The USCIS announced on 5/17/2019 that it had completed data entry for all fiscal year 2020 H-1B cap-subject petitions selected in the annual H-1B lottery, including those selected under the U.S. advanced degree exemption. This means that unless our office receives a Receipt Notice for an H-1B cap subject petition by the end of this week, it is unlikely that it has been selected in this year's lottery.
The USCIS will now begin returning all H-1B cap-subject petitions that were not selected and will issue another announcement once they have finished notifying petitioners. As in previous years, once we receive the rejected petitions at our office, we will scan and email the rejection notices to the beneficiaries (employees) and petitioners (employers), for their records.
Due to the volume of filings, the USCIS cannot provide a definite time frame for returning unselected petitions. Petitioners are urged not to inquire about the status of their cap-subject petitions. Petitioners will either receive a receipt notice or the unselected petition will be returned.
USCIS noted that it may transfer some H-1B cap-subject petitions between the Vermont and California Service Centers to balance the workload and enhance efficiencies. If a case is transferred, the USCIS should notify our office and the petitioner. If a petition is transferred, all future correspondence must be sent to the Service Center to which the petition was transferred.
