Legal Blogs and Updates

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) has announced that the registration period for the 2021 H-1B visa lottery will open on March 9 and run through March 25. Like last year, petitioners must create a myUSCIS Online account to electronically register and pay the $10 registration fee for each beneficiary. A random lottery will be held after the registration period closes. USCIS expects to notify selected applicants by March 31. Those applicants will then be able to file their complete H-1B petition beginning April 1, 2021. 

The Department of Homeland Security has also announced it would delay the implementation of the Trump-era rule overhauling the H-1B visa lottery. The rule would transform the H-1B selection process from a random lottery into a wage-based selection system, prioritizing the highest earners for selection. Its implementation is now delayed until December 31, 2021, to allow time for USCIS to develop, test and implement the new system. Therefore, this year’s H-1B selection will proceed as a random lottery (like last year) and the current wage levels will be applied.

Given the upcoming March 9 registration date, we urge you to review your current employment needs and determine ASAP if you may benefit from the suspension of the rule by filing H-1B petitions this year. If you feel we can be of assistance to you in navigating the process, please do not hesitate to contact us.

View our recent presentations for details on a range of immigration and employment law topics:

• NJBIA webinar "2021 Business Immigration Update: The New Hiring Climate Under the Biden Administration"
• Connell Foley presentation "2021 Employment Law Update and To-Do Checklist"