H-1B cap is the number of new H-1B visas that are issued in a fiscal year. The visas are counted as one H-1B visa per person. The number of visas issued in previous fiscal years is not considered or counted. As of 2008, the cap was 65,000 per/year. 6,800 of these visas are set aside for H-1B1 status for similar foreign workers from Chile and Singapore. There are an additional 10,500 E-3 visas for similar workers from Australia. H-1B visa renewals or visa transfers to a different employer do not count towards the cap, nor do up to 20,000 foreign workers who received a Masters' or higher from a U.S. educational institution. Furthermore, there is no limit on the number of visas issued to U.S. universities and research institutions.
- Browse Related Terms: E-3 worker, Form I-797, H-1B cap, H-1B worker, H-1B1 worker, Secondary employer, Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
H-1B dependent employer has: 25 or fewer full-time employees and at least eight H-1B workers; or 26-50 full-time employees and at least 13 H-1B workers; or 51 or more full-time employees of whom 15% or more are H-1B workers.
- Browse Related Terms: Bargaining representative, Consumer Credit Protection Act, (CCPA), Dependent employer, Enter into employment, Form 1099, Form W-2, Garnishment, H-1B dependent employer, Lockout, Misrepresentation, Per diem, Recruitment, Snap-shot, Strike
H-1B worker is a temporary, nonimmigrant in a specialty occupation (professional or fashion model of high distinction) given status to work for an employer by USCIS via Form I-797, Notice of Action. Initial status may be granted for up to three years. Extensions may only be granted for a period of time such that the total period of the nonimmigrant's admission does not exceed six years
- Browse Related Terms: E-3 worker, Form I-797, H-1B cap, H-1B worker, H-1B1 worker, Secondary employer, Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
H-1B1 worker is a temporary, nonimmigrant of Chile or Singapore in a specialty occupation given status to work for an employer by USCIS via Form I-797, Notice of Action. Initial status may be granted for up to one year. Status may be renewed twice, but only in one-year increments. There is an annual cap of 1,400 nationals of Chile and 5,400 nationals of Singapore as of 2008.
- Browse Related Terms: E-3 worker, Form I-797, H-1B cap, H-1B worker, H-1B1 worker, Secondary employer, Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Mortgage
when the homeowner sells the property for less than the full amount due on the mortgage. When a homeowner qualifies for the HAFA Short Sale, the servicer approves the Short Sale terms prior to listing the home and then accepts the payoff in full satisfaction of the mortgage.
Departments of the Treasury & Housing and Urban Development, Making Home Affordable Program - Cite This Source - This Definition- Browse Related Terms: Closing, Deed-in-Lieu of Foreclosure, fee, Foreclosure Prevention, HAFA Short Sale, Pre-foreclosure, Servicing transfer, Short Sale
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A haircut, in the financial industry, is a percentage discount that's applied informally to the market value of a stock or the face value of a bond in an attempt to account for the risk of loss that the investment poses.
So, for example, a stock with a market value of $30 may get a haircut of 20%, to $24, when an analyst or money manager tries to anticipate what is likely to happen to the price.
Similarly, when a broker-dealer calculates its net capital to meet the 15:1 ratio of debt to liquid capital permissible under Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) rules, it typically gives volatile securities in its portfolio a haircut to reduce the potential for being in violation.
The only securities that consistently escape a haircut are US government bonds because they are considered free of default risk.
- Browse Related Terms: Accredited investor, Appreciation, Boiler room, Capital preservation, churning, Collectible, Financial pyramid, Formula investing, Haircut, Indexed annuity, Inflation-adjusted return, opportunity cost, Real interest rate, Risk, Risk Tolerance, Time value of money
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Hard assets are the tangible property of a company or partnership, such as the buildings, furniture, real estate, and other equipment it owns.
When you make a direct investment in hard assets, as you do when you invest in a direct participation program (DPP), you have an ownership interest in the actual assets rather than in shares of the corporation.
The profit, if any, that you realize from hard assets is dependent on their ability to produce revenue, as a rental property or a leased airplane might.
- Browse Related Terms: Blind pool, Hard assets, Hedge fund, Limited partner, Limited partnership, Passive income, Passive losses, Private equity, Real Estate, Venture capital (VC)
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A hardship withdrawal, also known as a hardship distribution, occurs when you take money out of your 401(k) or other qualified retirement savings plan to cover pressing financial needs.
You must qualify to withdraw by meeting the conditions your plan imposes in keeping with Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidelines. For example, you may have to demonstrate how urgent the situation is and prove you have no other resources.
Some allowances are purchasing your primary home, covering out-of-pocket medical expenses for yourself or a dependent, and paying college tuition for yourself or a dependent.
However, if you're younger than 59 1/2, you must pay a 10% penalty plus income tax on the amount you withdraw. You also may not be permitted to contribute to the plan again for six months.
- Browse Related Terms: 529 college savings plan, 529 Plan (Prepaid Tuition Plan), 529 prepaid tuition plan, Baccalaureate bond, Certificate of Accrual on Treasury Securities (CATS), CollegeSureî CD, Coverdell Education Savings Account, Early withdrawal, Education savings account (ESA), Hardship withdrawal, Hope scholarship credit, Investment horizon, Lifetime learning credit, Prepaid college savings plan, Prepaid college tuition plan, Tax-exempt
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Authorized by state law, this loan program is administered by the State Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism to assist small businesses unable to obtain adequate financing through other sources. Maximum HCLP loan amount is $1 million per application at a low interest rate of 7.5 percent per year.
- Browse Related Terms: Accounts Payable, Accounts Receivable, Bank Reconciliation, Corporation, Hawaii Capital Loan Program (HCLP), Market, Marketing, Obligations, Partnership, Ratio, Return on Investments (ROI), Services Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), Subchapter "S" Corporation
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Mortgage
insurance that is generally required under mortgage contracts to pay for loss or damage to a person’s home or property.
Departments of the Treasury & Housing and Urban Development, Making Home Affordable Program - Cite This Source - This Definition- Browse Related Terms: First Mortgage, Guarantee, Hazard Insurance, Lender-Placed Insurance, Lien, mortgage, Mortgage Insurance (MI), second mortgage, Suspension
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A form of insurance that protects the owner of the insured property against losses from physical damage such as fire and tornadoes. Mortgage lenders often require a borrower to maintain an amount of hazard insurance on the property that is equal at least to the amount of the mortgage loan.
Insurance coverage that compensates for physical damage to a property from fire, wind, vandalism, or other covered hazards or natural disasters.
Protection against a specific loss, such as fire, wind etc., over a period of time that is secured by the payment of a regularly scheduled premium.
Same or similar to "property insurance." See also "property insurance."
- Browse Related Terms: Average Price, Credit Loss Ratio, Deductible, flood insurance, Hazard Insurance, Home Warranty, Homeowner's insurance, Indemnification, insurance, Median Price, Mortgage servicing, Perils, Property insurance, Tax and insurance escrow, Taxes and Insurance
All > Business > Finance > Personal Finance > Consumer Credit
Insurance coverage that provides compensation to the insured in case of property loss or damage.
State of Maine, Department of Professional and Financial Regulation - Cite This Source - This Definition- Browse Related Terms: Adjustable Rate Loans, Buy Down, CAP, Commitment, Credit Life & Disability Insurance, fixed-rate mortgage, Hazard Insurance/Homeowners Insurance, index, Margin, Prepayment Penalty (Mortgages), Principal, Interest, Taxes and Insurance (PITI), Variable-Rate Loans
All > Business > Real Estate > Superfund
The Hazard Ranking System (HRS) is the principal mechanism EPA uses to place waste sites on the NPL. It is a numerically based screening system that uses information from initial, limited investigations - the preliminary assessment and the site inspection - to assess the relative potential of sites to pose a threat to human health or the environment.
- Browse Related Terms: Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Information System (CERCLIS), Construction Completion List (CCL), Hazard Ranking System (HRS), National Priorities List (NPL), No Further Remedial Action Planned (NFRAP), Preliminary Assessment / Site Inspection (PA/SI), Record of Decision (ROD), Remedial Design/Remedial Action (RD/RA), Remedial Investigation/Feasibility Study (RI/FS), Risk Assessment Guidance (RAGS), Superfund Chemical Data Matrix (SCDM), Technical Assistance Grants (TAG), Technical Outreach for Communities (TOSC)
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((HSRC)): Hazardous Substance Research Centers (HSRC) are a set of national organizations that carry out an active program of basic and applied research, technology transfer, and training involving practical problems relating to hazardous substance management.
- Browse Related Terms: Contract Laboratory Program (CLP), Environmental Justice (EJ), Hazardous Substance Research Centers, INFOTERRA, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), Office of Research and Development (ORD), Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response (OSWER), Office of Superfund Remediation and Technology Innovation (OSRTI), Outreach and Special Projects Staff (OSPS), Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act (SARA), Technology Innovation Office (TIO)
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The upper horizontal part of a window frame or window opening.
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Head of household is an IRS filing status that you can use if you are unmarried or considered unmarried on the last day of a tax year and provide at least half the cost of maintaining a home for one or more qualifying dependents.
That may be your child, grandchild, or other relative who lives in that home for more than half the year, or a parent whether or not he or she lives in your home.
The advantage of filing as head of household is that you can take a higher standard deduction than if you filed as a single taxpayer and you owe less federal income tax than you would as a single, assuming all other details were the same.
Filing as head of household also means you qualify for certain deductions and credits that would not be available to you if you used the married filing separate returns status.
- Browse Related Terms: adjusted gross income (AGI), Alternative minimum tax (AMT), Deduction, Earned Income Credit (EIC), Exemption, Head of household, Modified adjusted gross income (MAGI), Real property tax, Tax credit
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You must meet the following requirements: 1. You are unmarried or considered unmarried on the last day of the year. 2. You paid more than half the cost of keeping up a home for the year. 3. A qualifying person lived with you in the home for more than half the year (except temporary absences, such as school). However, a dependent parent does not have to live with the taxpayer.
- Browse Related Terms: adjusted gross income (AGI), Citizen or Resident Test, dependency exemption, dependent, exemptions, filing status, foster child, Head of Household filing status, Married Filing Joint filing status, Married Filing Separate filing status, personal exemption, qualifying child, qualifying relative, Qualifying Widow(er) filing status, single filing status, standard deduction, tax deduction, tax-exempt interest income
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A masonry wall unit of brick which is laid so that its short end is exposed.
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Health insurance covers some or all of the cost of treating an insured person's illnesses or injuries. In some cases, it pays for preventive care, such as annual physicals and diagnostic tests.
You may have health insurance as an employee benefit from your job or, if you qualify, through the federal government's Medicare or Medicaid programs.
You may also buy individual health insurance directly from an insurance company or be eligible through a plan offered by a group to which you belong. As you do with other insurance contracts, you pay premiums to purchase coverage and the insurer pays some or all of your healthcare costs, based on the terms of your contract.
Some health insurance requires that you meet an annual deductible before the insurer begins to pay. There may also be co-insurance, which is your share, on a percentage basis, of each bill, or a copayment, which is a fixed dollar amount, for each visit.
Health insurance varies significantly from plan to plan and contract to contract. Generally, most plans cover hospitalization, doctors' visits, and other skilled care. Some plans also cover some combination of prescription drugs, rehabilitation, dental care, and innovative therapies or complementary forms of treatment for serious illnesses.
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A health savings account is designed to accumulate tax-free assets to pay current and future healthcare expenses. To open an HSA, you must have a qualifying High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) either through your employer or as an individual.
If you have an employer's plan, your contributions to the HSA are made with pretax income, and your employer may contribute as well. If you have an individual plan, you may deduct your contributions in calculating your adjusted gross income (AGI).
Congress sets an annual limit on the amount you can contribute to an HSA, which you set up with a financial institution such as a bank, brokerage firm, insurance company, or mutual fund company that offers these accounts.
No tax is due on money you withdraw from the HSA to pay qualified medical expenses such as doctor's visits, hospital care, eyeglasses, dental care, and medications for yourself, your spouse, and your dependants.
Any money that's left over in your HSA at the end of the year is rolled over and continues to accumulate tax-free earnings, which you can use for future healthcare costs.
Once you're 65, you can use the money in the HSA for non-medical expenses without paying a penalty, but you'll owe income taxes on those withdrawals. If you are younger than 65, you can also spend from your HSA on non-medical expenses, but you'll owe income taxes plus a 10% tax penalty on the amount you take out.
- Browse Related Terms: 401(k), 401(k) Plan, 403(b), 457, After-tax contribution, After-tax income, Automatic enrollment, CAP, Catch-up contribution, earned income, Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP), Excess contribution, Health Savings Account (HSA), High deductible health plan (HDHP), Highly compensated employees, Independent 401(k), Individual retirement account (IRA), Individual retirement annuity, individual retirement arrangement (IRA), Keogh plan, Matching contribution, Money purchase plan, Pretax contribution, Pretax income, Profit sharing, Recharacterization, Required beginning date (RBD), Roth 401(k), Roth IRA, Salary reduction plan, SIMPLE, Simplified employee pension plan (SEP), Tax-Deferred
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The reverse mortgage is used by senior homeowners age 62 and older to convert the equity in their home into monthly streams of income and/or a line of credit to be repaid when they no longer occupy the home. A lending institution such as a mortgage lender, bank, credit union or savings and loan association funds the FHA insured loan, commonly known as HECM.
- Browse Related Terms: Collateral, Commercial bank, Credit Grantor, creditor, Demand loan, Equity loan, Federal savings bank, HECM (Reverse Mortgage), Line of Credit, Mortgagee, Primary Mortgage Market, Reverse Mortgage (HECM), Truth-In-Lending Act (TILA), Unsecured Loan