Overview
- USCIS logged 343,981 eligible H-1B registrations for FY 2026—a 26.9% drop from last year—and selected 120,141 entries representing 118,660 unique beneficiaries.
- All 65,000 regular visas and 20,000 master’s-degree exemption slots have been allocated, fulfilling the congressionally mandated cap for new petitions.
- Employers submitted the fewest registrations in three years after USCIS raised its registration fee from $10 to $215 and imposed stricter anti-fraud documentation requirements.
- Cap-exempt filings for current H-1B holders—including status extensions, changes of employer, amendments and concurrent employment—will continue to be accepted.
- USCIS is preparing for the FY 2027 lottery, with registrations scheduled to open in March 2026 and petition filings expected from April through June.