The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced today that the H-1B registration process for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 has been successfully completed. Following a computer-generated, random selection of H-1B petitions submitted during the FY 2026 initial registration period, USCIS determined it has received sufficient electronic registrations for unique beneficiaries and has notified all prospective petitioners. The H-1B program continues to play a critical role in allowing U.S. employers to attract highly skilled talent from around the world to meet their workforce needs and drive innovation.

For those whose registrations were selected in this year’s lottery, USCIS has confirmed that the filing period for H-1B cap-subject petitions will officially open on April 1, 2025. Selected petitioners may submit their H-1B petitions, provided they meet all eligibility requirements and include the necessary supporting documentation.

Key Reminders for H-1B Petition Filings:

  • Compliance with USCIS Requirements: To help avoid delays or denials, petitioners must ensure that all documents are complete, accurate, and submitted to the correct filing location or online in compliance with USCIS guidelines. Petitioners must submit evidence of the beneficiary’s valid passport or travel document used at the time of registration to identify the beneficiary.
  • Timely Filing: Petitions must be filed within the designated filing period, at least 90 days, as late submissions will not be accepted.

As the filing period begins, we encourage petitioners to remain proactive and organized to facilitate a smooth petition submission process. For registrants who were not selected in this year’s lottery, we understand the challenges this outcome may present. Employers and prospective employees may want to explore alternative visa pathways or other strategies to achieve their hiring and professional goals. As the FY 2026 H-1B process progresses, USCIS may hold additional lotteries if the agency determines that it has not received enough petitions to meet the annual H-1B cap.

Tags: H1-B, Immigration
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Photo of Ian Macdonald Ian Macdonald

Ian R. Macdonald Co-Chairs the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice’s International Employment, Immigration & Workforce Strategies group. He focuses his practice on developing, assessing and managing global mobility programs for multinational companies on a range of challenges affecting the movement of people capital

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Ian R. Macdonald Co-Chairs the firm’s Labor & Employment Practice’s International Employment, Immigration & Workforce Strategies group. He focuses his practice on developing, assessing and managing global mobility programs for multinational companies on a range of challenges affecting the movement of people capital domestically and internationally, including secondment agreements, benefits transferability, local host country employment concerns and immigration.

Ian and his team work closely with companies to manage and modify, where needed, corporate immigration programs to maximize efficiency, service and regulatory compliance levels. He is experienced with the full range of business immigration sponsorship categories (visas and permanent residence), anti-discrimination rules to reduce or eliminate risk of employment litigation, employer sanction cases, and I-9 and E-Verify compliance. Ian assists clients with establishing risk-based performance standards (RBPS) and Department of Homeland Security protocol, providing risk assessment assistance to corporations subject to Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) and assisting clients with ITAR/Export Control compliance within the immigration context.

Ian has developed strategic relationships abroad that he utilizes when working with clients to ensure compliance with foreign registration requirements. He is experienced with analyzing complex global mobility opportunities on country-specific matters to facilitate the transfer of personnel. Ian is also experienced in counseling employers on immigration strategy as well as immigration consequences of mergers and acquisitions, reduction in workforces, and furloughs.

Prior to joining the firm, Ian worked for the United Nations, various non-governmental think tanks and corporate law firms in London, Washington, D.C., New York and Atlanta.

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