The 2025 H-1B Lottery: What Employers and Applicants Need to Know

        The annual H-1B visa lottery for the fiscal year 2026 will be conducted in March 2025. It is a critical moment for U.S. employers and skilled foreign workers. This annual lottery process determines which applicants will have the opportunity to apply for H-1B visas, a highly sought-after nonimmigrant visa category that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign professionals in specialized occupations such as technology, engineering, finance, and healthcare. In the 2024 lottery, more than 470,000 eligible registrations competed for only 85,000 visas (65,000 regular cap and 20,000 master cap).  Given the competitive nature of the H-1B cap, understanding the latest changes and preparation strategies is essential for both employers and applicants.

Key Changes to the 2025 H-1B Lottery

1. Increased Registration Fee

        Starting in March 2025, the H-1B electronic registration fee will increase from $10 to $215 per beneficiary. This fee increase is part of USCIS’s broader effort to cover operational costs and also discourage frivolous registrations. Employers should account for this cost adjustment when budgeting for multiple registrations.

2. New Beneficiary-Centric Selection Process

        To prevent fraud and duplicate submissions, USCIS will continue to use a beneficiary-centric lottery system. Each beneficiary will only be entered once into the lottery, regardless of the number of sponsoring employers.  This change aims to create a fairer system, preventing individuals from gaining an unfair advantage by securing multiple registrations.

3. Enhanced Anti-Fraud Measures

        Employers must now provide additional verification details to confirm the authenticity of their H-1B registrations.  USCIS will scrutinize registrations more rigorously to ensure compliance with genuine job offers and employer eligibility requirements.

4. Stricter Compliance with Specialty Occupation Criteria

        USCIS continues to refine the definition of specialty occupation to ensure that only those roles requiring highly specialized knowledge qualify.  Employers must provide clear job descriptions and demonstrate that a bachelor’s degree or higher in a relevant field is normally required for the position.

Tips for Employers and Applicants

        In addition to these changes, the Trump Administration is expected to implement tougher standards when adjudicating H-1B petitions.  Employers and applicants should take precautions to avoid denials and/or Requests for Evidence.  

       Employers must prepare job descriptions carefully to ensure that H-1B job roles align with USCIS’s definition of a specialty occupation.  They should also confirm that beneficiaries meet educational and professional experience requirements before submitting registrations.  Many selected cases were denied because the employee lacks the required qualifications.  If an employee is already present in the U.S., their immigration status must be legal in order to change status to H-1B.  Finally, employers should work closely with immigration attorneys to ensure that all registrations comply with the new rules, reducing the risk of rejection.

        Employees much also take actions early on.  First, an employee must ensure that their employer is registered with the USCIS system and is willing to sponsor their H-1B petition.  Next, they should organize their documents carefully, including degree certificates, transcripts, job offer letters, and work experience letters, certificates, etc., in advance.   

        Staying informed on the lottery timeline is also critical:  the H-1B cap registration period will open at noon EST on March 7 and run through noon EST on March 24, 2025 this year.  Employers may only enter employee registrations during this window.

        Prospective applicants should also consider alternative visa options early on.  Given the competitive nature of the H-1B lottery, applicants should also consider O-1, L-1, or employment-based green card options, such as EB-2 NIW or PERM labor application, if they are eligible.