USCIS to open electronic registration process for annual H-1B lottery

USCIS issued a final rule making significant changes to the H-1B visa lottery process in 2020, which will remain in place this year. The rule added an electronic registration requirement for employers seeking to submit H-1B cap-subject petitions. Employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions are required to submit an electronic registration for each employee they intend to file an H-1B petition for. USCIS will open an initial registration period from March 9, 2021 to March 25, 2021 at 11:00am CST. If a sufficient number of registrations are received during this period, USCIS will randomly select the number of registrations projected as needed to reach the H-1B numerical allocations. Employers with selected registrations will be eligible to file a cap-subject petition only for the foreign national named in the registration and during a timeframe specified by USCIS. If the registration is not selected in a lottery conducted by USCIS, the next available H-1B filing date will be April 1, 2022 for an October 1, 2022 employment start date.