US H-1B visa cap for FY2025 reached: Can Indians still apply and what should applicants do? All details here

The United States immigration overseeing agency, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), has announced that it has received enough petitions to fulfil the 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa US advanced degree exemption, known as the master’s cap, for fiscal year (FY) 2025 as mandated by the Congress.

This means that USCIS will issue 65,000 H-1B visas with a regular cap and 20,000 H-1B visas with US advanced degree exemptions for FY25.

The agency informed that it will send non-selection notices to registered candidates through their online accounts in the next few days. After sending these notices, the status of the non-selected registered candidates for the FY 2025 H-1B numerical allocations will show — “Not Selected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration,” an official notification said on December 2, 2024.

However, USCIS will continue to accept and process petitions exempted from the cap.

“Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, are exempt from the FY 2025 H-1B cap,” the notification said.

According to USCIS, it will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

1. Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;

2. Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;

3. Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and

4. Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in additional H-1B positions

H-1B applicants must visit the H-1B Cap Season page to subscribe to receive email updates on the H-1 B Cap season.

What should an applicant do now?

According to Rajiv S. Khanna, managing attorney at Immigration.com, the Law Offices of Rajiv S. Khanna, PC, “Foreign workers and employers who are interested in H1B visas should stay informed and continue to monitor USCIS updates to ensure they do not miss any important deadlines or information.”

“The H1B visa lottery is a complex process that requires careful attention and planning, and any changes or updates to the process should be taken seriously,” he added.