H-1B Cap Registration: How the March Lottery Process Works

The H-1B cap season begins not with a petition filing but with an electronic registration that takes place in March — often before many beneficiaries even know their employer has entered them. Understanding how the registration works, what the beneficiary-centric lottery actually does, and what happens after selection is essential for anyone navigating the process.

The Structure: Cap-Subject vs. Cap-Exempt

The 65,000 annual H-1B cap applies to petitions for employment at for-profit companies and other for-profit entities. Within that 65,000, 20,000 slots are reserved exclusively for beneficiaries who hold a master's degree or higher from a US public or nonprofit institution of higher education (the "US master's exemption"). Workers selected under the master's cap who are not chosen are automatically entered into the regular cap pool, giving them two chances in the lottery.

Certain employers are entirely exempt from the cap and can file H-1B petitions year-round without waiting for the annual registration. Cap-exempt employers include:

• Institutions of higher education
• Nonprofits related to or affiliated with institutions of higher education (including university-affiliated teaching hospitals)
• Nonprofit research organizations
• Governmental research organizations

If you have an offer from a cap-exempt employer, you can skip this entire registration process. Your employer files directly with USCIS at any time.

The Electronic Registration Window

Each year, USCIS opens the electronic registration portal for approximately two to three weeks in March. During this window, employers (or their attorneys) log into the USCIS myH-1B portal, create organizational accounts, and submit registration entries for their prospective H-1B workers.

The registration fee is currently $215 per unique beneficiary. This is not a filing fee for the full petition — it is simply the fee to enter the lottery. If not selected, the money is not refunded.

Each registration entry requires basic biographic information about the beneficiary:

• Name and date of birth
• Country of birth and nationality (for cap category determination)
• Whether the beneficiary holds a US master's degree or higher (to determine master's cap eligibility)
• The employer's Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN)

Importantly, the registration does not require submission of the job description, LCA, or any supporting documentation. Those materials are compiled only after selection.

The Beneficiary-Centric Lottery

Beginning with FY 2024, USCIS shifted from an employer-centric to a beneficiary-centric lottery system. Under the old system, a single beneficiary could have multiple employers submit separate registrations on their behalf, artificially multiplying their odds. This created a massive distortion — in FY 2024, 780,884 total registrations were submitted for what ultimately amounted to far fewer unique individuals.

Under the beneficiary-centric system, the lottery is run on the individual's unique identifier (based on passport information) rather than the employer entity. If five employers submit registrations for the same individual, USCIS counts that person once and selects or rejects them as a single unit. All five employers are then notified of the same outcome.

The impact of this change was dramatic. Eligible registrations dropped from 780,884 in FY 2024 to 343,981 in FY 2026 — a 56% decline — as the artificial multiple-registration inflation collapsed. With fewer registrations for roughly the same number of available cap slots, selection rates improved significantly:

• FY 2024: approximately 15% selection rate
• FY 2025: approximately 25.6% selection rate
• FY 2026: approximately 35.3% selection rate

For FY 2026, 336,153 unique beneficiaries were registered. Roughly 1 in 3 was selected.

What Happens After Selection

If selected, USCIS changes the registration status to "Selected" in the USCIS portal. The employer then has a 90-day window, beginning April 1st, to file the complete I-129 petition.

This 90-day window is where the actual work happens. The employer must:

1. File the LCA with the DOL and receive certification (typically 7 business days, though delays occur for new FEINs)
2. Compile the full I-129 petition with all supporting documentation
3. Submit to USCIS by the deadline with all required fees

If an employer misses the 90-day window after selection, the registration slot is forfeited. There is no extension and no second chance for that fiscal year.

If not selected ("Not Selected" status), the registrations expire at the end of the fiscal year. Beneficiaries who were not selected must wait for the following year's registration cycle — there is no carryover. Employers can reregister the same beneficiary in the next cap season.

The Master's Cap Advantage

Beneficiaries with a qualifying US master's degree or higher are entered into both pools: first the master's cap pool (20,000 slots), then if not selected there, they are automatically entered into the regular 65,000 cap pool. This sequential entry gives them effectively two lottery draws, improving their selection probability compared to those entered only in the regular pool.

"Qualifying" means the degree must be from a US public or nonprofit higher education institution. Degrees from for-profit colleges do not qualify. Online degrees from qualifying institutions do qualify. Foreign master's degrees, even from highly prestigious institutions, do not qualify for the US master's cap — only for the regular cap.

For beneficiaries currently on F-1 OPT who are close to their degree conferral date when the registration window opens: USCIS requires only that the degree be conferred by the time the petition is filed, not necessarily by the time of registration. Check USCIS guidance for the specific academic year if you are in this situation.

Cap-Gap Protection for F-1 OPT Students

One of the most important provisions for F-1 students selected in the lottery is the "Cap-Gap" rule. If you are on F-1 OPT and your OPT expires before October 1st (when H-1B status begins for cap-subject workers), your status and work authorization are automatically extended through September 30th, provided your employer filed a timely I-129 petition after selection.

Cap-Gap protection applies even while the petition is pending — you do not need an approval notice to continue working. Your status is bridged by the filed (not yet approved) petition and the Cap-Gap regulation. Your I-20 will need an endorsement from your university's DSO noting the Cap-Gap extension period.

If your petition is denied before October 1st, Cap-Gap protection ends upon the denial and you must depart or change status immediately.

Practical Timeline for a Typical Cap Season

• Early February: USCIS announces registration dates and opens the myH-1B portal for employer account setup
• Mid-March (approximately): Registration window opens (typically 2–3 weeks)
• Late March: Registration window closes
• Late March / Early April: USCIS runs the lottery and notifies employers of selection status
• April 1 – June 30 (approximately): 90-day window to file complete I-129 petitions for selected beneficiaries
• October 1: H-1B status begins for selected and approved cap-subject workers

The US H-1B Specialty Occupation Visa Guide covers the complete petition assembly process — what to prepare during the registration window, how to compile the specialty occupation evidence after selection, and how to respond if USCIS issues an RFE before October 1st.