The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently announced that it completed the second round of electronic H-1B lottery selections. The USCIS reminded interested parties that it required additional registrations to meet the numerical cap allocated for the 2025 fiscal year, which prompted the second round. The agency has now reached sufficient selections to meet this cap.
Under federal law, the USCIS can issue a maximum of 65,000 H-1B visas under the regular cap. For those holding advanced degrees (e.g., a master’s degree or higher), the agency may issue an additional 20,000 visas under the Master’s cap. This optional addition allows 85,000 H-1B visas in a fiscal year.
This year, the agency received 442,000 unique registrants for the 2025 fiscal year, marking a considerably greater demand than supply for the H-1B visa. As such, the USCIS relied on the electronic lottery to select a pool of potential petitioners. This supply also allows the agency to hold extra lottery rounds to meet annual quotas, such as in this case. When too many registrants fail to submit a petition or withdraw, or the USCIS rejects or revokes petitions, the agency will announce another lottery round to fill the gap.
Registrants may check the second-round lottery results by entering an employer’s MyUSCIS account. The beneficiary’s status will update from “Submitted” to “Selected” if chosen in the lottery. In some cases, registrants will receive email alerts about the update. Only petitioners who have had their registration selected are qualified to submit.
Petitioners with selected registrations may continue the H-1B visa process. However, they must demonstrate their eligibility by meeting applicable statutes and regulations to get approved. They may submit their petitions for H-1B visas between August 8, 2024, and November 7, 2024. They must submit a copy of their selection notice with their 2025 fiscal year H-1B cap-subject petition.
Employers with chosen workers should prepare to complete the H-1B visa and other documentation processes. For example, they should ensure policies are updated and ready for the employment eligibility verification (Form I-9) process. Many employers have found this process challenging due to the ever-evolving regulations, and hiring foreign national workers makes it more complicated. One way to ensure a smooth process is by using an electronic I-9 management system. This tool provides step-by-step guidance, electronic storage, and helpful reminders of when to take action. Employers using E-Verify can add an optional E-Verify integration.
Automate your employment eligibility verification today with the ensured compliance of I-9 Compliance.
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