Planning for H-1B visa season

It’s that time again. The H-1B visa season has arrived, and employers that are considering petitioning for H-1B visas should start planning for the registration process now. Here’s some general information about H-1B visas, the process, and changes from last year.

H-1B visas in demand

When recruiting or hiring candidates for “specialty occupation positions” employers may consider foreign nationals. Positions are specialized if they involve:

• Theoretical and practical application of a body of highly specialized knowledge; and
• Attainment of a bachelor’s or higher degree in the specific specialty (or its equivalent) as a minimum for entry into the occupation in the United States.

Common examples of specialty positions include professional-level workers in finance, health care, science, and technology. The process for hiring a foreign national candidate into this type of position would require an employer to participate in the H-1B visa program, which is tremendously popular.

According to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), for fiscal year (FY) 2022, it received 308,613 H-1B registrations and initially selected 87,500 registrations. It conducted a second selection in July 2021 of an additional 27,717 registrations because some of the initial lottery winners didn’t file applications, and then a third selection in November 2021 of an additional 16,753 registrations.