[fbuilesv]

The other answers are pretty complete so I'd just like to highlight some points:

* The H1B quotas tend to get filled pretty quick, this year they were covered by July (iirc). They start accepting applications on April so try to get that done as soon as possible.

* The expedite fee is almost a "must".

* I've seen a couple of companies adding a "the candidate must be fluent in X language" where X is your native language. They use this to justify the fact that they couldn't hire somebody else. Maybe not ethical but it's something to keep in mind.