USCIS Announces Implementation of H-1B Electronic Registration Process for Fiscal Year 2021 Cap Season with Registration Beginning March 1, 2020

US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) announced last week that they have completed a successful pilot testing phase and are implementing the electronic registration process for the H-1B lottery for the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2021 cap season. Petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions for the FY 2021 cap, including those filing advanced degree master’s cap cases, must first electronically register and pay the previously announced $10 H-1B registration fee. In a press release, USCIS states that they believe the electronic registration process will “dramatically streamline processing by reducing paperwork and data exchange, and will provide an overall cost savings to petitioning employers.”

USCIS will open an initial registration period from March 1, 2020 through March 20, 2020. The agency explains: 

  • During the initial registration period beginning March 1, 2020, prospective petitioners or their authorized representatives must electronically submit a separate registration listing each foreign national for whom they seek to file an H-1B cap-subject petition;

  • If USCIS receives a sufficient number of H-1B registrations, the agency will randomly select the number of registrations projected as needed to reach the H-1B cap numbers after the initial registration period closes and no later than March 31, 2020;

  • USCIS may continue accepting registrations, or open an additional registration period, if the agency does not receive sufficient registrations and subsequent petitions projected to reach the H-1B cap numbers;

  • Those petitioners with selected registrations will be eligible to file a cap-subject petition only for the foreign national named in the electronic registration; and

  • USCIS notes that although petitioners can register multiple foreign nationals during a single online submission, duplicate registrations for the same beneficiary in the same fiscal year will be discarded.

USCIS states that they will publish on their website step-by-step instructions detailing how to complete the H-1B electronic registration process along with important dates and timelines as the initial registration period nears. USCIS will also conduct public engagements and outreach activities to educate and inform users of the new H-1B registration system.

“By streamlining the H-1B cap selection process with a new electronic registration system, USCIS is creating cost savings and efficiencies for petitioners and the agency, as only those selected will now be required to submit a full petition,” USCIS Deputy Director Mark Koumans said in a statement. “The agency completed a successful pilot testing phase, which included sessions with industry representatives, and implementation of the registration system will further the goal of modernizing USCIS from a paper-based to an online-filing agency.”

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) will publish a notice in the Federal Register shortly to formally announce implementation of the H-1B electronic registration system and provide additional details. We will provide updates as we receive them.