H-1B "cap" registration dates announced for 2023 (FY 2024)

On January 27, 2023, USCIS announced the dates for the upcoming H-1B cap registration window and selection process. Selection will be via random lottery, as in prior years.

In its announcement USCIS stated that the registration period will open at 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET on March 1, 2023 and will close at 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET on March 17, 2023. The random lottery will be conducted following the close of the registration period, and account holders will be notified of selected registrations by March 31, 2023.

USCIS also stated that registrants will be able to create new accounts beginning at 9:00am PT / 12:00pm ET on February 21. Employers MUST NOT create an account before this date because it will lack H-1B registration functionality.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2023

H-1B "cap" reached for FY 2023

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on August 23, 2022 that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory H-1B visa “cap” for fiscal year (FY) 2023. 

The USCIS announcement states:

USCIS has received a sufficient number of petitions needed to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa regular cap and the 20,000 H-1B visa U.S. advanced degree exemption, known as the master’s cap, for fiscal year (FY) 2023.

We have completed sending non-selection notifications to registrants’ online accounts. The status for registrations properly submitted for the FY 2023 H-1B numerical allocations, but that were not selected, will now show:

• Not Selected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration.

We will continue to accept and process petitions that are otherwise exempt from the cap. Petitions filed for current H-1B workers who have been counted previously against the cap, and who still retain their cap number, are exempt from the FY 2023 H-1B cap. We will continue to accept and process petitions filed to:

• Extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the United States;

• Change the terms of employment for current H-1B workers;

• Allow current H-1B workers to change employers; and

• Allow current H-1B workers to work concurrently in additional H-1B positions.

No further selections for new H-1B petition filings will take place for FY 2023, and the next registration period for FY 2024 will take place sometime in Q1 2023.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2022

H-1B "cap" registration dates announced for 2022 (FY 2023)

On January 28, 2022, USCIS announced the dates for the upcoming H-1B cap registration window and selection process. Selection will be via random lottery, as in prior years. (USCIS has abandoned its plans for a wage-based selection process.)

In its announcement USCIS stated that registrants will be able to create new accounts beginning at 9AM PT / 12 PM ET on February 21. Employers MUST NOT create an account before this date because it will lack H-1B registration functionality.

USCIS also stated that the registration period will open at 9AM PT / 12 PM ET on March 1 and close at 9AM PT / 12 PM ET on March 18. The random lottery will be conducted following the close of the registration period, and account holders will be notified of selected registrations by March 31, 2022.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2022

USCIS Runs Third H-1B Lottery on 2021 (FY 2022) Registrations

On November 19, 2021, USCIS announced that it ran a third H-1B lottery on 2021 (FY 2022) registrations. The petition filing period based on the new selected registrations will be from November 22, 2021 to February 23, 2022. We will be notifying clients of additional selections and next steps for filing ASAP. Thank you for your patience!

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2021

USCIS Runs Second H-1B Lottery on 2021 (FY 2022) Registrations

On July 29, 2021, USCIS announced that it ran a second H-1B lottery on 2021 (FY 2022) registrations. Attorney accounts were locked for several hours but we are now able to access accounts and will be notifying clients of additional selections and next steps for filing. Thank you for your patience!

H-1B "cap" reached for FY 2022

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on March 30, 2021 that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory H-1B visa “cap” for fiscal year (FY) 2022. 

The USCIS announcement states:

We randomly selected from among the registrations properly submitted to reach the cap. We have notified all prospective petitioners with selected registrations that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration.

Registrants’ online accounts will now show one of the following statuses for each registration (that is, for each beneficiary registered): 

• Submitted: The registration has been submitted and is eligible for selection. If the initial selection process has been completed, this registration remains eligible, unless subsequently invalidated, for selection in any subsequent selections for the fiscal year for which it was submitted.

• Selected: Selected to file an H-1B cap petition.

• Denied: Multiple registrations were submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for the same beneficiary. If denied as a duplicate registration, all registrations submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for this beneficiary for the fiscal year are invalid.

• Invalidated-Failed Payment: A registration was submitted but the payment method was declined, not reconciled, or otherwise invalid.

…

H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2022, including those petitions eligible for the advanced degree exemption, may be filed with USCIS beginning April 1, 2021, if based on a valid, selected registration.

Only petitioners with selected registrations may file H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2022, and only for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration notice.

In the 2020 (FY 2021) season, a second selection process took place in August to make unused H-1B visas available. USCIS has not yet announced when such a second selection might take place in 2021 (FY 2022).

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2021

H-1B "cap" for 2021 (FY 2022) will be a Random Lottery, as in Prior Years

Last updated: 02/05/2021

On February 4, 2021, USCIS announced that the upcoming H-1B cap registration selection process will be via random lottery, as in prior years. USCIS had previously announced a wage-based selection process. Today’s announcement stated that “to give USCIS more time to develop, test, and implement the modifications to the H-1B registration system and selection process, DHS is delaying the effective date of this final rule from March 9, 2021, to Dec. 31, 2021. The delay will also provide more time for USCIS to train staff and perform public outreach as well as give stakeholders time to adjust to the new rule.”

Again, for the upcoming H-1B cap season, USCIS will apply the current regulations (random selection) to any registration period that takes place before Dec. 31, 2021. On February 5, 2021, USCIS announced that the first registration period for Fiscal Year 2022 will open at 9AM PT / 12 PM ET on March 9 and close at 9AM PT / 12 PM ET on March 25. The random lottery will be conducted following the close of the registration period, and account holders will be notified of selected registrations by March 31, 2021.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2021

DHS publishes proposed change to cap-subject H-1B visa petition processing: a wage-based selection system

On October 28, 2020, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) that would change the way cap-subject H-1B petitions are processed. The announced change would, in years when demand for new H-1B visas exceeds the annual numerical cap, replace the current annual lottery process with a system that prioritizes the selection of H-1B registrations based on the highest prevailing wage level that the employer’s salary offer equals or exceeds.

Prevailing wages are usually calculated by reference to data collected by the Department of Labor (DOL) through its Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) program. DOL uses OES data to set four levels of prevailing wage for occupations in locations across the United States. (On October 8, 2020, DOL made changes to this system that resulted in higher prevailing wages across the board.) Under DHS’ new rule, if more registrations are received during the H-1B registration period than is necessary to reach the year’s numerical cap, USCIS will rank and select the registrations based on the highest OES prevailing wage level that the proffered wage equals or exceeds.

USCIS will begin with registrations whose proffered wage meets or exceeds the OES Level 4 prevailing wage. If there are insufficient registrations with such wages, USCIS will then proceed in descending order to registrations whose proffered wage meets or exceeds the OES Levels 3, 2, and 1. (When USCIS had its first annual registration process for H-1B cap-subject cases, in March 2020, employers registered prospective H-1B employees without providing specific job or wage data. This proposed new regulation would require that the electronic registration form be amended to require the applicable OES prevailing wage level for the job offered.)

Thus, if more registrations are received at a particular OES prevailing wage level than is required to meet the applicable cap, USCIS will randomly select from all registrations containing that particular OES prevailing wage level. Put another way, if USCIS receives more than 65,000 registrations whose proffered wages exceed an OES wage level 4, the lottery will be run only on those registrations. If the H-1B beneficiary will work in multiple locations, each with different prevailing wages, USCIS will rank the registration based on the lowest OES wage level that the proffered wage will equal or exceed.

This proposed rule was published on November 2, 2020, and comments on the rule must be submitted on or before December 2, 2020. The public will have 60 days from November 2, 2020 to comment on the revisions to the H-1B Registration Tool and Form I-129 that will be required to implement the rule. The rule will not take effect until a Final Rule is published and made effective.

We will post further updates as they become available.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2020 

H-1B "cap" reached for FY 2021

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced on March 27, 2020 that it has received a sufficient number of H-1B petitions to reach the statutory H-1B visa “cap” for fiscal year (FY) 2021.

The USCIS announcement states “[w]e randomly selected from among the registrations properly submitted. We intend to notify petitioners with selected registrations no later than March 31, 2020, that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration.

Registrants’ online accounts will now show one of the following statuses for each registration (that is, for each beneficiary registered):

• Submitted: A registration status may continue to show “Submitted” after the initial selection process has been completed. “Submitted” registrations will remain in consideration for selection until the end of the fiscal year, at which point all registration statuses will be Selected, Not Selected, or Denied.

• Selected: Selected to file an FY 2021 H-1B cap-subject petition.

• ​​​​​​​Denied: A duplicate registration was submitted by the same registrant for the same beneficiary, or a payment method was declined and not reconciled. If denied as a duplicate registration, all registrations you submitted for this beneficiary for the fiscal year are invalid.

Only petitioners with selected registrations may file H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2021, and only for the beneficiary in the applicable selected registration notice.”

USCIS has not announced when the paper filings will be due. Those details will be printed on the paper selection notices that USCIS will mail out, and will not display in the online account.

© Jewell Stewart & Pratt PC 2020