USCIS received a whopping 233,000 cap-subject H-1B petitions for the filing period beginning April 1, 2015 before quickly shutting off petition submissions.  As in recent years, USCIS conducted a random draw (a self-styled ‘lottery’ of which, regrettably, we have no video) to select petitions for adjudication while rejecting all others.  Receipt notices have begun issuing for selected petitions, a process that is expected to take three to four weeks due to the volume of submissions.  The 15-day adjudication period for Premium Processing petitions will begin April 27, 2015.  USCIS will continue to accept cap-exempt H-1B petitions throughout the year, including portability petitions for foreign H-1B workers who change employers.

For an informed analysis of this year’s unprecedented H-1B lottery, read this article from the Society of Human Resource Management.