H4 to H1: 9 month wait period?

[anand.sandesh]

Hi All - My wife will be arriving on H4 in a month. The plan is to rigorously look for a job and if all goes well (fingers crossed), she may get a job where the employer is willing to apply for her H1 in April. Of course they also need to be aware that she can start working only on October 1.

The above process will be pretty complex and we are ready for the battle. But I heard something today which was disturbing and wanted to confirm it (google did not help much). I heard anyone who comes on an H4, needs to wait 9 months before "applying" for H1. Is this true? if so, my wife would have to wait till September to apply for H1. Of course there is a (huge) risk of the H1 quota ending by then.

Is what I heard true? is there a way around it? Any help will be much appreciated.