The H-1B visa registration process for the fiscal year 2026 began on Friday and will continue until March 24, 2025.
“During this period, prospective petitioners and representatives must use a US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated registration fee for each beneficiary,” said USCIS.
Prospective H-1B cap-subject petitioners or their representatives are required to use a USCIS online account to register each beneficiary electronically for the selection process and pay the associated $215 (~₹18,696) H-1B registration fee for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary.
Notably, the fee has been increased from $10 (₹869) to $215(~₹18,696).
The FY 2026 H-1B cap will use the beneficiary-centric selection process launched in FY 2025, according to USCIS. Under this process, registrations are selected by a unique beneficiary rather than by registration.
If USCIS receives registrations for enough unique beneficiaries by March 24, they will randomly select unique beneficiaries and send selection notifications via users’ USCIS online accounts.