Cap season update 

Written By Iandoli Desai & Cronin

On March 31, 2026, USCIS announced that it had received enough registrations to reach the annual cap on H-1B petitions, and that it had selected and notified enough beneficiaries to reach the cap. Employers with selected beneficiaries will have from April 1 to June 30, 2026 to file an H-1B petition with USCIS for a start date of October 1, 2026. 

Anecdotal reports currently show that selection rates are significantly higher than in past years, caused by fewer overall lottery registrations. The fewer registrations are likely due to President Trump’s $100,000 H-1B payment for petitions requiring consular processing and the change to a weighted lottery selection this year. 

USCIS may run a second lottery at the end of this initial H-1B petition filing period. If this occurs, all previous registrants not selected in the initial round of the lottery will be automatically entered into the second lottery, and registrants will be similarly notified of their selection. 

If you require assistance with filing an H-1B petition for a worker selected in the cap lottery, please contact us at info@iandoli.com to set up a consultation. 

Iandoli Desai & Cronin
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