Over 18, 000 US H-1B Visas Yet to Be Filled

Over 18, 000 of the H-1B visas, once coveted by Indian professionals, are yet to be grabbed, a situation arising out of the dire straits of the US job market and strict regulations imposed by the Congress.

Going by the figure update by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), nearly 46, 700 of the H-1B visas in the general category as against a Congressional mandated figure of 65, 000 were filled up by September 25.

So, according to this figure, over 18, 000 H-1B visas or more than one-fourth of the slot are still to be filled up, even as the financial year began on Thursday.

Needless to mention, the H-1B visas, basically meant for professionals from computers and information technology sectors, have been one of the most sought after visas for foreign professionals in previous years. The US Citizenship and immigration Service (USCIS) have been receiving several times the number of the allocated quota.

Nevertheless, for the first time in many years, thousands of H-1B visas are still to be filled up even at the start of the financial year.

This is unlike the previous years when the entire 65,000 visas were grabbed on day one. Many a times, the USCIS had to resort to a computerised lottery to determine the successful candidates.