Immigration Lawyer Blog
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The H-1B cap season is now in full swing. Electronic registrations for the fiscal year 2025 H-1B work visa lottery opened on March 6th and will close at noon eastern time on March 22nd.
If you want to know how you can prepare for the upcoming lottery and learn about the recent changes made to the program, we invite you to watch our video.
Overview
The H-1B visa program is one of the most common work visas for professionals seeking to work for U.S. employers in specialty occupations that require a bachelor’s degree or the foreign equivalent. Every year, during the month of March, 65,000 H-1B work visas are up for grabs, and an additional 20,000 visas are available for those holding a U.S. advanced degree (master’s degree or higher from accredited U.S. institutions of higher education).
Those who wish to have a chance of being selected must submit an online electronic registration before the deadline of March 22nd. Once the registration period has closed, USCIS will select enough registrations to meet the annual H-1B visa cap from the pool of applicants who have registered.
About the Electronic Registration System
The online electronic registration system was first introduced by USCIS in 2019 to streamline the H-1B selection process, without requiring U.S. employers to first submit complete paper filings by mail.
The electronic registration process allows U.S. employers and their prospective employees to first compete for the limited number of H-1B visas available, and once selected U.S. employers can submit complete filings to USCIS on behalf of the foreign worker.