With lightning speed, USCIS closed the FY2021 H-1B Cap Registration Process, conducted the lottery (random selection process), and issued the lottery results.

Since yesterday, March 27, 2020, the agency has been sending email notices prompting attorneys and registrants to check their “myUSCIS” online accounts for results.  USCIS has stated that it intends to notify all employers whose registrations were selected no later than Tuesday, March 31, 2020.

The myUSCIS account should show one of 3 statuses per registration:

• Submitted – This means that USCIS received the prospective petitioner’s registration for a particular beneficiary, but for now the registration was not selected in the FY2021 H-1B cap lottery.
  • Note that some “Submitted” statuses are reported to have changed to “Selected” during the weekend, so it’s best to keep checking until at least March 31st, when USCIS said it would notify all registrants.
  • Because there is a chance (perhaps very small) that USCIS will not approve a sufficient number to petitions that will be filed by selected registrants, “Submitted” registrations will be held in abeyance, (potentially?) until the end of the federal government fiscal year (September 30, 2021).
  • By the end of the fiscal year, all registrations will show up as Selected, Not Selected or Denied.

• Selected – This means that USCIS selected the prospective petitioner’s registration for a particular beneficiary in the FY2021 H-1B Lottery.
  • The Selection is valid only for the specified beneficiary (no substitutions or selection transfers) and for the FY2021 cap season.
  • In myUSCIS, “Selected” registrations will have an H-1BR – H-1B Registration Notice of Action which can be viewed, specifying among other things:
    • the Beneficiary Confirmation Number,
    • the limited period of time during which the employer may file the H-1B petition (no fewer than 90 days), and
    • the Service Center with which the H-1B petition must be filed.
  • The H-1B petition must include a copy of the H-1BR Notice.
  • If an employer files an FY2021 H-1B cap petition for other than a selected beneficiary, USCIS has stated that it will deny or reject the petition.

• Denied – This means:
  • the registrant submitted more than one registration for the same beneficiary, or
  • the $10 filing fee payment method was declined and not reconciled.
  • As part of the new H-1B cap electronic registration process, USCIS had stated that if a single registrant registered more than once on behalf of the same beneficiary, all registrations for that particular registrant and beneficiary combination for the fiscal year will be invalid.

As a reminder, USCIS has temporarily suspended the availability of premium processing. including for Cap-Subject H-1B petitions.

If you have questions regarding the subject matter of this blog post, please reach out to Catherine Wadhwani at cwadhwani@foxrothschild.com or 412-391-1334 or any member of the firm’s immigration practice group.

Ms. Wadhwani is a Partner and Co-Chair of the Immigration Practice Group at Fox Rothschild LLP.  For nearly 25 years, her practice has focused on business immigration law and compliance, primarily in the health care, general corporate and academic sectors.  Ms. Wadhwani’s practice covers the United States and Consulates worldwide.  Ms. Wadhwani is based in our Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania office.  She can be reached at cwadhwani@foxrothschild.com or at 412-391-1334.