The first information about petitions submitted for the Fiscal Year 2012 H-1B program has just been posted by USCIS and, as expected, the amount of petitions received by the federal agency are low. As was seen last year, only a small handful of companies have submitted requests for highly skilled workers under the H-1B program. As of April 7, 2011, a total of 5,900 petitions have been received for the regular cap program and 4,500 petitions have been received for the H-1B Master’s Exemption category.

A total of 65,000 H-1B visas are available each year, according to current federal regulations. USCIS has also receipted 20,000 H-1B petitions for foreign workers with advanced degrees, leaving no additional available visa under that exemption.