The proposed rule became available for public viewing and comments on the Federal Register on March 03, 2011 and will be open for comments until May 02, 2011. The USCIS would like to ensure its designed electronic system best meets the needs of employers that rely on H-1B visas as a valuable contribution to their businesses as well as the US economy, before a final rule is published.

USCIS anticipates that this new process will reduce administrative burdens and associated costs on employers and alleviate US service centers that process H1-B petitions. The proposed plan could save business owners over 23 million dollars over the next ten years. Currently, US businesses spend significant time and resources compiling the petition without certainty that the statutory cap has not been reached. Establishing an advance registration process online would be an informative way to create awareness of registration timelines as well as when the maximum 65,000 cap has been reached.

The USCIS has estimated the petition process would take 30 minutes to complete, but employers with multiple petitions must complete the application on behalf of each beneficiary. The USCIS would create a waitlist for the applicants that did not make the yearly cap, and will notify the sponsoring employer when and if they are eligible to file an H-1B petition. Employers whose registrations did not make the waiting list will also receive notification that they were not selected to file petitions for that fiscal year.  

This electronic registration system will not go into effect until a final rule is published by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and becomes effective.

To streamline this process, a worldwide Nonimmigrant Visa Electronic Application Form (DS-160) has been introduced and is currently in use in several countries.  Applicants still must appear at the consulate offices for an interview, but the paperwork can be completed beforehand and reviewed by consular officials, so that the entire process will be completed more quickly.

Certain consular offices in Algeria, Australia, Bermuda, Canada, Hong Kong, Iraq, Ireland, Libya, Mexico, Montenegro and Russia are using form DS-160.  All application forms used worldwide will be replaced with Form DS-160 by April 30, 2010.

For more information see http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/forms/forms_4230.html.

You should review all visa documentation for your employees and ensure all documentation is complete and accurate in the event your worksite is selected for a visit.