WASHINGTON — This week, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has reached its fiscal year 2016 cap on H-1B visas, which U.S. businesses use to employ foreign workers in specialized fields such as science, technology and engineering. 

 The agency began accepting H-1B applications last Wednesday.

“Our loss,” said Ali Noorani, executive director of the National Immigration Forum. “This means thousands of engineers, for example, cannot remain in the United States, create jobs and contribute to our economy. Instead of allowing them to complement the ingenuity of American workers, our broken immigration system is forcing them to take their talent elsewhere and compete with American workers.

 “The system continues to fail our nation’s businesses, large and small. Until Congress makes real and effective immigration reforms, our economy and our country will continue to suffer.”