H-1B Timeline: Registration, Filing, and Cap-Gap Rules

The H-1B timeline runs on a fixed annual cycle: employers prepare wage and credential paperwork in the fall, register electronically with USCIS during a two-week window in March, wait for a lottery selection, file the full I-129 petition inside a 90-day window that opens in April, and — if approved — put the worker on payroll no earlier than October 1. Cap-exempt employers and workers changing jobs follow shorter, off-cycle timelines. Every deadline in the cap process is firm, and missing one pushes the effort back a full fiscal year.

The Annual Cycle at a Glance

Congress caps new H-1B visas at 65,000 per fiscal year, plus 20,000 reserved for workers with a U.S. master’s degree or higher.¹ Demand outruns supply, so the calendar below is what almost every cap-subject employer works against:

Fall (roughly September through December): request a prevailing wage determination, gather the worker’s credentials, and prepare the Labor Condition Application.
January and February: finalize the LCA in the Department of Labor’s FLAG system.
Early to mid-March: submit the electronic registration to USCIS.
Late March: USCIS runs the lottery and posts selection notices.
April 1 through late June: file Form I-129 inside the 90-day window.
Spring and summer: USCIS adjudicates; premium processing yields a decision within 15 business days.
October 1: the earliest lawful start date for a cap-subject H-1B worker.

Fall Preparation: LCA and Prevailing Wage

The real timeline starts months before registration. Employers must file an electronic Labor Condition Application (Form ETA-9035E) through the Department of Labor’s FLAG system, attesting they will pay the worker at least the prevailing wage for the job in that specific geographic area.² The wage figure anchors the entire petition, and errors can trigger enforcement under federal regulations.³

Employers who want an official prevailing wage determination from DOL should plan far ahead. As of early 2026, the DOL queue is working through requests filed roughly three months earlier.⁴ Filing a request in the fall is what typically gets a certified determination in hand before the March registration window opens.

Alongside the LCA, the employer collects the worker’s transcripts, diplomas, and — for degrees earned outside the United States — a credential evaluation converting the studies into U.S. equivalents. Passport details and a full resume complete the packet. Having everything assembled before March avoids scrambling during the compressed filing windows that follow.

March: Electronic Registration Window

USCIS opens a brief electronic registration period each March. For the FY 2027 cap season, the window ran from noon Eastern on March 4 through noon Eastern on March 19, 2026.⁵ Employers or their attorneys log into a USCIS online account and submit basic information about the company and the prospective worker. Each registration costs $215.⁶

Registration itself guarantees nothing. It just enters the worker into the selection pool. The window is only about two weeks, and there is no workaround for missing it.

Lottery Selection and the Wage-Weighted Process

After the window closes, USCIS runs a selection if registrations exceed the cap. Two features shape the odds.

Selection is beneficiary-centric. USCIS picks unique workers based on identifying information, not each registration submitted. If three companies register the same worker, that person gets one chance in the pool, not three. If selected, every employer that registered for that worker receives a selection notice and may file a petition.⁶

Starting with FY 2027, USCIS also implemented a weighted selection that favors higher-paid workers. Registrants must indicate the highest Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) wage level that the offered salary meets or exceeds. Level IV registrations enter the pool four times, level III three times, level II twice, and level I once.⁶ Each worker still counts as one person toward the cap regardless of how many times they appear. Workers offered salaries at or above the median for their occupation and location have significantly better odds than those at entry-level wages.

Selection notices appear in the employer’s USCIS online account. A notice is an invitation to file, not a visa.

April Through June: Filing the I-129 Petition

Selected registrants get a 90-day filing window to submit Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker.¹ The window typically opens in early April. The packet includes the certified LCA, academic documentation, a detailed description of the specialty occupation, and the applicable fees. Filing goes to the designated USCIS service center by mail, or online for some classifications.

Missing the 90 days forfeits the selection. There is no extension. A mailed petition rejected because it went to the wrong service center can be refiled at the correct one, but only if the 90-day window is still open.¹

What the Filing Costs

H-1B costs stack well beyond the base petition fee, and the total varies by employer size. For an initial cap-subject petition as of 2026:

Base I-129 filing fee: $780 by paper or $730 online for most employers. Small employers (25 or fewer full-time equivalent employees) and nonprofits pay $460 regardless of filing method.⁷
Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee: $500, required for initial petitions and employer transfers.⁷
ACWIA training fee: $750 for employers with 25 or fewer employees, $1,500 for larger employers.⁷
Asylum Program Fee: $600 for employers with more than 25 full-time equivalents, $300 for small employers, and $0 for nonprofits.⁸
Public Law 114-113 fee: an additional $4,000 for employers with 50 or more U.S. employees where more than half are in H-1B or L-1 status.⁹

Government fees for a standard large employer typically run around $3,500 to $4,000 before attorney costs, which commonly range from $2,500 to $7,500. Small employers and nonprofits pay noticeably less.

A separate item has reshaped the calculus for hiring from abroad. A presidential proclamation effective September 21, 2025 imposed a $100,000 supplemental fee on new H-1B petitions filed for workers currently outside the United States.¹⁰ The fee is on the current USCIS fee schedule and applies unless the Secretary of Homeland Security grants an exception.⁷ The proclamation is set to expire 12 months after its effective date (September 2026) unless extended, and legal challenges have been filed. Workers already in the United States who are changing or extending status are not subject to it.

Adjudication and Premium Processing

Once USCIS receives the petition, it issues a Form I-797 Receipt Notice with a 13-character tracking number. Regular processing fluctuates with service center workload and can stretch several months.

Employers who need a faster answer file Form I-907 for premium processing, which guarantees USCIS action within 15 business days: an approval, a denial, a notice of intent to deny, or a request for additional evidence.¹¹ The premium processing fee for H-1B petitions rose to $2,965 effective March 1, 2026.¹² If USCIS misses the 15-day window, it refunds the fee.

A Request for Evidence pauses the clock. The maximum response deadline is 84 days, though USCIS can assign shorter windows. If the response does not resolve the officer’s concerns, the next step is typically a Notice of Intent to Deny before any final decision.

October 1 Start Date and the Cap-Gap Bridge

Even a May or June approval does not let the worker start early. Employment under a cap-subject H-1B cannot begin before October 1, the start of the federal fiscal year.¹ That creates a gap for F-1 students whose Optional Practical Training authorization may expire during the summer.

Cap-gap regulations fill it. F-1 status and any approved OPT are automatically extended for students with a pending or approved cap-subject H-1B petition, bridging them from expiration of their student status through September 30.¹³ On October 1, they transition from F-1 to H-1B and begin working under the terms of the approved petition.

How Long Approval Lasts

An initial H-1B approval covers up to three years. The employer can request a three-year extension, taking the maximum stay to six.¹⁴ After that, the worker generally must spend at least one continuous year outside the United States before starting a new six-year period.

Exceptions matter for workers stuck in green card backlogs. Anyone whose employer filed a labor certification or Form I-140 at least 365 days before the six-year mark may receive one-year extensions. Those with an approved I-140 waiting for an immigrant visa number can get three-year extensions. Time spent physically outside the United States does not count toward the six years and can be recaptured.¹⁴

Off-Cycle Paths: Cap-Exempt Employers and Job Transfers

Not every H-1B goes through the lottery. Certain employers are exempt from the annual cap and can file year-round, skipping the March registration entirely:

Institutions of higher education (nonprofit colleges and universities)
Affiliated nonprofits tied to a college or university by formal affiliation agreement
Government research organizations
Nonprofit research organizations

Once the LCA is certified and the packet is ready, cap-exempt employers file immediately.¹ The October 1 start date does not apply, which matters for research institutions and universities hiring on academic calendars.

Workers already in H-1B status can also change employers off-cycle. Under portability, the worker can begin employment with a new company as soon as that company files an I-129 on their behalf, provided the filing happens before the current authorized stay expires.¹⁵ The worker does not have to wait for approval before starting the new job. Because the worker was already counted against the cap, the transfer petition is not cap-subject. Premium processing is available.

If Employment Ends: The 60-Day Grace Period

When H-1B employment ends, whether by layoff or resignation, a 60-day grace period begins. During those 60 days the worker can find a new employer to file a transfer, apply to change to a different status, or prepare to depart. The grace period cannot be extended.

Filing a transfer petition within the 60 days lets the worker stay while it is pending. Waiting until the very last day carries risk: USCIS may approve the petition but deny the extension of status if the filing barely makes it, which forces the worker to leave and re-enter with a new visa stamp before starting work.

Consular Processing for Workers Abroad

For a beneficiary outside the United States, I-129 approval is only step one. The worker must then complete consular processing to obtain a visa stamp before entering: DS-160 Online Nonimmigrant Visa Application, visa application fee, and an interview at a U.S. embassy or consulate.

Interview wait times vary sharply by location. Many consulates in Europe and the Americas schedule petition-based interviews (H, L, O, P, and Q visas) within about two weeks. High-volume posts in India can run two to three months, and some are longer.¹⁶ Workers abroad should check wait times for their specific consulate as soon as the I-129 is filed and book the earliest available slot.

The $100,000 supplemental fee under the September 2025 proclamation applies specifically to petitions filed for workers currently outside the United States.¹⁰ While it stands, it changes the economics of hiring anyone who would need to enter the country on a new H-1B.

1
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Cap Season
2
U.S. Department of Labor. Important Foreign Labor Certification H-1B, H-1B1 and E-3 Information
3
eCFR. 20 CFR 655.731 – What Is the First LCA Requirement, Regarding Wages
4
Flag.dol.gov. Processing Times
5
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. FY 2027 H-1B Cap Initial Registration Period Opens on March 4
6
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Electronic Registration Process
7
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055 Fee Schedule
8
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H and L Filing Fees for Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker
9
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Fee Increase for Certain H-1B and L-1 Petitions (Public Law 114-113)
10
The White House. Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers
11
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How Do I Request Premium Processing
12
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. USCIS to Increase Premium Processing Fees
13
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Extension of Post Completion Optional Practical Training (OPT) and F-1 Status for Eligible Students Under the H-1B Cap-Gap Regulations
14
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. FAQs for Individuals in H-1B Nonimmigrant Status
15
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 7.5 H-1B Specialty Occupations
16
U.S. Department of State. Global Visa Wait Times