Fiscal Year 2016 (begins October 1, 2015) March 12, 2015[26] May 11, 2015 (initially announced)[26]
Later revised to April 27, 2015[27] 		April 1, 2015[26] April 7, 2015[28]
Fiscal Year 2017 (begins October 1, 2016) March 16, 2016[29] May 16, 2016 (initially announced)[29]
Later revised to May 12, 2016[30] 		April 1, 2016[29] April 7, 2016[31]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Digging Deeper: History of B-1 in lieu of H-1". globalworkers.org. Retrieved April 28, 2016. 
  2. ↑ Paparelli, Angelo; Wehrer, Susan (October 18, 2000). "Business Visitors from Abroad - Tips and Traps for the HR Department". Immigration Daily. Retrieved April 28, 2016. 
  3. ↑ "How Do I Use the Premium Processing Service?". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved April 4, 2015. 
  4. ↑ Neufeld, Donald (January 8, 2010). "Determining Employer-Employee Relationships for Adjudication of H-1B Petitions, Including Third-Party Site Placements" (PDF). United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved August 12, 2017. 
  5. ↑ "USCIS Guidance On Establishing Employer-Employee Relationship In H-1B Petitions". NAFSA. January 8, 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2017. 
  6. ↑ "Questions & Answers: USCIS Issues Guidance Memorandum on Establishing the "Employee-Employer Relationship" in H-1B Petitions". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. January 13, 2010. Retrieved August 12, 2017. 
  7. ↑ "Teleconference: Implementing Public Law 111-230". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved March 28, 2016. 
  8. ↑ "USCIS Implements H-1B and L-1 Fee Increase According to P.L. 111-230". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved March 28, 2016. 
  9. ↑ "H1B Fee Increase". H1Base. Retrieved April 5, 2015. 
  10. ↑ "Public Law 111-230 H-1B, L-1 Additional Fees Expire". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. October 5, 2015. Retrieved March 28, 2016. 
  11. ↑ "Public Law 111-347" (PDF). United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. January 2, 2011. Retrieved August 12, 2017. 
  12. ↑ "New Law Increases H-1B and L-1 Petition Fees". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved March 29, 2016. 
  13. ↑ "Indian IT Companies to pay over $8,000 per visa". Retrieved March 29, 2016. 
  14. ↑ 14.0 14.1 "USCIS Will Temporarily Suspend Premium Processing for All H-1B Petitions". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 3, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  15. ↑ "USCIS to suspend Premium Processing Service for H-1B visas from April 3". Indian Express. March 3, 2017. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  16. ↑ "Expedite Criteria". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  17. ↑ Statt, Nick (March 3, 2017). "US to suspend fast processing of H-1B visas for high-skilled workers". The Verge. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  18. ↑ Karimi, Faith (March 4, 2017). "US suspends expedited processing of H-1B visas". CNN. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  19. ↑ Lawler, Richard (March 3, 2017). "US suspends 'premium processing' for H-1B visas. Heavily used by tech companies like Microsoft and Facebook, it let applicants receive an answer faster for a fee.". Engadget. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 "USCIS to Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2014 on April 1, 2013". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 15, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  21. ↑ 21.0 21.1 "USCIS to Delay Premium Processing for H-1B Cap-Subject Petitions Until April 15, 2013". American Immigration Lawyers Association. Retrieved April 5, 2015. 
  22. ↑ "USCIS Reaches FY 2014 H-1B Cap". April 8, 2013. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "USCIS to Begin Premium Processing of H-1B Cap-Subject Petitions by April 28, 2014". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 25, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  24. ↑ "USCIS to Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2015 Beginning April 1, 2014". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 25, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  25. ↑ "USCIS Reaches FY 2015 H-1B Cap". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 "USCIS Will Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2016 Beginning April 1, 2015". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 12, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  27. ↑ "H-1B Cap Premium Processing to Begin April 27". April 14, 2015. Retrieved June 3, 2015. 
  28. ↑ "USCIS Reaches FY 2016 H-1B Cap". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. April 7, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015. 
  29. ↑ 29.0 29.1 29.2 "USCIS Will Accept H-1B Petitions for Fiscal Year 2017 Beginning April 1, 2016". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. March 16, 2016. Retrieved March 26, 2016. 
  30. ↑ "Fiscal Year 2017 H-1B Cap Premium Processing to Begin May 12". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. April 25, 2016. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
  31. ↑ "USCIS Reaches FY 2017 H-1B Cap". United States Citizenship and Immigration Services. April 7, 2016. Retrieved March 4, 2017. 
Retrieved from "http://timelines.issarice.com/index.php?title=Timeline_of_H-1B&oldid=16543"