The 2025 H-1B Lottery: What Employers and Applicants Need to Know

 

        The annual H-1B visa lottery for the fiscal year 2026 will be conducted in March 2025. It is a critical moment for U.S. employers and skilled foreign workers. This annual lottery process determines which applicants will have the opportunity to apply for H-1B visas, a highly sought-after nonimmigrant visa category that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign professionals in specialized occupations such as technology, engineering, finance, and healthcare. In the 2024 lottery, more than 470,000 eligible registrations competed for only 85,000 visas (65,000 regular cap and 20,000 master cap).  Given the competitive nature of the H-1B cap, understanding the latest changes and preparation strategies is essential for both employers and applicants.

Key Changes to the 2025 H-1B Lottery

1. Increased Registration Fee

        Starting in March 2025, the H-1B electronic registration fee will increase from $10 to $215 per beneficiary. This fee increase is part of USCIS’s broader effort to cover operational costs and also discourage frivolous registrations. Employers should account for this cost adjustment when budgeting for multiple registrations.

2. New Beneficiary-Centric Selection Process

        To prevent fraud and duplicate submissions, USCIS will continue to use a beneficiary-centric lottery system. Each beneficiary will only be entered once into the lottery, regardless of the number of sponsoring employers.  This change aims to create a fairer system, preventing individuals from gaining an unfair advantage by securing multiple registrations.

3. Enhanced Anti-Fraud Measures

        Employers must now provide additional verification details to confirm the authenticity of their H-1B registrations.  USCIS will scrutinize registrations more rigorously to ensure compliance with genuine job offers and employer eligibility requirements.

4. Stricter Compliance with Specialty Occupation Criteria

        USCIS continues to refine the definition of specialty occupation to ensure that only those roles requiring highly specialized knowledge qualify.  Employers must provide clear job descriptions and demonstrate that a bachelor’s degree or higher in a relevant field is normally required for the position.

Tips for Employers and Applicants

        In addition to these changes, the Trump Administration is expected to implement tougher standards when adjudicating H-1B petitions.  Employers and applicants should take precautions to avoid denials and/or Requests for Evidence.  

       Employers must prepare job descriptions carefully to ensure that H-1B job roles align with USCIS’s definition of a specialty occupation.  They should also confirm that beneficiaries meet educational and professional experience requirements before submitting registrations.  Many selected cases were denied because the employee lacks the required qualifications.  If an employee is already present in the U.S., their immigration status must be legal in order to change status to H-1B.  Finally, employers should work closely with immigration attorneys to ensure that all registrations comply with the new rules, reducing the risk of rejection.

        Employees much also take actions early on.  First, an employee must ensure that their employer is registered with the USCIS system and is willing to sponsor their H-1B petition.  Next, they should organize their documents carefully, including degree certificates, transcripts, job offer letters, and work experience letters, certificates, etc., in advance.   

        Staying informed on the lottery timeline is also critical:  the H-1B cap registration period will open at noon EST on March 7 and run through noon EST on March 24, 2025 this year.  Employers may only enter employee registrations during this window.

        Prospective applicants should also consider alternative visa options early on.  Given the competitive nature of the H-1B lottery, applicants should also consider O-1, L-1, or employment-based green card options, such as EB-2 NIW or PERM labor application, if they are eligible.

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

Getting Ready for H-1B Lottery in 2025

 

Soon after the New Year celebrations, once again, our firm's attention will be drawn to the annual H-1B filing season, which is expected to begin in March.  For the next few months, we must intake, evaluate, counsel and prepare client cases for the H-1B electronic registration process, which was initiated by USCIS in 2020.  

To safeguard our clients' interests, our office has continued to perform a thorough evaluation of each case before registration.  The upcoming lottery is for the FY 2026 H-1B program with an employment start date of 10/01/2025.   As the new administration has expressed a strong intent to make changes to immigration policies, we must be particularly vigilant in preparing for the upcoming H-1B lottery to minimize errors and improve the chances of selection.  Employers and employees should pay attention to the following items. 

Employer Information

Getting correct employer information is critical, as incorrect information will disqualify the H-1B registration.  Confirm the legal name of the employer in the State Certificate of Formation, including any subsequent changes in the legal name or D/B/As.  For larger companies with multiple subsidiaries, branches, etc., find out the exact legal entity that will act as the H-1B sponsor.  The Federal Employer ID number (FEIN) is another important piece of information, as USCIS uses the FEIN as the unique identifier for each sponsoring employer to screen out duplicate filings. The FEIN can be confirmed by examining the official correspondences issued by the Internal Revenue Service regarding the sponsoring entity.

Employee Qualifications

Generally speaking, an employee must qualify to perform the duties of a specialty occupation in order to be classified as an H-1B worker.  Hence, the employee's qualifications, including education, certifications, work experience, training, etc. must be carefully considered.  Specifically, for the purpose of H-1B electronic registration, we must confirm whether the employee qualifies for the “master cap”, which confers 20,000 additional visa numbers.  To qualify for the master cap, an applicant must have earned an advanced level degree beyond the bachelor's level, including professional degrees, conferred by an accredited U.S. institution.  Further, the school must not be a private, for-profit institution.   Even if the case is selected in the H-1B visa lottery, checking the wrong box means that the case will be denied eventually.

Information About the H-1B Position

Although the current USCIS registration system does not require specific occupational information, an early evaluation of the job title, duties, and requirements is also essential.  Again, the case will be denied if the position being petitioned for does not meet the definition of specialty occupation, even after the case is selected in the lottery. The law regarding what constitutes a specialty occupation constantly changes.  The agency policies and adjudication standards can also be confusing at times. For certain less defined occupations such as market research analysts, business analysts, consultants, etc., an early evaluation and assignment of occupation code would make the final application process smoother. 

Employee's Immigration Status

A foreign worker has two options to obtain H-1B status after their petition has been approved.  If they are legally present in the U.S., they may apply for a Change of Status directly in their H-1B petition.  Upon approval, their status will be changed automatically.  Hence, a thorough examination of the applicant's immigration status is critical.  For F-1 students who are eligible for STEM OPT, they should file a timely extension of their OPT status.  If extension is no longer available, we'll then evaluate whether the student qualifies for the special CAP-GAP extension rules. CAP-GAP rules allow qualified F-1 students to continue staying and/or working in the United States after expiration of their OPT status.  If an applicant has failed to maintain their lawful status in the U.S., they should consult an experienced immigration attorney without delay.  In some cases, they would have to depart the U.S. and apply for a valid H-1B visa stamp before they may re-enter the U.S.  Do not forget to also review the status of the H-1B candidate's spouse and children. Each person's immigration status must be properly maintained.  

Conclusion

In sum, there are factual and legal issues to consider regarding the H-1B registration and application process.  As mentioned, the new administration may make changes to the H-1B visa program including the electronic registration system, the subsequent application process, the substantive requirements such as the wages, job locations, specialty occupation, etc.  Hence, it is important to stay informed of any updates and changes in policies. 

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

USCIS announced 2nd H-1B lottery for regular cap!

 

USCIS just announced today that it will conduct a second random selection for FY 2025 H-1B program.  The second drawing will only be for regular cap, as all 20,000 advanced degree visa numbers have been used up. The results should be announced in registrants' online accounts soon.  Keep in touch with your employers and lawyers for updates!

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

USCIS Has Completed H-1B Lottery for FY 2025

 

Photo: Anna Tarazevich

On April 1st, USCIS announced that it has completed the H-1B lottery for FY 2025.   It means that USCIS has selected enough electronic registrations for unique beneficiaries to meet the regular H-1B visa quota of 65,000, plus the 20,000 cap for advanced degree holders.   This year, a new H-1B rule is in effect, and each qualified beneficiary is treated as one unique registration for random selection, regardless of how many employers have entered registrations for them.  

How do I know if I am selected? 

USCIS has released the selection results online through the employers online accounts.   "Selected" means the case was selected to file an H-1B cap petition.  "Not Selected" indicates the case is not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition.  However, in anticipation of a second lottery, USCIS has kept the unselected registrations in "Submitted" status for now.  It means that there may still be a chance for selection later this year.

What are the next steps if I am selected?

If your case was selected, you should work with your employer to submit a complete H-1B petition within the filing window.  The filing window for the initially selected cases are from April 1st to June 30.  Late filings will be rejected.  Similarly, use of outdated forms and failure to submit a legally sufficient H-1B petition will result in rejection or denial of the petition.  As for April 1st, USCIS has adjusted the filing fees for various immigration petitions, including the I-129 form for H-1B petitions.  The employer is now required to pay an additional asylum fee.  Further, starting April 1st, employers must use a new edition of the I-129 form. USCIS has also changed the filing locations of many petitions, allowing online filing of H-1B petitions for the first time.  

Will there be a second lottery this year?

If USCIS has not received sufficient number of H-1B petitions to meet the annual quota, it will conduct a 2nd or 3rd drawing to select applications for adjudications.  It is difficult to predict the chances for that to happen now, as there are several factors involved.  First, although USCIS has not formally released the number of H-1B registrations this year, the banning of muliple entries for the same employee should have greatly reduced the total number of eligible entries in the initial lottery.  It means that, compared to last year, most of the selected cases will actually be submitting H-1B petitions. (Inerestingly, USCIS appears to allow multiple employers to submit H-1B petitions for the same selected employee under the new rule, but this should not affect the counting of visa numbers.)  

Secondly, USCIS has implemented a new policy requiring an H-1B employer to prove that there is a bona fide job offer for the beneficiary. This may affect the number of H-1B filings and/or approvals, because some IT consulting firms may not be able to provide such proof if they do not have a client project for the H-1B employee.  Finally, there is always a percentage of cases that will drop out or be rejected for various reasons.  On balance, we are hopeful that there will be some unused H-1B visa numbers in the summer. 

Delays of Receipt Notices Expected

When USCIS receives a timely and properly filed H-1B cap subject petition, it will provide the petitioner and the attorney of record a Form I-797, Notice of Action, as proof of filing.  Because of the large volumes of H-1B cap filings each year, USCIS already advised the public that it expects some delays in the issuance of the I-797 receipt notices.  If delivery of the petition has been confirmed by the Post Office or delivery service, employers should not submit a second petition, as this will result in denial or revocation of both petitions.

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

Update of H-1B Cap Lottery Results

USCIS started to release selection results on 3/27, which was earlier than in previous years.  Selection results have continued to show up in the new H-1B registration portal through today, 3/30.  USCIS has twitted that selection results will continue to be released through Monday, 4/1.  However, the majority of selections should have been released today.  Applicants may check with their attorneys and employers to obtain updates of the selection results.  Based on our law firm's data and also anecdotal accounts, the overall selection rate this year hovers around 25%, with a lot better odds for advanced degree holders.  A second drawing may occur in the summer, if USCIS does not receive enough qualified H-1B petitions during the initial filing window through the end of June.  Stay tuned for further details. 

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

H-1B Cap Registration to Begin on March 6

 

USCIS announced the H-1B annual cap registration schedule for FY 2025.  The registration period will run from noon March 6 to noon March 22 (EST).  After the registration window is closed, USCIS will move on to the lottery phase.  Employers may start registering their accounts on February 28.  New organizational accounts with additional features will be implemented this year.  The results of the H-1B visa lottery will be released soon after. This year, the results will likely be released over the March 29-31 weekend.  The following is an approximate application timeline.  Interested employers and applicants should start the preparation immediately. 

Application Timeline FY 2025

Timeline­*	What to Do or Expect
January – Early March	Recruit H-1B employees, consult with attorneys Evaluate the “specialty occupation” position you plan to file for, and determine job duties and requirements Gather employer/employee documents and other supporting docs
February 28 - March 6	H-1B employers/attorneys to create USCIS accounts.
March 6 - March 22	Attorneys/Employers to enter H-1B registrations online Employers to verify / approve registrations Attorneys/Employers to submit H-1B registrations
Mid-March – End of March	USCIS to conduct 1st electronic random selection ("lottery") Results of 1st draw will be released between 3/29 to 3/31
April to June	Attorneys/employers to submit complete H-1B petition with LCA to USCIS (for first batch of the selected applications)
April and onward	USCIS to adjudicate H-1B petitions Respond to any Request for Evidence (RFE)
Mid-August	USCIS may conduct a 2nd H-1B lottery to use up any leftover visa numbers
Mid-August – Mid-November	Submit complete H-1B petition with LCA for candidates selected in the 2nd lottery to USCIS
September/October and onwards	USCIS continues to adjudicate throughout this time Change of Status Employees may start working in H-1B status upon approval starting October 1 Consular Processing Employees to apply H-1B visa stamp for entry to commence H-1B employment

* Part of the timeline is estimated based on previous year's schedule.

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

FY 2025 H-1B Lottery: New Rule Should Improve the Odds for Selection

 

Around this time every year, our office receives many calls and inquiries about the upcoming H-1B lottery. Yes, it is hard to believe that the annual H-1B filing season is just around the corner. The computerized random selection process (aka "H-1B lottery") for Fiscal Year 2025 will take place in less than 60 days. USCIS announced some enhancements to the H-1B registration and selection process, including creation of organizational accounts and also measures to counter fraudulent registrations. As a result, applicants should see significant improvement in the odds of selection.

Congress created the H-1B visa program in 1990 to enable American employers to hire foreign nationals to work in specialty occupations. The law also limited the number of H-1B visas issued per fiscal year at 65,000. In 2004, Congress added 20,000 additional H-1B visas to foreign nationals holding a master's or higher degree from qualified U.S. universities. Despite the increase in visa numbers, they are insufficient to meet the demand for skillful foreign workers. As a result, USCIS implemented a computer-based random selection process every year to select cases for further processing.  Employer must first register the case electronically with the USCIS with some basic information about the employer and employee.

Unfortunately, the electronic selection process has been misused by some applicants. The most notorious abuse has been the use of multiple registrations for the same beneficiary to increase the chances of selection in the visa lottery. Although an employee/beneficiary could be registered by more than one employer on the system, each registration must be based on a real job offer. Instead, many applicants and employers take advantage of the system by entering multiple entries in the system for the same individual without real job opportunities. For example, for FY 2023, 2 beneficiaries had 75 or more registrations entered for them; 5 beneficiaries had 50 or more registrations; 108 beneficiaries had 25 or more beneficiaries, etc. As a result, applicants with real job offers suffered due to the reduced probability for selection.

To counter such base, USCIS promulgated a new rule on 10/23/2023 to modernize the H-1B program, including provisions to treat each beneficiary's entry to be unique, regardless of how many registrations have been entered for them.  As a result of this change, applicants should expect to see huge improvements in the selection rates.  

Again, take FY 2023 as an example, USCIS announced that there were totally 474,421 eligible employee registrations. In the 10/23/2023 modernization rule, USCIS reported the actual total number of beneficiaries in 2023 was only 357,272, of which 307,483 had only one entry and 49,739 had 2 to 75 more registrations. These additional registrations entered for these 49,739 beneficiaries amounted to 165,180.  The net effect is that 117,199 additional registrations were entered.  If the unique entry rule had been in effect for FY 2023, the number of unique registrations for these employees would have been 49,739 only, instead of 165,180. And we would be looking at 357,222 total registrations instead of 474,421 or about 32.8% less registrations. 

Of course, the above is just a simplified version of what could have happened.  Since each year's specific numbers are different, it is almost impossible to predict with accuracy the actual results for FY 2025.  In FY 2024, we had 758,994 total eligible registrations.  USCIS has not yet announced the exact number of beneficiaries and breakdown of the actual registration counts and, hence, further analysis is not possible.  Other variables include the visa usage by the H1B1 visa program, actual petition filing rate by selected registrants, number of denials due to substantive or technical errors, etc.  It should also be noted that the 32.8% improvement in odds is only a comparison with the situation in previous years in which multiple entries for the same beneficiary were allowed; it is not an absolute improvement in the odds of the H-1B lottery itself, which is still determined by the actual number of eligible beneficiary registrations and the fixed H-1B visa cap of 85,000.  

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)  

H-1B 2nd Draw Completed - 3rd Draw Possible

 

As usual, USCIS swiftly completed the second FY 2024 H-1B drawing over the weekend, right after their initial announcement last Thursday.  Text notifications were sent to the employer and attorney accounts for selected registrations.  Our law office was actively monitoring the process from Friday to Sunday and sending updates to our clients to share the good news. We are thankful that quite a few of our clients' registrations were selected in the second draw. For those who are not selected, we are hopeful for a third draw later this year, although the chance could be small.

For FY 2024, there were a total of 758,994 eligible registrations submitted, of which 350,103 were for beneficiaries with one registration only and 408,891 were for beneficiaries with multiple registrations.  According to USCIS, a total of 188,400 selections have been made through 07/31/2023, from both the first and second draw.  There were 110,791 selections from the first draw and 77,609 selections from the second draw – which is a significant number.  According to the statistics of our law firm, the selection rate of the second draw was about 8%.  

Source: USCIS Public Engagement

USCIS emphasized that it will continue to identify fraudulent registrations submitted by related parties for the same applicant.  In fact, USCIS has already issued formal requests for evidence on or denied H-1B petitions for this reason.  Hence, it is possible that there may still be visa numbers left behind after the 2nd draw, as multiple-filers are likely to refrain from filing a petition even if they were selected.  Still, USCIS has already made 188,400 selections, and there are only totally 85,000 H-1B visa numbers for this fiscal year.  If there are leftover visas, the number would be a small one.  But, as always, we do our best and hope for the best for our clients.  For those who are not selected, our office tries to offer them other alternative solutions to maintain their legal status and / or obtain legal authorization to work in the United States. 

(Immigration laws and policies change regularly.  If you have any questions regarding this article, please visit www.1visa1.com to schedule a legal consultation.)