New H-1B Visa Lottery Process

U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services  (USCIS) has announced a proposed rule that will dramatically shift how H-1B visa petitions are selected in its H-1B cap lottery selection system.  The proposed regulation would create a mandatory online preregistration system for employers to register each individual’s H-1B cap petition and reverse the order in which USCIS selects H-1B petitions under the H-1B cap and advanced degree exemptions.

Currently, the H-1B visa allows U.S. employers to temporarily employ foreign nationals with a bachelor’s degree or higher in occupations that require a theoretical and practical body of highly specialized knowledge.  Each year, on April 1st, USCIS makes 85,000 H-1B visas available.  If USCIS received more than 85,000 petitions, they institute a computer-generated lottery system to randomly select the petitions that will be adjudicated. 

Employer Pre-Registration System

Under this proposed rule, USCIS would create a mandatory online preregistration process whereby those employers who intend to file H-1B cap petitions would be required to submit an online registration for each potential H-1B beneficiary, during a designated registration period before April 1st.  USCIS would then conduct a lottery and select registrations to meet the H-1B visa cap.  Those registrations that are selected will be notified and given a 60-day window in which to file their H-1B visa petition on behalf of the foreign worker named in the original registration.  According to the proposal, an employer could potentially wait until they have been notified of selection before filing a Labor Condition Application and preparing the corresponding H-1B petition for the intended beneficiary.

The online registration would request information about the employer (i.e. company name, address, Federal Employer Identification Number, etc.), along with information about the intended H-1B worker (i.e. name, date of birth, citizenship, passport, and education credentials).  There will be no fee to register an H-1B worker, but employers would be limited to one registration per individual per year.

The preregistration period would begin at least 14 days before April 1st and last for at least two weeks.  USCIS would announce the dates for the preregistration period online at least 30 days before it starts.   

New Lottery Selection Process

While the H-1B cap will remain at 85,000, USCIS intends to reverse the lottery order in which it selects H-1B petitions for adjudication, to increase the amount of H-1B visas awarded to foreign nationals with U.S. master’s degrees and higher.  Currently, USCIS first conducts a lottery for 20,000 H-1B visas for individuals with a U.S. master’s degrees and higher (the “advanced degree cap”).  Those individuals with advanced degrees not selected in that lottery are added to the pool of 65,000 H-1B visas (the “regular cap”), for another chance to be selected with individuals who only have a bachelor’s degree.  Under the proposed rule, USCIS would conduct the regular cap lottery first and include all advanced degree holders.  Those with advanced degrees not selected in the regular cap would be placed in a second lottery, if there are enough advanced degree holders to meet the advanced-degree lottery.

In accordance with the Trump administration’s previous announcements for employment-immigration reforms, USCIS believes this change to the lottery system would increase the chances of H-1B visas to be awarded to individuals with U.S. master’s degrees and higher.   

Implementation

Currently, these are only proposed rule changes.  While USCIS has stated their intention to have these new rules in place before the April 1, 2019 H-1B visa season, the proposed regulations also would allow USCIS to temporarily suspend the registration process due to technical challenges with the registration process or online system.  In the meantime, employers and foreign nationals should submit their public comments on this proposal HERE, before January 2nd.

What Employers & Foreign Nationals Should Do Now

Regardless of whether USCIS will be able to implement these changes before the April 1st H-1B filing deadline, employers and foreign nationals should begin preparing H-1B petitions NOW for the possibility that they will need to submit their complete H-1B visa petitions on April 1st.   

For any questions on the H-1B visa process or these changes, please feel free to contact me.