The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced the dates for the H-1B visa registration for fiscal year 2026. Find out when and how to apply and what changes await foreign workers in the United States very soon

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The H-1B visa registration period for fiscal year 2026 will begin on March 7, 2025, and will last until March 24, 2025. This information was announced recently by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). During this period, US employers who wish to sponsor workers for an H-1B visa must register them on a special portal.

Read more about the registration procedure and current changes for workers in 2025 in our new article.

Get advice from an employment lawyer to navigate the process of hiring a foreign worker in the United States without any hassle.

When should applicants register for an H-1B visa for fiscal year 2026?

The initial registration phase for an H-1B visa for fiscal year 2026 will begin at noon on March 7, 2025, and will last until noon on March 24, 2025.

Important! Registration is not on a first-come, first-served basis, so applicants do not need to rush to submit their documents on the day of the opening.

How do I register an employee for an H-1B visa for FY 2026?

To register, employers must create an organization account on the USCIS portal if they do not already have one.

Valid employer accounts that were created between FY 2021 and FY 2024 will be converted to organization accounts upon their next login.

During the registration process, employers and legal representatives must register each beneficiary through the USCIS online account and pay the required fee to participate in the selection process.

How much does it cost to register for an H-1B visa for FY 2026?

The H-1B visa registration fee is $215 per beneficiary.

How is the H-1B selection process for FY 2026 conducted?

The selection process will focus on individual workers, considering each individual, not employers.

If the number of registrations reaches the limit by March 24, USCIS will randomly select unique beneficiaries and notify registrants through their online accounts. If the limit is not met, USCIS will select all correctly submitted registrations.

The agency plans to send selection notifications by March 31, 2025, to accounts with at least one selected beneficiary.

What changes are being made to the H-1B application process for FY 2026?

The following improvements have been implemented for the upcoming H-1B registration season:

- Paralegals can assist multiple attorneys – Paralegals can now work with multiple legal representatives through a single account.

- Simplified Client Management – ​​Legal representatives can easily add paralegals to their company accounts.

- Pre-populated Form Data – Certain fields on Form I-129 will be automatically populated based on the completed registration.

- Spreadsheet Upload Feature – Employers can prepare beneficiary data in a spreadsheet and upload it to the system for faster registration.

These innovations are aimed at increasing efficiency and reducing manual data entry errors.

Permanent residency in the United States can also be obtained through investment. Learn more about the terms and basic requirements of the EB-5 program at.

Updates for faster payment processing

The U.S. Treasury Department has temporarily increased the daily credit card transaction limit from $24,999.99 to $99,999.99 for the H-1B season of FY 2026 for mass registration.

Transactions exceeding this amount must be made through an automated clearing house (ACH), which may require prior authorization from your bank.

How to prepare for H-1B registration in FY 2026?

Currently, to prepare for the upcoming H-1B registration, an employer can take the following steps:

1. Make sure you have a USCIS online account (or create an organizational account, if necessary).

2. Review the new registration rules to facilitate application processing.

3. Stay tuned for additional updates from USCIS before the registration period begins.

As a reminder, new rules for the H-1B visa program have come into effect in the United States on January 17, 2025, including improved eligibility criteria, guarantees, and a more digital application process. Read on to learn how to apply for an H-1B visa for fiscal year 2026 and what updates to the program were approved in 2025.

What is an H-1B visa?

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that was specifically created for American employers to hire qualified foreign workers for a certain period of time. It is a temporary work visa that allows people from other countries to work in certain industries, such as information technology, engineering, healthcare, finance, and others.

Among the main requirements is that the position must match the specialty that is listed on the higher education diploma. The minimum academic degree allowed for obtaining such a visa is a bachelor's degree or equivalent. To begin the visa application process, the applicant must have an employment contract with a company from the United States of America, which spells out all the terms of employment in detail.

The work visa is initially issued for 3 years. Then it can be extended for 2 years, and later for another 1 year. Thus, the maximum period of stay of a foreigner on the basis of an H-1B work visa is 6 years.

In 2025, the procedure for applying for an H-1B visa in the USA has received significant improvements, thanks to key changes in registration fees, selection methods and account management. Get acquainted with the innovations in advance to smoothly go through the registration process and follow the latest news from the world of migration on the Visit World portal.

As a reminder! Getting a Green Card in the USA can be quite difficult, especially for applicants who come from countries with high demand. We have already told you which methods of obtaining a residence permit in the USA will be the best in 2025.

Want to get an answer from an experienced lawyer? Order legal advice from a local visa and immigration specialist. To receive the service, select the country of interest and citizenship.

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