Engaging and retaining smart, competitively trained, and diverse talent is critical for all businesses competing in a global economy. For many U.S. businesses across all industries, this means employing foreign workers who have either earned their college or graduate degrees abroad or in the U.S. and who seek to contribute to the U.S. economy. This brings us to the most used visa category in the U.S. providing businesses with access to this talent, the H-1B and the impending H-1B cap season.

Given that there are only a limited number of new H-1B visas issued each fiscal year, it is critical to start planning well in advance of the expected filings to take place for the 2017 FY. While the government fiscal year may not start until October 1, filings to secure an H-1B visa take place the first week of April. As a great deal of groundwork goes into preparing an H-1B petition, now is the time for employers to begin the process.