Lottery | | Scott Legal, P.C.

USCIS Runs Second Lottery to Select More H-1B Cap Cases

USCIS has ran a second lottery to select more H-1B cap cases. USCIS began to notify employers the results of the second lottery run on August 14, 2020. The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa suitable for individuals who have…

Jenny ZhanAugust 17, 2020

What is a Master’s degree exemption for the purposes of H-1B visa?

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits a company to hire workers in specialty occupations. There are a limited number of H-1B petitions that USCIS can adjudicate every year - 65,000 Regular Cap petitions as set by the…

Jenny ZhanJuly 23, 2020

Who is a cap exempt employer?

Jenny ZhanJuly 23, 2020

What is the H-1B visa application process?

If your H-1B registration application was selected in the H-1B lottery, you have a 90 day period during which you have to file an H-1B petition with USCIS. This blog post will walk you through the H-1B application process. File…

Jenny ZhanJune 19, 2020

How much do I have to pay an H-1B employee? What is a prevailing wage? How do I find out what is the prevailing wage?

H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits a company to hire workers in specialty occupations. As an H-1B employer, you have to pay the H-1B employee the higher of either the actual or prevailing wage (this is called the…

Jenny ZhanJune 12, 2020

What are the Differences Between and E-3 and H-1B Visa?

The E-3 and H-1B visas are similar but have some key differences. This post summarizes the key similarities and difference between the H-1B and E-3 visas. You can find out more about the E-3 visa by clicking here. You can…

Jenny ZhanJune 10, 2020

Immigration

Fiscal Year 2021 Diversity Visa Lottery Winners Selected

U.S. Statement Department have announced that they have chosen the winners of the FY 2021 Diversity Visa Lottery. Although the announcement of the winners were delayed by a month this year due to the Coronavirus, USCIS have stated that this…

Jenny ZhanJune 8, 2020

I was selected in the H-1B lottery and I am currently in the U.S. on a J-1 trainee visa. Does Cap-Gap apply to J-1 visa? Can I stay in the U.S. until October 1? Can I Change Status?

Jenny ZhanApril 16, 2020

My H-1B registration was selected in the H-1B lottery. Is the company required to file the H-1B petition? What if the company does not file, are there any consequences?

Covid-19 has changed the rules for travel, engagement and employment. Many companies have started to reduce wages and put staff on leave, and some companies have terminated employees. If your company filed an H-1B registration for a foreign national and…

Jenny ZhanApril 15, 2020

I am in the U.S. on F-1 OPT status and I was selected/not selected in this year’s H-1B visa lottery. Does Cap-Gap Extension apply to me? Can I stay in the U.S. until September 30?

If you are currently in the U.S. on F-1 OPT status, your OPT work authorization expires soon, and your company filed an H-1B registration, you may be asking if you have to leave the U.S. immediately after your work authorization…

Jenny ZhanApril 7, 2020

H-1B Electronic Registration Closes Today!

At noon EST on March 20, the initial registration period for FY 2021 H-1B lottery selection will close. All registrations must be properly submitted before this time in order to be considered in the initial selection. After registration closes, if…

Jenny ZhanMarch 20, 2020

Petitioners can now Create Online Accounts for H-1B Lottery Registration

Starting this year, all prospective H-1B applicants must first be registered online on the USCIS myUSCIS website in order to be in the pool for the H-1B visa lottery. Online account creation is now available for prospective petitioners and legal…

Jenny ZhanFebruary 25, 2020

H-1B Approval for a Cap-Subject H-1B case at USCIS for an Engineer

We just received an H-1B approval from USCIS for a cap-subject H-1B. The applicant is an Engineer and has a Master’s Degree in Engineering from a U.S. University. USCIS issued a Request for Evidence in August. Scott Legal submitted a Response to…

Jenny ZhanFebruary 12, 2020

What is the New H-1B Registration Process? What is changing for H-1B petitions this year? Will there be a lottery for H-1B petitions? What is the new H-1B registration Process?

On January 9, 2020, USCIS formally announced details of the new H-1B cap registration process for FY 2021. The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa suitable for individuals who have a bachelor’s degree or the equivalent and a job offer…

Jenny ZhanFebruary 3, 2020

USCIS Announces H-1B Cap Registration Information

On Thursday, USCIS has formally announced details of the H-1B cap registration process for FY 2021. Starting next year, employers will have to register each individual foreign national they would like to sponsor for the lottery first. Once registered, USCIS…

Jenny ZhanJanuary 10, 2020

H-1B Cap Registration Will be Implemented in the Upcoming Fiscal Year Cap Season

USCIS has announced today that it has successfully completed the testing phase of the online registration system for the H-1B lottery. To learn more about the H-1B visa and your eligibility, please click here. The online registration process will be implemented…

Jenny ZhanDecember 9, 2019

H-1B Visa Registration Fee Implemented

USCIS has announced today that a $10 non-refundable fee for each H-1B registration submitted by petitioning employers will be implemented once the electronic registration system is in place. The registration system, which is slated to go into effect for fiscal…

Jenny ZhanNovember 7, 2019

H-1B Transfer Approval for Senior Digital Product Manager at E-Commerce Retail Company

We received an approval for an H-1B transfer case for a Senior Digital Product Manager who had extensive experience in the field working in a similar position. Despite the heightened scrutiny and increase in RFE issuance in recent times, the…

Jenny ZhanOctober 8, 2019

E-2 Visa Immigration Investor Visas

Can I apply for the Diversity Lottery While on an E-2 visa? Will the Diversity Lottery impact my visa? Can I apply for the diversity lottery?

The diversity lottery gives 50,000 people from different countries the opportunity to get a green card. You can find out more about the Diversity Lottery by clicking here. Many people apply for the diversity lottery and common questions are: Could…

Jenny ZhanOctober 3, 2019

Family Immigration Immigration

H-1B Approval for a Cap-Subject H-1B Change of Status case at USCIS for an Accountant

We just received an H-1B approval from USCIS for a cap-subject H-1B. The applicant is an Accountant and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from a U.S. University. The employer is a cosmetics company and is based in New York…

Jenny ZhanOctober 1, 2019

FY 2021 Diversity Visa Lottery Opens October 2

Starting from noon EST on October 2, 2019, the State Department will begin accepting online registration for Fiscal Year 2020 Diversity Visa lottery here. Foreign nationals who qualify for the lottery have until noon EST on November 5 to file online.…

Jenny ZhanSeptember 25, 2019

DHS Proposes Fee for H-1B Registration

Today, the Department of Homeland Security has announced a proposed rule that will require employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitioners to pay a fee of $10 for each electronic registration submitted to USCIS. In the new proposed system, which…

Jenny ZhanSeptember 3, 2019

USCIS Completes Return of Unselected H-1B Cap Petitions

USCIS have finished returning unselected H-1B petitions that were not selected in the FY2020 cap lottery. Employers should receive petition packages and fee checks by August 29, 2019. This year, USCIS received 201,011 filings in the week between April 1…

Jenny ZhanAugust 16, 2019

Immigration News

USCIS Issues Data Confirming Increase in Denials and RFEs for Nonimmigrant Applications

USCIS has released data for the first half of fiscal year 2019 confirming that denial and RFE rates have continued to increase for nonimmigrant visa applications such as the H-1B, L visa, O Visa, and TN Visas. The H-1B visa…

Jenny ZhanJune 12, 2019

USCIS to Accept Premium Processing for Remaining H-1B Cap Petitions

USCIS announced that starting on June 10, 2019, it will accept premium processing requests for all remaining FY 2020 H-1B Cap cases. Premium processing costs $1410 and guarantees that USCIS will take adjudicative action on the application within 15 days. If USCIS…

Jenny ZhanJune 10, 2019

Proposed H-1B Cap Registration Fee Under Review

The Department of Homeland Security have submitted a proposal to charge an unknown amount of fee for companies registering foreign nationals for the upcoming H-1B cap online registration system. Starting next year, employers have to register each individual foreign national…

Jenny ZhanJune 3, 2019

H-1B approval for cap-subject H-1B at USCIS for a Nanotechnology Engineer

We just received an H-1B approval from USCIS for a cap-subject H-1B. The applicant is a Nanotechnology Engineer and has a Master's Degree from a U.S. University. The employer is based in New Jersey and the applicant currently works for the…

Jenny ZhanMay 22, 2019

USCIS has Completed Data Entry for all FY 2020 H-1B Cap Subject Petitions

USCIS has announced on May 17, 2019 that is has completed all data entry for fiscal year 2020 H-1B cap-subject lottery selection. USCIS has also announced that this year, they have received 201,011 filings in the week between April 1…

Jenny ZhanMay 17, 2019

Family Immigration Immigration

Immigrant Visas Approved for a Diversity Lottery Applicant and his family from Germany

Scott Legal just had immigrant visas approved for a diversity lottery applicant and his family. The applicant and his family are from Germany and their interview was in Frankfurt. The applicant was our E-2 client who initially wanted to apply for E-2 visa but…

Jenny ZhanMay 13, 2019

Immigration

FY 2020 Diversity Visa Winners Selected

U.S. Statement Department have announced that they have chosen the winners of the FY 2020 Diversity Visa Lottery. The Diversity Immigrant Visa Program makes up to 50,000 green cards available annually, drawn from random selection among all entries to individuals…

Jenny ZhanMay 10, 2019

I was selected in a Diversity Visa Lottery. How do I qualify for the Diversity Lottery Green Card? What documents do I need to submit for the Diversity Lottery?

If you receive notification from the Electronic Diversity Visa Website that you have been selected in the Diversity Visa Program, you must complete numerous steps before you can get your green card. One of the critical factors is that the…

Jenny ZhanMay 2, 2019

H-1B Advanced Cap for FY 2020 has been Reached!

USCIS has received sufficient number of petitions for the congressionally-mandated 20,000 H-1B master cap for FY 2020. The 65,000 regular cap was reached last week. USCIS has also announced that this year, they have received 201,011 filings in the week…

Jenny ZhanApril 16, 2019

H-1B Regular Cap for FY 2020 has been Reached!

USCIS has received sufficient number of petitions for the congressionally-mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap for FY 2020. USCIS will now determine whether it has received sufficient number of petitions to meet the 20,000 master’s cap, which should be announced…

Jenny ZhanApril 9, 2019