Our attorneys can represent you in U.S. immigration matters regardless of where you are located because U.S. immigration law is federal: you can be in any state, or in any country in the world.

Contact Us | About Us

521 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1700, New York, NY 10175, U.S.A., Telephone: (212) 488-6899

#7: You have a U.S. MASTER'S DEGREE (until the 20,000 Master's quota runs out)

Related topics:

Under current law, a special exemption exists for holders of U.S. Master's degrees. Specifically, the law allocates an additional 20,000 H-1Bs for holders of U.S. Master's degrees. This means that holders of U.S. Masters degrees are first counted against the quota of 20,000, and then after that quota runs out, they are counted against the regular quota.

For fiscal 2008, the U.S. Master's degree quota ran out a few weeks after the regular quota ran out, i.e., on April 30, 2007.

Current law defines an individual who qualifies under this special quota as follows: ""has earned a master's or higher degree from a United States institution of higher education (as defined in section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a))...." INA 214(g)(5)(C)

It is important to note that an H-1B applicant does not actually have to be relying on the U.S. Master's degree for the H-1B petition. For example, if an H-1B applicant holds a bachelor's degree in computer science, and a U.S. Master's Degree in Music, he or she could apply for an H-1B for a computer programmer position, and still rely on the unrelated, U.S. Master's Degree in Music for quota purposes.

Reader Comments

H1B

Currently, I am completing my MBA and interested to know my possibilities to switch from F1 to H1B. Currently I have no sponser.
Thanks

H1B visa in a private setting

Currently, I am on H1B visa for a non-profit organization (Hospital) as a resident. i would appreciate if you let me know whether I can apply for H1b visa starting November 2009 as a employee at a private urgent care facility (with no affiliations with non-profit institution).
Also, I finished my Master's in U.S. in 2003. How long does the 20,000 H1b visa quota remain valid?
Thank you

H-1B quota numbers still available

According to the USICS:  as of May 11, 2009, approximately 45,000 H-1Bcap-subject petitions had been received by the USCIS, out of the 65,000 cap(minus set asides of 6,800 for Chilean and Singaporean H-1B1s). In addition, approximately 20,000 petitions qualifying for the advanceddegree cap exemption had been filed, out of the 20,000 advanced degree cap;however, the USCIS continued to accept advanced degree cap cases under the advanced degree cap because it accepts a number of cases above the actual limit since not all cases are approved. In any event, if you are interested in accepting employment for a private urgent care facility (with no affiliations), then if you wish to apply under the quota:  you should proceed immediately in order to have a chance of falling within the quota.  Of course, under current policies, if you were to accept concurrent employment, then there would be a possibility to use the current rules, even if the quota is reached (however, then you wouldn't be counted under the quota, which would mean that you would have to continue to worry about quota issues for future H-1B employments).

Contact Antao & Chuang

To contact Antao & Chuang, fill out the following form and press the Send button:

(U.S. state, or country if outside the U.S.)
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
4 + 11 =
Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. E.g. for 1+3, enter 4.


Temporary Visas (Work, Study, Tourist)

Contact Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law (at no obligation)

Since 1991, Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law, has served clients located throughout the U.S. and the world in U.S. immigration matters. Our attorneys can represent you in U.S. immigration matters regardless of where you are located because U.S. immigration law is federal. To contact Antao & Chuang about your individual matter, please use the following form:

(U.S. state, or country if outside the U.S.)
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.
3 + 7 =
Solve this simple math problem and enter the result. E.g. for 1+3, enter 4.


Search for H1B Visa Employers

You can search for "H1B Visa Employers" using this database, which was compiled by Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law from government sources. This database identifies those U.S. employers who have filed for H-1B visas in the past, or who have at least started the process by filing for the LCA. If you find an employer you are interested in, you can then contact them to inquire as to whether they have any current job openings in your field. Please tell your friends about this valuable resource.

Use this form to search for H1B Visa employers.

"FMG Friendly" Employers

Foreign Medical Graduates ("FMGs") should be aware that there are "FMG Friendly" employers, and "FMG Unfriendly" employers. This database (compiled by Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law from government sources) identifies those U.S. employers who have filed for H-1B visas for foreign medical graduates in the past (or at least started the process by filing for the LCA), and who can therefore be deemed "FMG Friendly". Please tell your colleagues about this valuable resource.

Use this form to search for "FMG Friendly" employers in a given state.

Recent comments

Antao & Chuang

AntaoandChuang.com

© 1996-2024 Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law

Important Notices/Disclaimers

This website located under the world wide web domain "AntaoAndChuang.com" ("website"), and any subdomains, are owned, and maintained by Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law, whose practice includes U.S. Immigration Law. Since U.S. Immigration Law is federal in nature, Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law, serves clients who are located throughout the U.S. and the world in U.S. immigration matters, from their offices located at 521 Fifth Avenue, Suite 1700, New York, N.Y. 10175. Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law’s attorneys are licensed attorneys in the states where they practice. However, since said states do not recognize any specialization in U.S. immigration law (attorneys in said states are simply licensed in said states to practice law in general), Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law does not claim any such specialization, and nothing on this site should be deemed to constitute any such claim. Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law does not claim expertise in the laws of states other than where our attorneys are licensed. This website is an advertisement. This website is provided as a public service and not intended to establish an attorney client relationship. Antao & Chuang, Attorneys at Law does not accept clients on the strength of advertising materials alone but only after following our own engagement procedures. Any reliance on information contained herein is taken at your own risk. The information contained on this site is intended to educate members of the public generally and is not intended to provide solutions to individual problems. Readers are cautioned not to attempt to solve individual problems solely on the basis of information contained herein and are strongly advised to seek competent legal counsel before relying on information on this site. See Terms of Use.