High-Skilled Immigration

Here’s a deadline that most of us don’t know about: US Citizenship and Immigration Services will begin accepting H-1B petitions for FY 2014 on Monday, April 1, 2013. And there’s a limit — set by Congress annually — on H-1B work visas. For FY 2014, the cap is 65,000 with an additional 20,000 under a Master’s Degree exemption. This year, Immigration Services expects many more petitions than the number of H-1B visas it can offer and may use a lottery for the visas for the first time since 2008.

“H-1B” refers to a temporary worker visa category to work in a “specialty occupation.” This requires a higher education degree or its equivalent, but also includes “fashion models of distinguished merit and ability” and government-to-government research and development, or co-production projects administered by the Department of Defense, according to the State Department.

As Congress considers immigration reform, we can expect H-1B programs and other high-skilled immigration will be modified as well. It’s a good time to share your views with your elected officials.

H-1B Visas and Other High-Skilled Work Visas

• S 600 H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act: A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to reform and reduce fraud and abuse in certain visa programs for aliens working temporarily in the United States.
• HR 1227 Stopping Trained in America Ph.D.s From Leaving the Economy Act: To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize certain aliens who have earned a Ph.D. degree from a United States institution of higher education in a field of science, technology, engineering, or mathematics to be admitted for permanent residence and to be exempted from the numerical limitations on H-1B nonimmigrants.
• S 169 I-Squared Act: to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to authorize additional visas for well-educated aliens to live and work in the United States.
• HR 803 SKILLS Act: To reform and strengthen the workforce investment system of the Nation to put Americans back to work and make the United States more competitive in the 21st century.
• S 189 StartUp Visa Act: to establish an employment-based immigrant visa for alien entrepreneurs who have received significant capital from investors to establish a business in the United States.
• HR 633 Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act: To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, to increase the per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants.
• S 293 Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act: A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrants, to increase the per-country numerical limitation for family-sponsored immigrants.
• HR 459 STEM Visa Act: To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to promote innovation, investment, and research in the US and to eliminate the diversity immigrant program.
• HR 707 : To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to simplify and rename the H-2C worker program.
• S 303 The STEM Jobs Act: A bill to amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to promote innovation, investment, and research in the US, to eliminate the diversity immigrant program.
• Framework Senate Bipartisan Framework for Comprehensive Immigration Reform: A bipartisan group of Senators have proposed a comprehensive set of immigration reform principles, which include giving immigrants a path to citizenship, strengthening border security, and reforming our legal immigration system to reunite families and strengthen our economy while protecting American workers.

To see more immigration bills, visit our Issue Spotlight on Immigration and weigh in on the Senate Bipartisan Framework for Comprehensive Immigration Reform.