U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that the initial registration period for fiscal year 2026 cap-subject H-1B visas will open on March 7, 2025, and will run through March 24, 2025.
What is the H-1B visa?
The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows U.S. employers to temporarily hire foreign workers in specialty occupations that require highly specialized theoretical or technical knowledge. These occupations may include fields such as science, engineering, information technology, finance, medicine, and more.
Who is eligible for the H-1B visa?
To be eligible for an H-1B visa, an employee must have at least a bachelor's degree or its equivalent, and the job position must require that level of specialized knowledge. The employer must also demonstrate that it cannot find a qualified U.S. worker for the position.
Where is the 2026 H-1B visa registration process taking place?
All petitioners and representatives must register through the USCIS online account to electronically register each beneficiary for the selection process and pay the corresponding H-1B registration fee of $215 for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary.
If you are an employer seeking to apply for H-1B visas and do not already have an online account with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), you will need to create an Organization Account. This type of account is essential to participate in the H-1B visa registration process.
If you already had an H-1B registrant account between fiscal years 2021 and 2024, but did not use it for fiscal year 2025, don't worry. Your account will automatically be converted to an organizational account the next time you log in.
For those registering for the first time, you can create your account at any time. There is no need to wait until the initial registration period.
How does the registration process work for 2026?
The registration process is completely electronic. Employers wishing to hire a foreign worker on an H-1B visa must register their potential employees in the USCIS online system during the registration period.
For fiscal year 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will implement the beneficiary-based selection process for H-1B cap-subject visas, which was first introduced in fiscal year 2025, no longer by registration but by beneficiary.
In previous iterations of the H-1B visa selection process, applications were registered and selected on a per-registry basis, meaning that an employer could register multiple beneficiaries under one account and, if selected, only one of those beneficiaries would move forward in the process.
More information https://inmigracionyvisas.com/a6238-registration-opening-date-announced-for-H1B-visas.html
