The demand for H-1B visas continues unabated – with the demand far over stripping the annual quota of 85,000 (which includes Masters’ Cap of 20,000). The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) received 3,43,981 eligible H-1B cap registrations for the fiscal year 2026 (ending September 30, 2026); of which only 7,828 were for beneficiaries with multiple registrations. The registration period was open from March 7 up to March 24.
If one views this data as against that of the previous year, there is a decline –eligible registrations for fiscal 2025 were 470,342, of which 47,314 were for beneficiaries with multiple registrations. While country-wise figures are not yet released, Indian beneficiaries (those sponsored for the visa) typically account for almost 60% of the new registrations.
The number of eligible registrations have fallen by 27% over the past year, more noticeable is that the number of beneficiaries with multiple registrations (aka those having more than one job offer) has significantly declined by 83%.
However, this is not due to lack of appetite for H-1B workers. USCIS states, “We believe that the decreased registration numbers for fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2026 indicate that fraud investigations, and the beneficiary-centric selection process, have been effective integrity measures.”
The beneficiary-centric registration system was introduced for the first time for fiscal 2025, to combat gaming of the system, where some companies acted in conduit to submit multiple registrations on behalf of the same beneficiary. Under the process which prevailed, the greater the number of registrations that were submitted on behalf of an individual, the higher his or her chances of being selected in a lottery.
Now, each beneficiary is entered into the H-1B cap lottery selection process once, regardless of how many registrations were submitted on his/her behalf. If a beneficiary is selected, each potential employer (say Co A or Co B) that filed a registration on that beneficiary’s behalf is notified and is eligible to proceed with filing the H-1B visa application. However, it gives the beneficiary autonomy in choosing their employer.
Doug Rand, co-director at Talent Mobility Fund, points out, “In March 2024, about 52,700 employers sought to employ about 423,000 individuals with no other sponsors, plus about 47,000 individuals with more than one sponsor. In March 2025, about 57,600 employers sought to employ about 336,000 individuals with no other sponsors, plus about 7,800 individuals with more than one sponsor.”
“Based on the law laid down by Congress back in 1990, only 85,000 of these workers can ultimately be approved for an H-1B each year. So we’ve gone from 5x oversubscription last year to 4x oversubscription this year. Demand remains way higher than supply!,”he added.
USCIS selects more registrations than needed to meet the annual 85,000 H-1B quota, to account for cases where the sponsoring employer does not proceed with filing the H-1B application or withdraws it and also instances where the H-1B application is rejected by the agency. Thus, for fiscal 2026, it selected 120, 141 registrations to meet the annual H-1B quota.
On the issue of whether there will be a second lottery in fiscal 2026, immigration experts state a clearer picture will emerge only in July or later, after the visa applications are filed for the selected beneficiaries. If the annual quota falls short, a second lottery is conducted from the existing registration pool itself.
*The count of eligible registrations excludes duplicate registrations, those deleted by the prospective employer before the registration period closed, those denied for having invalid passport or travel document information, and those with failed payments.
Source: USCIS
If one views this data as against that of the previous year, there is a decline –eligible registrations for fiscal 2025 were 470,342, of which 47,314 were for beneficiaries with multiple registrations. While country-wise figures are not yet released, Indian beneficiaries (those sponsored for the visa) typically account for almost 60% of the new registrations.
The number of eligible registrations have fallen by 27% over the past year, more noticeable is that the number of beneficiaries with multiple registrations (aka those having more than one job offer) has significantly declined by 83%.
However, this is not due to lack of appetite for H-1B workers. USCIS states, “We believe that the decreased registration numbers for fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2026 indicate that fraud investigations, and the beneficiary-centric selection process, have been effective integrity measures.”
The beneficiary-centric registration system was introduced for the first time for fiscal 2025, to combat gaming of the system, where some companies acted in conduit to submit multiple registrations on behalf of the same beneficiary. Under the process which prevailed, the greater the number of registrations that were submitted on behalf of an individual, the higher his or her chances of being selected in a lottery.
Now, each beneficiary is entered into the H-1B cap lottery selection process once, regardless of how many registrations were submitted on his/her behalf. If a beneficiary is selected, each potential employer (say Co A or Co B) that filed a registration on that beneficiary’s behalf is notified and is eligible to proceed with filing the H-1B visa application. However, it gives the beneficiary autonomy in choosing their employer.
Doug Rand, co-director at Talent Mobility Fund, points out, “In March 2024, about 52,700 employers sought to employ about 423,000 individuals with no other sponsors, plus about 47,000 individuals with more than one sponsor. In March 2025, about 57,600 employers sought to employ about 336,000 individuals with no other sponsors, plus about 7,800 individuals with more than one sponsor.”
“Based on the law laid down by Congress back in 1990, only 85,000 of these workers can ultimately be approved for an H-1B each year. So we’ve gone from 5x oversubscription last year to 4x oversubscription this year. Demand remains way higher than supply!,”he added.
USCIS selects more registrations than needed to meet the annual 85,000 H-1B quota, to account for cases where the sponsoring employer does not proceed with filing the H-1B application or withdraws it and also instances where the H-1B application is rejected by the agency. Thus, for fiscal 2026, it selected 120, 141 registrations to meet the annual H-1B quota.
On the issue of whether there will be a second lottery in fiscal 2026, immigration experts state a clearer picture will emerge only in July or later, after the visa applications are filed for the selected beneficiaries. If the annual quota falls short, a second lottery is conducted from the existing registration pool itself.
*The count of eligible registrations excludes duplicate registrations, those deleted by the prospective employer before the registration period closed, those denied for having invalid passport or travel document information, and those with failed payments.
Source: USCIS
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