On March 27, 2023, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it has selected sufficient H-1B Visa Petitions to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 regular cap (bachelor’s degree cap) and 20,000 U.S. advanced degree (master’s cap) for the 2024 Fiscal Year H-1B visa allocations. USCIS has sent selection and non-selection notifications to petitioners who submitted initial registrations for the Fiscal Year 2024.

Key highlights from USCIS’ announcement include:

• USCIS will accept H-1B visa petitions for selected H-1B registrations (and only for the beneficiary named in the selected H-1B registration) beginning on April 1, 2023.
• H-1B cap-subject petitions for selected H-1B visa registrations must be properly filed at the correct service center and within the filing period indicated on the registration selection notice.
• Please note that USCIS will accept paper-based H-1B visa petitions, including evidentiary documentation of eligibility.
• Properly filed H-1B registrations that were not selected in the H-1B cap lottery will show “Submitted” in their accounts. This means that these registrations are not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this year’s registration.
• USCIS will continue to accept and process H-1B visa petitions not subject to the cap, including:
  • Petitions for Extension of H-1B status to extend the amount of time a current H-1B worker may remain in the U.S.;
  • Petitions for Change of H-1B Employer to allow H-1B workers to change employers;
  • Petitions for H-1B Concurrent Employment to allow H-1B workers to work concurrently in additional H-1B positions;
  • Petitions for Change in Terms of current H-1B employment; and
  • H-1B Cap Exempt Petitions filed by U.S. employers not subject to the annual cap, including institutions of higher education or nonprofit entities with affiliation or relation to an institution of higher education, as well as by nonprofit research organizations.

Unlike prior H-1B cap seasons, USCIS has not announced an intention to conduct a second H-1B lottery this year.

We will continue to monitor developments related to the H-1B visa program and provide additional information as soon as it is provided by USCIS.

Those applicants not selected in this year’s H-1B registration lottery may have other nonimmigrant visa options available to them.  Please contact our Immigration Practice Group if you would like to discuss alternate visa options for H-1B registrations not selected in this year’s H-1B registration lottery.