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The US has announced another lottery for H-1B visa applications for the fiscal year 2025. The decision is aimed at meeting the regular limit number set for this year. This second lottery will give a second chance to those applicants who were not selected in the first lottery held in March 2024.
What is an H-1B visa?
The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. A certain number of applications are accepted for H-1B visas every year, called a 'cap'. The first lottery for FY 2025 was held in March 2024, where only those applicants were selected whose applications were properly submitted.
Why is there a need for another lottery?
The first lottery held in March did not select enough applicants, resulting in the regular cap numbers for FY 2025 not being met. Therefore, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has decided to hold another lottery. This second lottery will include all previously submitted applications, including those who qualify for the masters cap and those who qualify only for the regular cap.
There is no second lottery for the Masters Cap
There will be no other lottery for applicants with masters degrees. The masters cap was reached in the first lottery held in March. Therefore, USCIS does not see the need for another lottery in this category.
What will the selected applicants have to do?
Applicants selected in the second lottery will be notified by USCIS that they are eligible to file an H-1B cap-subject petition for their designated beneficiary. USCIS will announce the completion of this second selection process and notify selected applicants shortly. Selected applicants will receive an update in their USCIS online account, including selection information as well as details on the petition filing process.
Know what is the H-1B visa process?
Foreign nationals working in the US require an H-1B visa. Registration for it will be done online. For this, you will have to use the myUSCIS account. The application and its fees will also have to be paid by the same person.
This document will be required
To register, you will need to provide valid passport details and information about valid travel documents. If any irregularities are found, the application may be rejected. After the registration is complete, the selected people will be notified on their myUSCIS online account. After this, the online form for HB CAP petition has to be submitted.
USCIS said that Application Form I-129 for non-immigrant worker and Application Form I-907 for premium service are available online. The visa fee has been increased from $10 to $110. The registration fee for H-1B visa has also been increased from $10 to $215.