The cap for H-1B visas — used by highly skilled temporary foreign workers such as those in IT — was reached within a week for the fifth year in a row, US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced today.

While demand for H-1B visas remains, USCIS this week also announced extra scrutiny for staffing companies and other firms that use H-1B workers. The Justice Department also warned companies against H-1B abuse as some corners of Washington take a critical look at the visa.

H-1B visas are capped at 65,000 per year, plus another 20,000 for individuals with a US master’s degree or higher, for a total of 85,000. USCIS will now use a computer-generated process, also known as the lottery, to randomly select the petitions needed to meet the caps.