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Published By Mandi B. Bucceroni

February 18, 2026

On October 1, 2026, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will release its new allocation of H-1B nonimmigrant visa numbers for the Fiscal Year 2027. The H-1B registration period opens on March 4, 2026, at noon and closes on March 19, 2026, at noon. 

Employers must file registrations online through a USCIS account. The registration fee is $215 per registration. Because the registration window is short and demand typically exceeds available visas, employers and prospective H-1B employees are strongly encouraged to prepare in advance.

Key Registration Dates

  • Registration opens: March 4, 2026, at 12:00 p.m.
  • Registration closes: March 19, 2026, at 12:00 p.m.
  • Registration fee: $215 per registration
  • How to register: Online through a USCIS account

What Are H-1B Visas?

H-1B visas are nonimmigrant, employer-sponsored visas for specialty occupations, meaning positions require at least a bachelor’s degree (or foreign equivalent) in a specific field, and that degree is necessary to perform the job’s duties. The foreign national must also possess a bachelor’s degree or the foreign equivalent in a relevant field.

Each year, USCIS allocates for 65,000 H-1B visas with an additional 20,000 visas reserved for individuals who have earned a U.S. master’s degree. To qualify for the “master’s cap,” the degree must be earned from a U.S. institution.

The following employers are not subject to the annual cap:

  • Institutions of higher education
  • nonprofits that are formally linked to an institution
  • nonprofit research organizations
  • governmental research organizations

If a foreign national is selected for the H-1B cap and their application is approved, H-1B status will begin on October 1, 2026, and most likely their status will continue for three years with the ability to apply for an additional three-year extension. 

H-1B employees must be paid the higher of the prevailing wage for the applicable metropolitan statistical area or the actual wage paid to similarly situated employees, as certified by the U.S. Department of Labor. H-1B employees can be in any industry where the occupation meets the definition of a specialty occupation. 

New for the FY 2027 Cap Season

The Department of Homeland Security published a final rule amending the regulations governing how USCIS selects H-1B registrations for unique beneficiaries who can then file H-1B cap-subject petitions. The new H-1B selection process prioritizes allocating visas to higher-skilled and higher-paid aliens to better protect the wages, working conditions, and job opportunities of American workers.

For the FY 2027 H-1B cap season, if USCIS receives registrations for unique beneficiaries during the initial registration period that exceed the cap, they will conduct a weighted selection from the unique beneficiaries with properly submitted registrations. If they do not receive registrations for enough unique beneficiaries, they will select all registrations for unique beneficiaries that were properly submitted in the initial registration period.

It is important to note that only registrations received from March 4 at noon until March 19, 2026, at noon will be considered for FY 2027 H-1B visas. 

Prepare Early

Being well prepared for the H-1B season, along with an experienced legal representative, can make a meaningful difference. 

For questions or to begin preparing for FY 2027 H-1B season, please contact RRD Immigration attorney Mandi B. Bucceroni at mbucceroni@regerlaw.com or (215) 495-6508.