USA's H-1B skilled worker visa applications open

Fancy a few years working in the US of A? If you possess a Bachelor's degree in computing or engineering, can prove skills and experience in the field and have found a stateside employer who wants your talents, get typing, dear reader, because for the next couple of days the USA is taking applications for the H-1B visa. The H-1B visa enables employers to bring skilled workers to the USA for up to six years. Technology firms generally approve of the visa, which helps them to address skills shortages. The US Department of Labor even mentions computer programmers as the kind of workers sought under the program. The bad news? The USA will only offer 65,000 H-1Bs for financial year 2014 (plus 20,000 for those with Masters degrees), but expects to receive a great many more applications before the cutoff date of April 5th. US Citizenship and Immigration Services, a branch of the Department of Homeland Security, is therefore warning that a lottery will likely be needed to determine which applications it will process and therefore which employers have H-1B places to offer. Paying $US1,225 will see H-1B petitions, as the applications are formally known, afforded speedy Premium Processing. That fee is on top of the base $325 filing fee and $500 to $2000 employers pay to have your petition processed. Simon Sharwood April 3' 2013 http://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/04/03/h_1b_visa_2014_season/