Employer registration for the Fiscal Year 2023 (FY 23) H-1B “cap” lottery opens at noon, eastern standard time, on March 1, 2022. The registration will run until noon, eastern standard time, on March 18, 2022. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) H-1B registration process is rooted in the annual limits on first-time H-1B petitions. The online mechanism is used to narrow the number of applicants, consistent with the annual limits.
The H-1B visa classification is widely used by US employers to sponsor degreed professionals. This category is commonly relied upon by employers of IT professionals and others in STEM fields. However, the category encompasses a wide range of other positions which require at least a bachelor’s degree in a specific field or narrow range of fields. Employers must identify their needs now to sponsor H-1B employees and initiate evaluation and preparation in order to register their case(s) before the registration deadline of March 18, 2022.