Author: Eric Mawuli DJIRACKOR

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has set the initial registration period for the fiscal year 2026 H-1B cap visas coveted by Indian techies, from noon ET on March 7 to noon ET on March 24.
The immigration agency announced Feb. 5 that it will continue to use the beneficiary-centric selection process launched in FY 2025 for FY 2026 H-1B cap. Under the beneficiary-centric process, registrations are selected by unique beneficiary rather than by registration.
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USCIS said If it receives registrations for enough unique beneficiaries by March 24, it will conduct a lottery and send selection notifications via users’ USCIS online accounts. In case it does not receive enough registrations, all properly submitted registrations will be selected.
The agency said it intends to notify by March 31 prospective petitioners and representatives whose accounts have at least one registration selected.
In recent years, Indian professionals have cornered about three-fourths of the annual quota of 85,000 H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers, including 20,000 for those with advanced degrees from US institutions.
During the registration period, prospective petitioners and representatives must use a USCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated registration fee for each beneficiary, USCIS stated.
Prospective H-1B cap-subject petitioners or their representatives are required to use a USCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated $215 H-1B registration fee for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary.
H-1B petitioning employers who don’t have a USCIS online account, will need to create an organizational account. Existing H-1B registrant accounts of employers with an account for the FY 2021 – FY 2024 H-1B registration seasons, who did not use the account for FY 2025, will be converted to an organizational account after their next log in.
First-time registrants can create an account at any time. Representatives may also add clients to their accounts at any time, but both representatives and registrants must wait until March 7 to enter beneficiary information and submit the registration with the $215 fee.
As selections take place after the initial registration period closes, there is no requirement to register on the day the initial registration period opens, USCIS stated.
An H-1B cap-subject petition, including a petition for a beneficiary who is eligible for the advanced degree exemption, may only be filed by a petitioner whose registration for the beneficiary named in the H-1B petition was selected in the H-1B registration process.
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For FY 2026, USCIS has made multiple enhancements for organizational and representative accounts for H-1B filing, USCIS stated. These enhancements, which will be live before the start of the initial registration period, include:
Arun Kumar is an Editor-at-Large at The American Bazaar. He can be reached at editor@americanbazaaronline.com




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U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will conduct its annual electronic registration process for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 H-1B cap from March 7, 2024 to March 24, 2025.
Employers seeking to register employees in the H-1B cap lottery will need to have an active myUCSIS account, if they do not already have one. We strongly recommend that all employers contact their counsel for assistance, if necessary, in setting up their online accounts. While the account establishment process is relatively simple, employers do need to take care to establish the correct type of account to submit registrations.
As in prior years, employers should start planning for cap registration now by identifying foreign nationals they intend to register for the H-1B cap lottery, and ensuring that they have a properly configured myUSCIS account that it linked to their immigration counsel’s account.
In completing the registration, employers must identify whether the intended beneficiary qualifies for the H-1B visa pursuant to either the advanced degree cap (reserved for individuals holding a U.S. master’s degree or higher in a field of study related to the offered position) or the standard H-1B cap (reserved for individuals holding a Bachelor’s degree or higher in a field of study related to the offered position).
Employers may register multiple individuals at once, using a single online “batch” submission.
Employers may only submit one registration per intended beneficiary in any fiscal year. If an employer registers an individual more than once in the same fiscal year, all registrations submitted by that employer for that individual will be invalidated.
The employer’s authorized legal representative may prepare and submit cap registrations for the employer.
Employers should work with legal counsel now to identify current or prospective employees who may require an H-1B petition to work in the U.S., and to take appropriate steps to ensure timely online registration of identified candidates.
Not All H-1B Petitions are Subject to the Cap
Certain individuals and employers are not subject to the annual H-1B cap or cap registration, including:
Cap-subject H-1B petitions generally fall within two categories:
“Standard” petitions. The minimum educational requirement for a standard H-1B petition is a Bachelor’s degree or professionally evaluated experience equivalent. Standard cases are capped at 65,000 visas annually with approximately 6,800 reserved for nationals of Chile and Singapore.
“Advanced degree” or “Master’s cap” petitions. The minimum educational requirement for an advanced degree H-1B petition is a Master’s degree or higher, awarded by a U.S. university. USCIS allocates an additional 20,000 H-1B visas for U.S. advanced degree holders each fiscal year.
As a reminder, employers will need to establish a registrant account with USCIS, which will need to be linked to an organizational account maintained by their counsel (presuming they are registering with the assistance of an attorney). Please contact immigration counsel now to ensure you are well-positioned for H-1B cap season.
Gibney will provide additional updates as they are announced. In the interim, additional information is available on the USCIS website here.  
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The 2025 H-1B cap registration period will begin at 12 p.m. Eastern time on March 7, 2025, and will conclude at 12 p.m. Eastern on March 24, 2025. Prospective petitioners are required to register each beneficiary online and pay a registration fee of $215. That fee is the one significant change from last year’s program, when the fee was $10.
Following the initial registration period, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will conduct a random selection of registrations and notify selected registrants through their online accounts by March 31, 2025. Selected registrants will receive a notification through their respective USCIS online accounts. Only those with selected registrations will be eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition, including petitions for advanced degree exemptions.
The H-1B visa program allows U.S. employers to hire international workers in specialized fields such as technology, engineering, and medicine. However, there is a statutory limit on the number of new H-1B visas that can be issued each fiscal year. The annual cap is 65,000 H1-B visas, with an additional 20,000 visas available for applicants who have earned a U.S. master’s degree or higher. The H-1B lottery system is in place due to the high demand for H-1B visas, which exceeds the annual cap set by the U.S. government. When the number of registrations exceeds the cap, USCIS conducts a random lottery to select which petitions will be processed. 
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The initial registration period for the fiscal year 2026 H-1B cap season will open on March 7 and close on March 24 according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). The H-1B visa program allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialty occupations requiring a bachelor’s degree or higher.  
During this period, prospective petitioners and their representatives must register beneficiaries electronically using a USCIS online account and pay the $215 registration fee per beneficiary. First-time registrants can create an account at any time, while returning users with accounts from previous H-1B seasons may have their accounts converted to an organizational account upon their next login.  
Key changes for FY 2026 H-1B cap season  
Beneficiary-centric selection process: Launched in FY 2025, this method ensures each unique beneficiary has an equal chance of selection, regardless of the number of registrations submitted on their behalf. If enough unique beneficiaries register by March 24, USCIS will conduct a random selection and notify users through their USCIS online accounts by March 31.   
Increased daily credit card limit: The US Department of Treasury has temporarily increased the daily credit card transaction limit from $24,999.99 to $99,999.99 for H-1B payments. Transactions exceeding this amount must be made via Automated Clearing House (ACH), and payors may need to notify their bank in advance to remove any ACH blocks.   
New account features for legal representatives: Paralegals can now work with multiple legal representatives under the updated organizational and representative accounts, allowing them to prepare H-1B registrations and petitions for different attorneys within a single paralegal account.   
Fraud prevention measures   
On January 30, 2024, USCIS issued a final rule aimed at reducing fraud and ensuring fairness in the H-1B registration process. The rule ensures that each beneficiary has an equal chance of being selected, regardless of how many registrations have been submitted on their behalf.   
Only those whose registrations are selected will be eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition, including those qualifying for the advanced degree exemption. If USCIS does not receive enough unique registrations, all properly submitted registrations will be selected.   
With the March 7 opening date approaching, employers and applicants should ensure they have the necessary USCIS online accounts and payment methods ready for a smooth registration process.
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Foreign professionals eager to work in the U.S. now have their eyes on the 2026 H-1B visa season. The registration period opens on March 7, 2025, and closes by March 24, 2025. By then, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will have completed the random selection of beneficiaries.
For FY 2026, USCIS will continue using the beneficiary-centric selection process, introduced last year to curb the system’s gaming. Unlike the previous registration-based method, this system ensures each beneficiary is considered only once, regardless of the number of registrations filed on their behalf.
Key changes in the H-1B process
Registration period: March 7 to March 24, 2025
Registration fee: $215 per beneficiary
Selection process: Random selection of unique beneficiaries, rather than registrations
Notification deadline: USCIS plans to notify selected registrants by March 31, 2025
The shift to a beneficiary-centric approach has already cut registration numbers significantly. In FY 2025, USCIS received 470,342 eligible registrations—down 38.6% from FY 2024’s 758,994. The average registrations per beneficiary also fell from 1.70 (FY 2024) to 1.06 (FY 2025).
Step-by-step process for FY 2026
Employers register beneficiaries online via the USCIS portal.
USCIS selects unique beneficiaries using the new selection process.
Selected beneficiaries are notified through their USCIS accounts.
Selected beneficiaries submit H-1B cap-subject petitions to USCIS.
India continues to dominate H-1B landscape
The H-1B visa, designed for highly skilled workers, remains a popular route for Indian professionals. In FY 2023, 72.3% of all H-1B visas were issued to Indian workers. Additionally, India accounts for 28% of international student jobs in the U.S.
Under current regulations, 65,000 H-1B visas are issued annually under the general cap, while an additional 20,000 visas are reserved for those with advanced degrees from U.S. institutions.
Upcoming policy shifts under Trump?
With Donald Trump’s return to the White House, international students and skilled workers could face new visa restrictions. The Optional Practical Training (OPT) program, which allows students to work temporarily after graduation, may see changes. The Trump administration is also expected to tighten H-1B rules and limit visas across multiple categories, including family green cards.
On the other hand, Trump has proposed a Gold Card initiative aimed at helping companies hire and retain top foreign talent from elite U.S. colleges.
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USCIS has received enough petitions 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) 2025.
USCIS will send non-selection notices to registrants through their online accounts over the next few days. When USCIS finishes sending these non-selection notifications, the status for properly submitted registrations that have not been selected for the FY 2025 H-1B numerical allocations will show:
Not Selected: Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration.
The deadline for filing H-1B cap subject petitions online, based on a valid registration selection notice, was June 30, 2024. Because June 30 fell on a Sunday, consistent with USCIS policy, USCIS considered properly filed paper H-1B cap subject petitions received at a USCIS Lockbox Facility on July 1, 2024, as timely filed (i.e., USCIS considered the paper-filed H-1B petitions to have been received on June 30).
USCIS had extended the initial registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B cap. The initial registration period, which opened at noon Eastern on March 6, 2024, and was originally scheduled to run through noon Eastern on March 22, ran through noon Eastern on March 25, 2024.
The H-1B program allows companies and other employers in the United States to temporarily employ foreign workers in occupations that require the theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and a bachelor’s degree or higher in the specific specialty, or its equivalent. H-1B specialty occupations may include fields such as architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts
USCIS 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 2025 H-1B cap. H-1B petitions can be portable from one job to another.
However, USCIS has taken several steps to benefit the current H-1B visa holder. USCIS 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.
The Karnataka 2nd PUC Result 2025 will be declared in April, but the exact date is not confirmed yet. Over 6 lakh students took the exam from March 1 to 20, 2025. The results will be published on the official website and can also be accessed through DigiLocker and SMS services.=

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In March 2024, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) conducted an initial random selection on properly submitted electronic registrations for the fiscal year 2025 H-1B cap, including for beneficiaries eligible for the advanced degree exemption.
Only those petitioners with selected registrations for FY 2025 are eligible to file H-1B cap-subject petitions during the filing period on their registration selection notice. The initial filing period for those with selected registrations for FY 2025 was from 1 April until 30 June 2024.
USCIS recently determined that it would need to select additional registrations for unique beneficiaries to reach the FY 2025 regular cap numerical allocation.
Soon, USCIS will select additional registrations for unique beneficiaries from previously submitted electronic registrations using a random selection process, and will notify prospective petitioners with selected registrations from this second round of selection that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration. USCIS will announce when it has completed this second process of selections and notifications.
USCIS will not be conducting a second selection for the advanced degree exemption (the master’s cap), as enough master’s cap registrations were already selected and sufficient petitions were received based on those registrations as projected to meet the FY 2025 masters cap numerical allocation.
The second round of selection for the regular cap will include previously submitted registrations that indicated eligibility for the master’s cap along with those that indicated only eligibility for the regular cap.
Those with selected registrations will have their USCIS online accounts updated to include a selection notice, which includes details of when and where to file.
The United States’ H-1B program applies to employers seeking to hire nonimmigrants as workers in specialty occupations. A specialty occupation is one that requires the application of a body of highly specialized knowledge and the attainment of at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent.
The H-1B classification has an annual numerical limit (cap) of 65,000 new statuses/visas each fiscal year. An additional 20,000 petitions filed on behalf of beneficiaries with a master’s degree or higher from a US institution of higher education are exempt from the cap.
H-1B specialty occupation workers can live and work in the United States for a period of up to 3 years.
If you need advice or guidance relating to US immigration including H-1B applications, the Global Immigration team at Smith Stone Walters is here to help. To speak to a member of the team, please contact us today.
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USCIS announced on August 6, 2024 that it completed the second H-1B cap lottery for fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B cap. All employers with selected registrations have been notified. Employers with selected registrations from the second lottery may file an H-1B petition for the beneficiary of a selected registration during the 90-day period from August 8, 2024 to November 7, 2024.
USCIS did not conduct a second selection for the advanced degree exemption (the master’s cap).
USCIS has reported that during the registration period for the FY 2025 H-1B cap, it saw a significant decrease from FY 2024 in the total number of registrations submitted and, more importantly, in the number of eligible registrations submitted, returning the submission rates to FY 2023 levels. This drop was attributed to USCIS’s implementation of a new selection process this year to combat abuse of the H-1B registration process which took place in FY 2024.
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The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has received enough petitions to reach the second random selection for fiscal year 2025, H-1B regular cap.
The announcement has been confirmed through a statement provided by the USCIS, with the agency stressing that it has selected a sufficient number of registrations from the remaining properly submitted FY 2025 registrations, VisaGuide.World reports.
The allocation for the advanced degree or Master’s quota of 20,000 was met through the H-1B petitions filed during the initial period that ended on June 30. Therefore, a second lottery for that allocation was not necessary.
Our projections indicate we have now randomly selected a sufficient number of registrations for unique beneficiaries as needed to reach the regular cap from the remaining properly submitted FY 2025 registrations. We have notified all prospective petitioners with selected registrations from this round of selection that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the applicable selected registration.
Recently, the USCIS announced that it would conduct a second lottery for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 H-1B for the regular cap category. However, the agency argued that a second lottery for that allocation was not necessary.
We did not conduct a second selection for the advanced degree exemption (the master’s cap), as enough masters cap registrations had already been selected and sufficient petitions were received based on these registrations as projected to meet the master’s cap numerical allocation. 
The agency also stressed that it notified all prospective petitioners with selected registrations from the second lottery that they can file an H-1B cap-subject petition for the beneficiary named in the selected registration.
The USCIS also announced that if an employer does not receive a selection notice for a registration application through the MyUSCIS account by now, it is unlikely that this application was selected in the second lottery.
The agency recalled that an H-1B cap-subject petition must be filed at the correct filing location or online through the MyUSCIS account within a period indicated on the relevant selection notice.
According to the USCIS, the period for filing the H-1B cap-subject petition is at least 90 days. Petitioners are required to include a copy of the applicable selection notice with the FY 2025 H-1B cap-subject petition.
The H-1B program permits companies and employers in the US to bring foreign workers to fill job positions in several fields. This kind of visa allows IT specialists, accountants, architects, doctors and lawyers, among others to temporarily work in the US legally.
Each year, the agency approves nearly 65,000 petitions, for a period from October 1, until September 30 of the following year. Of them, 6,800 are reserved for nationals of Chile and Singapore.
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