USCIS completed their selection of 85,000 H1-B cap petitions from those that were registered online between March 1 to March 27, 2020. Employers were able to create an account and use the Online Registration Tool created by USCIS to submit the petitions for their beneficiaries. USCIS received 275,000 H-1B cap registrations of which they randomly selected 85,000 petitions. The USCIS account will reflect the final decision.

Of the total H1-B petitions registered, 186,000 belonged to Indian skilled workers while 36,300 were for those from China. While receiving substantially more petitions than the annual cap of 85,000 has been a consistent pattern in the past few years, Indians submitting for the biggest chunk of the pie was remarkable this year. More than 45% of all registrations were for prospective H1-B beneficiaries with a Master’s degree from the US. It is worth noting that last year, USCIS had reversed the order of the lottery which gave Master’s degree holders a 16% higher chance of getting through the lottery.

Next: How to File a Completed H1-B Petition

If you have been selected out of the initial online H1-B registration on the USCIS account, you have until June 30 2020 to submit a detailed, completed H1-B petition for the final lottery process. This is what you should know:

• Print out the pdf version of the Registration Selection Notice from your USCIS account and include it with your detailed petition.
• Since USCIS does not offer an online filing option, your petition should be submitted in hard copy.
• The Notice of Selection identifies which USCIS service center to send the fully completed H1-B petition. To avoid getting a denial, ensure the petition is mailed to the right service center.
• No beneficiary substitutions are permitted. Only the registered employer can submit the detailed H1-B petition for the selected beneficiary.
• The earlier the submission is made the higher the chances of getting an adjudication. Given that the H1-B 2021 lottery timelines have been extended until June 30 this year, it’s advisable to submit the petition early enough to get results sooner. Adjudications are expected to go on until December 30, 2020.
• If the petition is not submitted by June 30, 2020 the registered beneficiary is voided and the slot will be allocated to the next selected registrant.
• It is unclear if USCIS will issue an RFE or a denial before June 30^th. for the submitted petitions. However, if it did, the employer can file again until the deadline provided they can effectively respond to the Request for Evidence.

The completed H1-B petition should be equipped with substantial evidentiary documentation to establish eligibility in the following categories:

• Qualifications: For petitioners with an advanced degree
• Specialty Occupation: To prove required skill levels 
• Employer-Employee Relationship: If beneficiary is going to be at client site
• Wage-Level: Establish how the wage level meets minimum requirements and is valid for the job.