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U.S. Master™ Wage-Hour Guide, 2009 Edition 
Presents a first approach to the broad and complex controls under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and other statutes regulating employee wages and hours.
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced March 8, 2010, that it will begin accepting H-1B petitions subject to the fiscal year (FY) 2011 cap on April 1. Cases will be considered accepted on the date that USCIS takes possession of a properly filed petition with the correct fee, not the date that the petition is postmarked. USCIS will monitor the number of petitions received and will notify the public of the date on which it received the necessary number of petitions to meet the H-1B cap. If needed, USCIS will randomly select the number of petitions required to reach the numerical limit from the petitions received on the final receipt date. USCIS will reject cap-subject petitions that are not selected, as well as those received after the final receipt date.
Petitions for new H-1B employment are exempt from the annual cap if the beneficiaries will work at institutions of higher education or related or affiliated nonprofit entities, nonprofit research organizations or governmental research organizations. Petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries who will work only in Guam or the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands are exempt from the cap until December 31, 2014. Employers may continue to file petitions for these cap-exempt H-1B categories seeking work dates starting in FY 2010 or 2011. Petitions filed on behalf of current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap also do not count towards the congressionally mandated H-1B cap. Accordingly, USCIS will continue to process petitions filed to: (1) extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States; (2) change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers; (3) allow current H-1B workers to change employers; or (4) allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in a second H-1B position.
H-1B petitioners should follow all statutory and regulatory requirements as they prepare petitions to avoid delays in processing and possible requests for evidence, according to the agency; in fact, USCIS has developed detailed information, including a processing worksheet, to assist in the completion and submission of a FY2011 H-1B petition. US businesses use the H-1B program to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise in specialized fields, such as scientists, engineers, or computer programmers.
H1-B visas are given to US companies seeking to hire nonimmigrant aliens in specialty occupations of distinguished merit and ability when such workers are in limited quantities in the United States. A specialty occupation requires the theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge and a bachelor's degree or the equivalent in the specific specialty (e.g., sciences, medicine and health care, education, biotechnology and business specialties, etc). The numerical limitation on H-1B petitions for fiscal year 2010 is 65,000. Additionally, the first 20,000 H-1B petitions filed on behalf of aliens who have earned a US masters degree or higher are exempt from the fiscal year cap. Holders of these visas can stay in the United States for up to six years.
For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.
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