H1-B Cap Count to Date for FY2010
As of today, H1-B applications are still being accepted for fiscal year 2010. On April 8, 2009, the USCIS announced that during the initial filing window for H-1Bs, it has received approximately 42,000 applications against the 65,000 cap.
The numerical limitation on H-1B petitions for FY 2010 is 65,000 and the first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of aliens who have earned a U.S. master’s degree or higher are exempt from the fiscal year cap.
However, the USCIS also announced that it has received close to the number needed to fill the 20,000 exemption for those who have earned a U.S. master’s degree or higher. This will be the first time that the U.S. master’s degree exemption has filled up before the H-1B cap has.
The USCIS will continue to accept H-1B petitions and will continue to monitor the number of H-1B petitions received for both the regular cap and the master’s cap. When it receives the necessary number of petitions to meet the respective caps, it will issue an update and announce the “final receipt date”.
