A lot had been said on whether there would be an H1B lottery for 2010 like there had been for the last few years. On April 1, USCIS began accepting H1B applications, but only 45,000 applied. The latest update for the 2010 H1B visa is that there are still 20,000 H1B visas up for grabs this year, but no one to apply. There are a number of reasons for this sharp decline in H1B applications this year, the number one being the poor US economy.

Empty cubicles - a common scene in many US offices

The US economy has been doing downhill for a number of years. There are fewer jobs available and employers are laying off more people than they are hiring. Many international students on OPT failed to find jobs in this economy after graduating from college. These students failed to enter the job market and most of them are likely to go to grad school in September. Companies that usually hire H1B contractors have cut down on their spending and aren’t starting new projects. This has led to the decline in demand for H1B contractors.

Another reason in the decline of H1B petitions this year was the crack down by the government on fraudulent H1B applications. A number of H1B contractors from India were arrested earlier this year in connection with filing false documents to get their H1B visa. Their consulting firm, New Jersey based Vision Systems was put under investigation. This strong handed approach by the government discouraged IT consulting firms from sponsoring H1B visas for people for whom they did not have guaranteed positions. This significantly cut down on the number of H1B petitions for this year. Read the story here: 11 Consultants Arrested in H-1B Fraud

So what should you expect for 2011 H1B visa update? Given the current US economic condition, it does not seem likely that the US economy will make a full recovery. Hiring will be slow and so will be the demand for H1B visa workers in 2011. The government has shown that they will not tolerate further fraudulent activities related to the H1B visa program. So we can be confident that fake H1B applications in 2011 will not inflate the numbers. Therefore its a safe bet to say that there will be no H1B visa lottery in 2011.

Further reading: Update on 2010 H1B - Quota yet to be filled

Picture by: PinkMoose