H1B Selection Rate

USCIS announced that they have received about 124,000 H-1B petitions from April 1 to 5. Using a denial rate of 15%, this means that USCIS should select about 100,000 H-1B petitions in the lottery so the overall selection rate is about 80%.

2014 H-1B Cap Reached

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap for fiscal year (FY) 2014. 

USCIS has also received more than 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of persons exempt from the cap under the advanced degree exemption.

H1B Update

As you are aware, there are a limited number of H-1B visas available each year: 20,000 under the master's degree cap and 65,000 under the regular cap. In the past few years, the quota has been reached months after April 1st, the first day H-1B petitions are accepted for the upcoming fiscal year. Last year the quota was reached on June 11, 2012. This year there is a chance the quota is reached in the first week. 

Under current regulations, the USCIS must accept H1B cap-subject cases during the first five business days in April. If the cap is reached or exceeded in the first five days, no more cases can be filed toward the cap until the next fiscal year. 

USCIS Reaches Fiscal Year 2013 H-1B Cap

USCIS Reaches Fiscal Year 2013 H-1B Cap

USCIS announced that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory cap of 65,000 for fiscal year (FY) 2013. June 11, 2012, was the final receipt date for new H-1B specialty occupation petitions requesting an employment start date in FY 2013.

USCIS will consider properly filed cases as received on the date that USCIS physically receives the petition; not the date that the petition was postmarked. USCIS will reject cap-subject petitions for new H-1B specialty occupation workers if they arrive after June 11, 2012 and seek an employment start date in FY 2013.

2013 H-1B Cap Running Out

As of May 25, 2012 the fiscal year 2013 H-1B cap count is as follows:

·        H-1B Regular cap – 48,400 cap eligible petitions towards cap of 65,000

·        H-1B Master’s Degree cap – 17,500 cap eligible petition towards cap of 20,000

The master’s and regular cap will likely be reached in 1-3 weeks. If your employer is still thinking about filing an H-1B petition, they will need to decide as soon as possible. The absolute minimum time it takes to prepare an H-1B case is one week if everything goes right.

People that do not need to be concerned about the H-1B cap are:

International Tax Compliance

IRS Continues Its Push Towards Enforcement Over Offshore Financial Assets

The IRS continues its push towards additional disclosure of foreign financial assets and hefty penalties for failing to disclosure. 

On January 9, 2012, the IRS reopened the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). The OVDP is an opportunity for taxpayers to correct past errors regarding unreported income and unfiled information statements. U.S. residents are required to report foreign financial assets that exceed certain thresholds. The maximum penalty rate under the OVDP is 27.5% of the highest account balance during the period covered by the program. There is no deadline but the government can impose a deadline or terminate the program at its discretion.

2013 DV Lottery Results Now Available

As of May 1, 2012, you can now check if you were lucky enough to be selected in the DV lottery.  https://www.dvlottery.state.gov/ You can only check on the website using your entry number, birth year, and last name. If you lost your entry number, there is no way to check if you are a winner. Also, beware of spam email saying you are a DV lottery winner – the only way to know is to check on the official website.

Congratulations if you were lucky. The chance of being selected is generally less than 1%. If you weren’t selected, you may still have a chance. Keep your entry number and you can check the results again in October 2012 when they will select some additional winners for the 2013 DV lottery. You can also try entering again for the 2014 DV lottery which should open for entry in October 2012.

April 17 Tax Filing Deadline Quickly Approaching

The tax deadline is April 17 this year instead of April 15 because of a Washington D.C. holiday. Here are some tips if you haven’t filed your tax returns yet.

1.     Free e-file – The IRS offers free federal e-file through different tax software providers if your adjusted gross income was less than $57,000.You can find more information at www.freefile.irs.gov/. Although e-filing the federal tax return is free, you may be charged for e-filing your state tax return. The IRS also offers free e-file fillable forms for all income levels at https://www.freefilefillableforms.com/.

2.    File an extension – if you can’t file your federal tax return on time you can request an automatic 6 month extension using Form 4868. Your state should also have an automatic extension form. The extension does not extend the time to pay. If you expect to owe money, you should make a tax payment by April 17^th to avoid penalties and interest. If you expect a tax refund and cannot file by April 17, you do not need to file an extension.

3.    Filing Date – is the post mark date. So if you are paper filing or need to mail in a payment, you should drop it off at the post-office before their last mail collection time on April 17.

NON-RESIDENT ALIEN