H-1B Season Kicks Off: H-1B Electronic Registration Period Opens March 9, 2021 Noon ET FY 2022

The H-1B cap season for FY 2022 is almost upon us!

USCIS has announced that the H-1B initial registration period for the FY 2022 cap is scheduled to open at noon ET on March 9, 2021 and will remain open until noon ET on March 25, 2021.

As our readers are aware, USCIS recently implemented a new mandatory H-1B electronic registration system for the H-1B cap.

Under this new electronic registration process, prospective petitioners (also known as registrants), and their authorized representatives, who are seeking authorization to employ H-1B workers subject to the cap, must complete an electronic registration process on the USCIS website that requires basic information about the prospective petitioner and each requested worker.

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.

That means that in order to have a chance of being selected, from now on all prospective petitioners and their authorized representatives seeking to file H-1B cap-subject petitions for FY 2021, including for beneficiaries eligible for the advanced degree exemption, must first register during the registration period (March 9, 2021 to March 25, 2021) and pay the associated $10 registration fee for each beneficiary.

Only petitioners that receive a selected registration may participate in the H-1B filing process.

When will the selection process take place?

If USCIS receives enough electronic registrations by March 25, 2021, they will randomly select from eligible registrations and send selection notifications of selection to users on their myUSCIS online accounts.

Important Dates

H-1B Registration Process Timeline

March 9: H-1B registration period opens at noon ET.
March 25: H-1B registration period closes at noon ET.
March 31: Date by which USCIS intends to notify selected registrants.
April 1: The earliest date that FY 2022 H-1B cap-subject petitions may be filed.

When will I be notified of selection?

USCIS intends to notify registrants and their representatives with selected registrations via their USCIS online accounts no later than March 31, 2021.

A registrant’s USCIS online account will show one of the following statuses for each registration:

Submitted:The registration has been submitted and is eligible for selection. If the initial selection process has been completed, this registration remains eligible, unless subsequently invalidated, for selection in any subsequent selections for the fiscal year for which it was submitted.
Selected:Selected to file an H-1B cap petition.
Not Selected:Not selected – not eligible to file an H-1B cap petition based on this registration.
Denied:Multiple registrations were submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for the same beneficiary. If denied as a duplicate registration, all registrations submitted by or on behalf of the same registrant for this beneficiary for the fiscal year are invalid.
Invalidated-Failed Payment:A registration was submitted but the payment method was declined, not reconciled, or otherwise invalid.

H-1B cap-subject beneficiaries, including those eligible for the advanced degree exemption, must have a valid “Selected” registration notification for that specific fiscal year in order for a registrant or representative to properly file an H-1B cap-subject petition. The status of registrations that are not selected as part of any initial random selection process, and not denied or invalidated, will remain as “Submitted.” Registrants and representatives that are not selected will not be notified until after USCIS has determined that they have reached the H-1B cap for that fiscal year.

Want to know how to register?

Click here for step-by-step instructions and more registration information.

We wish petitioners and their beneficiaries the best of luck!

Questions? If you would like to schedule a consultation, please text 619-569-1768 or call 619-819-9204.

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