U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the initial registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2027 H-1B cap will open at noon Eastern on March 4 and run through noon Eastern on March 19, 2026. During this period, prospective H-1B cap-subject petitioners and representatives must 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.
If you are an H-1B petitioning employer who does not have a USCIS online account, you must create an organizational account. Representatives may add company clients to their accounts at any time, but both representatives and employers must wait until March 4 to enter beneficiary information and submit registrations and the associated $215 fee. Selections take place after the initial registration period closes. We intend to send selection notifications by March 31, 2026, via users’ USCIS online accounts to prospective petitioners and representatives who have at least one registration selected.
A petitioner may only file an H-1B cap-subject petition, including a petition for a beneficiary who is eligible for the advanced degree exemption, if their registration for the beneficiary of the cap-subject petition was selected in the H-1B registration process.
Additional information on the electronic registration process is available on the H-1B Electronic Registration Process page. We will update this page prior to the initial registration period.
New for the FY 2027 Cap Season
The Department of Homeland Security published a final rule amending the regulations governing how USCIS selects H-1B registrations for unique beneficiaries who can then file H-1B cap-subject petitions. The new H-1B selection process prioritizes allocating visas to higher-skilled and higher-paid aliens to better protect the wages, working conditions, and job opportunities of American workers. For the FY 2027 H-1B cap season, if we receive registrations for unique beneficiaries during the initial registration period that exceed the cap, we will conduct a weighted selection from the unique beneficiaries with properly submitted registrations. If we do not receive registrations for enough unique beneficiaries, we will select all registrations for unique beneficiaries that were properly submitted in the initial registration period.
On Sept. 19, 2025, President Trump issued a Proclamation, Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers, an important initial step to reform the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program. While the proclamation does not directly impact the electronic registration process, if a petitioner has their registration selected and is eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition, they may need to pay an additional $100,000 fee before filing the H-1B petition as a condition of eligibility. See the Presidential Proclamation on Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers section on our H-1B Specialty Occupations page for additional details.
1. The New Wage-Weighted Selection System
For the FY 2027 season, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has moved away from a purely random lottery. The new process prioritizes higher-skilled and higher-paid workers to protect American wages.
The selection probability is now weighted based on the Department of Labor (DOL) Wage Levels:
- Level 4 (Highest): 4 entries in the selection pool.
- Level 3: 3 entries.
- Level 2: 2 entries.
- Level 1 (Entry-level): 1 entry.
“The new H-1B selection process prioritizes allocating visas to higher-skilled and higher-paid aliens to better protect the wages, working conditions, and job opportunities of American workers.” — USCIS
2. Organizational Accounts: Mandatory for Employers
Prospective H-1B petitioners (employers) must use a USCIS online organizational account.
- New Users: Must create an account before the registration window opens.
- Functionality: These accounts allow multiple people within a company (and their legal representatives) to collaborate on registrations.
- Timing: While accounts can be set up now, beneficiary information and fee payments can only be submitted starting March 4.
3. The $100,000 Fee: Advantage for F-1 Students and In-Country Applicants
One of the most significant updates involves the $100,000 fee required by the 2025 Presidential Proclamation. While the fee is a major barrier for new H-1B workers coming from abroad, there is a critical advantage for those already in the U.S.:
- Exemption for Change of Status: Individuals currently in the U.S. in a valid nonimmigrant status (such as F-1 students on OPT) are generally exempt from the $100,000 fee, provided they are eligible for a Change of Status (COS).
- Who Must Pay: The fee primarily targets beneficiaries who are outside the U.S. or those who must undergo “consular processing” to obtain their visa.
- Why it matters: This makes F-1 students and other in-country professionals much more “cost-effective” for employers compared to hiring from abroad, as the employer avoids the massive $100k surcharge.
