In 2020, United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) implemented an electronic registration process for the H-1B cap. Prospective petitioners seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions, including for beneficiaries eligible for the advanced degree exemption, were required to first electronically register and then pay the associated $10 H-1B registration fee for each beneficiary. The electronic registration process has streamlined processing by reducing paperwork and data exchange and has provided overall cost savings to employers seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions.
Under this process, prospective petitioners (also known as registrants), and their authorized representatives, who are seeking authorization to employ H-1B workers subject to the cap, complete a registration process that requires only basic information about the prospective petitioner and each requested worker. We will open an initial registration period for a minimum of 14 calendar days each fiscal year. The H-1B selection process will then be run on properly submitted electronic registrations. Only those with selected registrations will be eligible to file H-1B cap-subject petitions.
The initial registration period for FY 2022 will open at noon Eastern Time (ET) on March 9 and run through noon ET on March 25. Both representatives and registrants must wait until March 9 to create and complete H-1B registrations. Selections will take place after the initial registration period closes, so there is no requirement to register on the day the initial registration period opens. USCIS intends to notify registrants and their representatives with selected registrations via their USCIS online accounts no later than March 31, 2021.