H-1B Lottery: If you don’t register, you can’t play
2 min read
The virtual transaction takes place: $10 in exchange for a string of randomly chosen numbers and an opportunity at the “American Dream.” Regardless of how you define the “American Dream,” at its core is freedom and opportunity. Think I am discussing this lottery drawing? Not actually. I am referring to the yearly H-1B electronic registration, also known as the H-1B Lottery.
For many employers, the H-1B visa is commonly used to employ highly skilled foreign nationals to work in specialty occupations. Employers with either a current or prospective employee (“beneficiary”) – located overseas or physically present in the U.S. in another nonimmigrant status – may file an H-1B petition to enable the beneficiary to live and work in here for as long as six years. Also, the H-1B clears the way for the beneficiary to become a legal permanent resident of the U.S.
H-1B Lottery
Not-for-profits related to or affiliated with higher education institutions, institutions of higher education, and nonprofit or governmental research organizations are considered “cap-exempt” employers. They might file petitions and their beneficiaries might start working at any time. In any case, suppose an employer doesn’t fall into one of those categories. In that case, the employer must first register for the H-1B lottery.
A limited number of H-1B visas are allocated every year. Just 65,000 are allocated for first-time beneficiaries with bachelor’s degrees. An additional 20,000 are allocated to first-time beneficiaries with advanced degrees from U.S. institutions. Registration is the initial step for employers subject to the visa cap. From this point until March 18, employers and their lawyers might finish online registration for beneficiaries. At the end of the period, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will randomly select registrations and notify employers of selections.
[Legislation introduced in US Senate to reform and stop the abuse of the H-1B visa system]
Like the lottery, the best way to be chosen is to register. If the registration is chosen, employers and their lawyers have 90 days to prepare and file the H-1B packet for selected beneficiaries. Those beneficiaries, with approved H-1B petitions, may start working in H-1B status on 1st Oct 2022. Given this short time frame, it is advisable to anticipate a selected registration and begin preliminary steps now.
As the lottery saying goes, “if you don’t play, you can not win.” Likewise, if you don’t register, you can’t be selected.
