The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced its H-1B visa lottery for Fiscal Year 2026. H-1B visas can be used to sponsor foreign nationals to work for U.S. companies in “specialty occupations.” This year, the lottery will open on Wednesday March 7, 2025, at noon Eastern, and it will end on Friday, March 24, 2025, at noon Eastern. Responses from USCIS are expected by March 31, 2025.
With H-1B visas in high demand, Congress has subjected them to visa caps. Currently, each fiscal year the number of new H-1B visas is limited to 65,000 visas – with an additional 20,000 for graduates of United States master’s degree programs.
A position can qualify as a “specialty occupation” in one of four ways: (1) where the employer has a history of requiring at least a bachelor’s degree for the position; (2) where a bachelor’s degree or higher is typically required for the position; (3) where at least a bachelor’s degree is commonly required in the industry in parallel positions; or, (4) where the position’s duties are so specialized and complex that the knowledge required to perform them is associated with attainment of a bachelor’s (or higher) degree. Moreover, the degree required by the employer (and held by the foreign national) must be directly related to the potential position offered.
Employers interested in hiring a foreign national for this H-1B season should begin assessing an employee’s eligibility and gathering the necessary information for the registration process as soon as possible. An employee’s job title, specific job duties, proposed salary, and biographical information must be considered when weighing an employee’s eligibility for an H-1B visa.
Viable candidates for an H-1B visa can include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Job candidates in other non-immigrant work categories seeking to change their status to H-1B;
- Current foreign national employees or independent contractors who live abroad but wish to relocate to the United States;
- Current students working under Optional Practical Training (OPT) or Curricular Practical Training (CPT) that will need H-1B sponsorship to continue working in the United States;
- Candidates currently eligible for work authorization as a dependent spouse but who are seeking to gain their own work authorization independent from their spouse; or
- Candidates in H-1B status with a cap-exempt employer—institutions of higher learning and related non-profit entities, non-profit research organizations and government research organizations—who are seeking job opportunities with a cap-subject employer.
The price of playing the lottery has significantly increased for FY2026 – from just $10.00 to $215.00 per registration. Employers hoping to sponsor employees or prospective candidates, should complete an online registration. Fortunately, the registration process requires only basic information about the employer and the beneficiary.
For more information on how to select potential H-1B candidates, register for the H-1B lottery, or prepare an H-1B petition after securing your lottery winnings, please reach out to Business Immigration Practice Group Chair Michael W. Bowling at michael.bowling@crowedunlevy.com or Jaycee M. Simon at jaycee.simon@crowedunlevy.com.