US visa news: H-1B process to begin from 6 March; here are 10 important points to know
- US visa news: USCIS announced new rules to strengthen the integrity of the H-1B registration process and reduce fraud.
A US federal agency said on Tuesday that the H-1B visa application submission procedure for the fiscal year 2025 would begin on March 6. This announcement coincides with the announcement of a significant redesign of the annual lottery for this speciality employment visa.
Also Read: H-1B visa domestic renewal programme launched in US, accepting applications until April 1
What is H-1B Visa?
The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
Here are 10 things to know
1. According to the USCIS, the initial registration period for the fiscal 2025 H-1B cap will open at noon Eastern on March 6, and run through March 22. In order to electronically register each beneficiary for the selection process during this time, prospective petitioners and their advocates, if any, must use a USCIS online account and pay the registration fee for each beneficiary.
2. Starting February 28, companies would be allowed to open their account which can be used to start and complete the registration process.
3. Starting with fiscal 2025, that begins on October 1, 2024, initial registration period, USCIS will require registrants to provide valid passport information or valid travel document information for each beneficiary.
4. The passport or travel document provided must be the one the beneficiary, if or when abroad, intends to use to enter the United States if issued an H-1B visa. Each beneficiary must only be registered under one passport or travel document, USCIS said.
5. The new system includes provision of a beneficiary-centric selection process for registrations by employers.
Also Read: H1B visa: USCIS to start online filing for work visas next month; tweaks rules to ease process. 3 things to know
6. Unlike in the past when multiple applications by an individual often resulted in abuse in fraud of the system, the H-1B visa applications would now be counted and accepted based on individual applicants. Even if one individual files multiple applications for various companies, they would be counted as one application based on their personal credentials like passport numbers.
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7. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced a set of new rules which are aimed at strengthening the integrity of and reducing the potential for fraud in the H-1B registration process.
8. This includes reducing the potential for gaming the registration system and ensuring each beneficiary would have the same chance of being selected, regardless of the number of registrations submitted on their behalf, the federal agency said.
9. According to USCIS, this final rule contains provisions that will create a beneficiary-centric selection process for registrations by employers, codify start date flexibility for certain petitions subject to the congressionally mandated H-1B cap, and add more integrity measures related to the registration process.
Also Read: US sets visa-processing record amid rising demand from India, appointment wait time down by 75%
10. Furthermore, the H-1B final rule formalises USCIS's authority to reject or cancel H-1B petitions in cases where the underlying registration was void or contained a fraudulent attestation. Additionally, under the new regulation, USCIS may deny or revoke the approval of an H-1B petition if it finds that the registration fee was rejected, not reconciled, contested, or otherwise illegal after the petition was submitted.
Separately, on 29 January the US formally launched a pilot programme to renew the much sought-after H-1B visas domestically, a move that is likely to benefit thousands of Indian tech professionals.
(With inputs from PTI)
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Business NewsNewsUS visa news: H-1B process to begin from 6 March; here are 10 important points to know
First Published:31 Jan 2024, 02:32 PM IST
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