An H-1B visa is a temporary U.S. work visa that lets an American employer hire a foreign professional for a job that requires specialized knowledge and at least a bachelor’s degree. You cannot apply for it on your own. A company has to petition for you, and because Congress caps most new H-1Bs at 65,000 a year with another 20,000 reserved for workers holding advanced degrees from U.S. institutions, sponsorship alone is not enough. Demand almost always outruns supply, and USCIS runs a lottery to decide which petitions move forward.
Who Qualifies
The Job Has to Be a Specialty Occupation
The position your employer wants to fill must qualify as a “specialty occupation.” That means the work requires you to apply advanced knowledge in a specific field — engineering, computer science, accounting, architecture, medicine, and similar disciplines are common examples — and a bachelor’s degree or higher in that field is the normal minimum to be hired for that type of work in the United States.1eCFR. 8 CFR 214.2 – Special Requirements for Admission, Extension, and Maintenance of Status A general degree without a clear tie to the job’s duties will not satisfy the rule.
Your Credentials
You need the required degree or its equivalent. If your degree comes from a foreign institution, you’ll need a formal credentials evaluation confirming it matches a four-year U.S. bachelor’s degree. A mix of education, specialized training, and progressive work experience can sometimes substitute for a formal degree, though that route is harder to prove and tends to draw extra scrutiny from USCIS.
A Real Employer-Employee Relationship
The sponsoring employer must show a genuine employer-employee relationship, meaning the company has the right to control what you work on, how you do it, and where you perform your duties. The requirement exists to prevent situations where a staffing company files a petition but has no real oversight of the worker. That relationship has to be documented and maintained for the life of the visa.
The Cap and the Lottery
The 65,000 regular cap and the 20,000 U.S. master’s cap together define the pool of new H-1Bs available each fiscal year.2U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Cap Season Because more people register than there are visas, USCIS selects registrations by lottery.
The selection is beneficiary-centric: each worker gets one chance regardless of how many employers register on their behalf. If you’re selected, every employer that registered for you receives a selection notice and may file a petition.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Electronic Registration Process
Cap-Exempt Employers
Some employers can file H-1B petitions year-round without going through the lottery. The exemption covers nonprofit institutions of higher education, nonprofit entities affiliated with a college or university, nonprofit research organizations, and government research organizations. If your offer comes from one of these, your petition is not counted against the 65,000 or 20,000 limits.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1184 – Admission of Nonimmigrants
How the Petition Gets Filed
For cap-subject petitions, the process starts with electronic registration in March. Your employer uses a USCIS online account to submit basic information about the company and the prospective worker, and pays a $215 registration fee for each beneficiary. USCIS runs the selection and sends notifications by the end of March. If your registration is picked, the employer has a 90-day window to file the full petition package.3U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. H-1B Electronic Registration Process
Before filing the petition, your employer must submit a Labor Condition Application (Form ETA 9035) to the Department of Labor. In it, the employer commits to paying you at least the prevailing wage for your occupation in the geographic area where you’ll be working.5eCFR. 20 CFR 655.730 – What Is the Process for Filing a Labor Condition Application
The petition package itself is built around Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker.6U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker It includes:
- Your passport, valid for the intended duration of employment
- Educational credentials, including transcripts, diplomas, and a credentials evaluation for foreign degrees
- An employer support letter explaining why the role qualifies as a specialty occupation and how your background fits
- The certified Labor Condition Application and required fees
Once USCIS receives the petition, it issues a Form I-797 receipt notice confirming the case is under review. Registrations not selected in the lottery cannot be filed during that fiscal year cycle.
What It Costs
The employer, not the worker, is responsible for the government filing fees, and they add up quickly. For 2026, the main charges are:7U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. G-1055 Fee Schedule
- Base Form I-129 filing fee: $780 on paper or $730 online for standard employers; $460 for small employers (25 or fewer employees) and nonprofits8eCFR. 8 CFR Part 106 – USCIS Fee Schedule
- ACWIA fee: $1,500 for employers with 26 or more full-time employees, $750 for smaller employers
- Fraud prevention and detection fee: $500 on initial petitions and change-of-employer petitions
- Asylum program fee: $600 for standard employers, $300 for small employers, $0 for nonprofits
- Registration fee: $215 per beneficiary, paid during the March registration window
A standard employer filing a paper petition for the first time pays roughly $3,480 in mandatory government fees before any legal costs. Attorney fees are separate.
Premium Processing
An employer who needs a faster answer can file Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, which guarantees USCIS will take action within 15 business days.9U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. How Do I Request Premium Processing Action here means approval, denial, or a Request for Evidence, not a guaranteed approval. The premium processing fee for H-1B petitions rose to $2,965 in 2026.10Federal Register. Adjustment to Premium Processing Fees Paying for premium processing does not improve your odds in the lottery.
How Long You Can Stay
An approved H-1B petition generally grants an initial stay of up to three years, and the maximum total time in H-1B status is six years.11U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. FAQs for Individuals in H-1B Nonimmigrant Status Extensions inside that six-year window are typically granted in three-year blocks as long as the employer can show a continued need for the role.12U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. 7.5 H-1B Specialty Occupations
Extending Past Six Years
The American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21) allows you to stay beyond the six-year limit in two situations. Under Section 106, if your employer has filed a labor certification or immigrant worker petition on your behalf and at least 365 days have passed since the filing, USCIS can extend your H-1B in one-year increments until your permanent residency is decided.13GovInfo. Public Law 106-313 – American Competitiveness in the Twenty-first Century Act of 2000 Under Section 104(c), if your employer’s immigrant worker petition has been approved but a visa number is unavailable because of per-country limits, USCIS can grant extensions in up to three-year increments.14U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. AC21 Guidance Memorandum These provisions matter most for workers from countries with long green card backlogs, particularly India and China.
Changing Employers
You are not locked into one employer for the life of the visa. Federal law lets you start working for a new employer as soon as that employer files a nonfrivolous H-1B petition on your behalf. You do not have to wait for approval.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 8 USC 1184 – Admission of Nonimmigrants Your authorization under the new petition continues until USCIS decides. If the new petition is denied, that authorization ends immediately.
To qualify for portability, you must have been lawfully admitted, you must not have worked without authorization since that admission, and the new petition must be filed before your current authorized stay expires. Because you were already counted against the cap, transfer petitions can be filed any time of year.
If You Lose Your Job
Losing your job does not immediately end your legal status. Federal regulations provide a grace period of up to 60 consecutive days, or until your authorized stay expires, whichever comes first, during which you are still considered to be maintaining valid status.15U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Options for Nonimmigrant Workers Following Termination of Employment The clock starts the day after your last paid day of work.
Inside that window you can find a new H-1B employer who files a transfer petition, apply to change to a different nonimmigrant status such as a B-1/B-2 visitor visa, or file for adjustment of status if you’re eligible for a green card. The grace period is available once per authorized petition validity period, and it ends immediately if you leave the country. If your employer terminated you involuntarily, it is required to pay the reasonable cost of your transportation to your home country if you choose to leave.
Bringing Your Family
Your spouse and unmarried children under 21 can accompany you on H-4 dependent visas. H-4 status lasts as long as you keep valid H-1B status; if yours ends, theirs ends too.
H-4 dependents generally cannot work, with one important exception. If your employer has filed and received approval of an immigrant worker petition (Form I-140) on your behalf, or you have been granted an H-1B extension under the AC21 provisions above, your spouse can apply for an Employment Authorization Document by filing Form I-765.16U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Employment Authorization for Certain H-4 Dependent Spouses Once approved, the EAD typically aligns with the spouse’s I-94 expiration date, up to a maximum validity of three years.17U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Employment Authorization for Certain H-4, E, and L Nonimmigrant Dependent Spouses If your spouse files a timely renewal before the current EAD expires and still holds valid H-4 status, existing work authorization is automatically extended for up to 180 days while USCIS processes the renewal.