H-1B Cap Season: It’s Time to Prepare!
2 min read
H-1B Cap Season: Now is the time for US employers to prepare for registration in the H-1B Cap Lottery.
Readers might recall that H-1B Temporary Worker status is for professional-level workers. The sponsored individual is often, yet not always, a foreign student.
Since the implementation of the H-1B Cap Registration process a few years ago, interested employers have needed to register in March for a chance to sponsor a foreign national worker who is required for a professional-level position.
H-1B Cap Season
While USCIS hasn’t yet declared the specific H-1B cap registration dates. It is guessed that registration will again be held for around 3 weeks in March. In the past, USCIS has then conducted the random selection process (lottery) and declared the lottery winners before the end of March.
There are 65,000 spots in the Regular H-1B Cap and 20,000 in the Advanced Degree Exemption each fiscal year.
[Current Health Care Immigration Options For The United States]
While changes to the lottery selection process had been thought of, the lottery will continue to be a random selection process. This essentially implies that all employers will have the same chance. At being selected in the registration and then being able to proceed with sponsorship.
If you are an employer interested in sponsoring a foreign national professional level worker for H-1B status, it’s ideal to start preparing now. The upfront analysis might require extra time prior to the limited Employer Registration window. With demand for workers high in general, this year there is probably going to be great demand by US employers. As such, it’s essential to contact legal counsel to start preparing as soon as possible.
