U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that the initial registration period for the fiscal year (FY) 2027 H‑1B Lottery will open at 12:00 PM (ET) on March 4, 2026, and close at 12:00 PM (ET) on March 19, 2026. 

Since 2020, USCIS has been utilizing its electronic registration process for the H-1B cap cases. The electronic system requires prospective petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions to first electronically register and then pay the associated $215 H-1B registration fee for each beneficiary. This electronic registration process has streamlined processing by reducing paperwork and data exchange and has provided overall cost savings to employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions. USCIS will run the random selection process from the electronic registrations and determine which registrants will be eligible to file H-1B cap-subject petitions for the 65,000 available slots. USCIS will then select an additional 20,000 registrants reserved for those with an advanced degree from a U.S. college or university. Once selected in the random lottery, eligible registrants will then submit complete H-1B cap-subject petitions with all supporting documents to USCIS. As the demand for cap-subject H-1B visas has far exceeded the 85,000 visas available per fiscal year, we anticipate that USCIS may once again receive more registrations than there are available visas.

During this window, prospective H‑1B cap‑subject petitioners and authorized representatives must use a USCIS online account to submit an electronic registration for each beneficiary and pay the $215 registration fee per beneficiary. USCIS will conduct the selection process after the initial registration period closes and intends to issue notifications by March 31, 2026, through users’ USCIS online accounts. 

New for the FY 2027 H‑1B Cap Season

Weighted Selection Process

The Department of Homeland Security has issued a final rule revising how USCIS selects H‑1B registrations. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) has indicated that there might be litigation forthcoming that may put a pause on the weighted selection process. We are monitoring any updates closely.

Key changes may include:

• USCIS will now conduct weighted selections among unique beneficiaries when the number of registrations exceeds available cap numbers.
• The updated system is designed to prioritize higher‑skilled and higher‑paid workers, with the stated aim of better protecting wages, job conditions, and employment opportunities for U.S. workers.

Presidential Proclamation

Potential Additional Fee Requirement

On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a Proclamation on the Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers. While the proclamation does not impact the electronic registration phase, it may impose additional obligations at the petition filing stage.

If a petitioner’s registration is selected and it remains eligible to file an H‑1B cap‑subject petition, the petitioner may be required to pay an additional $100,000 fee as a condition of eligibility before filing the petition. Beneficiaries and petitioners should check with their immigration counsel to determine if they could be subject to the fee.

Next Steps

We will be reaching out to clients in early February 2026 to begin the H-1B FY27 CAP season. We urge employers to assess their hiring needs to determine which candidates will require H-1B sponsorship. These might include F-1 students on OPT, J-1 workers not subject to the two-year foreign residency requirement, TN, E-2 and L-1 workers, as well as any foreign nationals who currently reside outside the United States. In order to assess whether to file an H-1B registration in March, we will need to analyze the employer, the position, and the beneficiary to confirm that the applicant is eligible for an H-1B visa. And we will also advise whether the additional $100,000 fee will be assessed.

Remember, the H-1B lottery only relates to cap-subject H-1B petitions. The H-1B lottery does not relate to current H-1B workers who are extending or amending their visas or changing employers (unless the current H-1B worker is working for a cap-exempt employer). The lottery would also not apply to a foreign national working for a cap exempt employer (an institution of higher education, a related or affiliated nonprofit entity, a nonprofit research organization, or a government research organization).