DEPOSIT PHOTOS

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released a final rule intended to reduce the risk of fraud in the H-1B registration process.

Employers must be aware of the new rules as the FY 2025 registration period begins at 12 p.m. Eastern time on March 6, 2024, and ends at 12 p.m. Eastern time on March 22, 2024.

Under the previous system, a H-1B beneficiary received a lottery entry for each employer submission, even in cases where multiple employers submitted a registration for the same beneficiary.

The new rule shifts the focus of the lottery from the employer to the beneficiary. Under the new system, each beneficiary will now be eligible for one single lottery submission.

Each beneficiary registering for H-1B visa status will be required to provide a valid passport or travel document information beginning with the FY 2025 registration period. A beneficiary will not be able to register with more than one passport or travel document, and then must use the same document when entering the U.S. with H-1B status.

Additional measures

The new rule allows the USCIS to revoke or deny H-1B petitions thought to be invalid or containing false information in the underlying registration. The USCIS may also revoke or deny the approval of an H-1B petition if the fee payment is “declined, not reconciled, disputed, or otherwise invalid after submission.”

The new rule allows for a flexible start date for employment for certain petitions subject to the congressionally mandated H-1B cap. The rule allows for filing with requested start dates after Oct. 1 of the relevant fiscal year.

Fee schedule and forms

The USCIS said that it will open online filing for petitions subject to the H-1B cap on April 1, 2024, at which time the new edition of Form I-129 must be used.

Starting on Feb. 28, employers and their legal counsel will be permitted to file Forms I-129 and Forms I-907 for non-cap H-1B petitions.

The new fee schedule for H-1B petitions will go into effect after the FY 2025 H-1B registration period. The registration fee this period will continue at $10 per registration and rise to $215 during the FY 2026 registration period.

For the upcoming registration, the USCIS will launch new accounts in its online system. The process will now allow multiple representatives of an organization and their associated legal counsel to collaborate on and prepare H-1B registrations, H-1B petitions, and any associated Form I-907.