From March 01, 2020 to March 20, 2020, USCIS will require employers to electronically register for the H-1B visa lottery. This new process will ask employers to submit online registrations with minimal information required for each visa selected. Each submission carries a $10 filing fee. After March 20, 2020, USCIS will hold the registration lottery and notifications of the selections will be sent to employers no later than March 31, 2020.
The goal of this new process is to streamline an otherwise chaotic H-1B filing process. USCIS hopes that by introducing this pre-selection process online, that it will simplify the H-1B visa filing process and ultimately cut costs for employers because only those selected after March 20, 2020 will be eligible to file for petitions.
USCIS also hopes to deter fraudulent or frivolous H-1B applications, by reducing the amount of applications each employer can submit, and by requiring registrants to attest that they intend to file an H-1B petition for the beneficiary in the position for which the registration is filed with a bona fide job offer.
If selected after March 20, 2020, employers will have 90 days starting on April 1 to file full H-1B visa petitions with supporting documents and filings fees. Contact our Houston immigration attorneys for more information.
If you are interested in learning more about this process or believe it applies to you, please contact our office immediately at 713-589-2085 or email us at [email protected] to set up a consultation asap.
