The US Department of Homeland Security has introduced a new rule that changes how H-1B visa registrations are selected, shifting toward a system that gives preference to higher-skilled and higher-paid applicants.
The rule was announced on December 23 and amends the existing regulations governing the H-1B selection process used by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
It officially came into effect on February 27, 2026, and will apply to the Fiscal Year 2027 H-1B cap registration season.
Under the revised system, USCIS will move away from relying entirely on the traditional random lottery. Instead, it will introduce a weighted selection process, where applications linked to higher wage levels will receive priority.
The new approach aims to encourage the hiring of highly skilled professionals by giving greater chances to applicants offered higher salaries, while still allowing employers to hire workers across different wage levels.
Employers registering H-1B candidates will now be required to indicate the highest Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) wage level that the offered salary meets or exceeds for the relevant Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code in the intended work location.
If the number of registrations exceeds the annual cap, USCIS will conduct the weighted selection based primarily on the wage level associated with the job offer.
As before, employers must first complete the electronic registration process before submitting an H-1B cap petition.
Prospective petitioners must submit an online registration through their USCIS account for each beneficiary and pay the $215 registration fee per candidate.
Only those employers whose registrations are selected will be allowed to file the full H-1B petition for the registered candidates.
The electronic registration system was introduced to simplify the process, reduce paperwork, and lower costs for employers hiring foreign workers.
FY 2027 H-1B Registration Period
The registration window for the FY 2027 H-1B cap season will open at 12:00 pm Eastern Time on March 4, 2026, and close at 12:00 pm Eastern Time on March 19, 2026.
During this period, employers and their representatives must register candidates and pay the required fee. USCIS has clarified that registrations do not need to be submitted on the first day, as the selection process will begin only after the registration window closes.
Once the registration period ends, USCIS will conduct the selection process. If a candidate is selected, the employer who submitted the registration will receive a selection notice, allowing them to file the H-1B petition for that individual.
Decline in FY 2026 H-1B Registrations
USCIS data shows that H-1B registrations declined during the FY 2026 cap season compared to the previous year.
Around 57,600 unique employers submitted registrations for FY 2026, slightly higher than the 52,700 employers recorded in FY 2025.
However, the number of eligible unique beneficiaries dropped sharply to about 339,000, compared to nearly 442,000 in FY 2025.
Similarly, the total number of eligible registrations fell to 343,981, down from 470,342 in the previous year, marking a 26.9 percent decline.
On average, there were 1.01 registrations per beneficiary in FY 2026, compared to 1.06 in FY 2025, indicating that most applicants had only one registration submitted on their behalf.
The new weighted selection system signals a gradual shift in the H-1B visa program, placing greater emphasis on wages and skill levels, while keeping the overall visa cap and registration structure unchanged.
