India Captures About 73–74% of H-1B Approvals in 2025 Trends

(INDIA) An ed-tech firm’s claim matches what official data and expert reviews have shown for years: roughly three out of every four H-1B approvals go to nationals of India. As of mid-September 2025, the best current estimates put India’s share at about 73–74% of all H-1B approvals, with China a distant second at around 10–12%, and all other countries making up the rest. While the agency has not published a full country-by-country breakdown for FY 2025, the overall pattern remains clear and stable.

The numbers track with the lottery’s input pool: employers submit the largest volume of registrations for Indian professionals, especially in tech and other STEM fields in the United States 🇺🇸.

FY 2025 Lottery and Cap Basics

Officials and company counsel say this share persisted through the FY 2025 lottery cycle, which recorded 343,981 eligible registrations and a selection rate of 21.8%.

Key cap details:
– Annual cap: 85,000 total
– Regular cap: 65,000
– Advanced-degree cap: 20,000
– Free-trade set-aside: 6,800 (for Chile and Singapore)
– No country quotas exist in statute — the skew toward India arises from employer registration volume, not a built-in preference.

Industry and campus advisors cite several core drivers for the concentration of approvals:
– Tightened labor market for niche skills
– Size of India’s STEM workforce
– Established pipelines between Indian universities, Indian IT services firms, and large U.S. tech employers

According to VisaVerge.com analysis, these factors have kept India’s share of H-1B approvals above 70% for over a decade, even as rules and adjudication practices changed. For many students, the H-1B route remains a key bridge from Optional Practical Training (OPT) into longer-term skilled work in the U.S.

Policy Updates and Their Effects

The latest policy updates have not changed the country distribution materially. They have, however, altered filing rules and timing expectations for employers and recent graduates.

The Department of Homeland Security’s H-1B modernization (effective January 17, 2025) introduced structural changes that bring both more flexibility and more compliance pressure. USCIS also reiterated its site-visit authority and case review standards, while giving more deference to earlier approvals when conditions remain the same.

Notable Policy Changes

• Revised “specialty occupation” reading
  • USCIS adopted a more practical approach to show that a position normally needs a specific degree or its equivalent.
  • Officers may still request proof that the degree relates closely to job duties, but the change better reflects blended roles in tech, health IT, and analytics.
• Extended cap-gap protection
  • Now lasts until April 1 of the following fiscal year for those with timely, selected H-1B filings.
  • Schools report the change reduces stress for graduating students and hiring teams by trimming the risk of a gap in status.
• Deference to prior approvals
  • If facts and job duties are unchanged in an extension, officers should generally give weight to earlier grants.
  • This can save time and aid workforce planning.
• Site-visit and evidence expectations
  • USCIS emphasized its power to conduct site visits, review wage and worksite details, and issue requests for evidence (RFEs).
  • Attorneys advise preparing detailed LCA support, clear client letters for third-party sites, and precise job duty descriptions.
• Mandatory new Form I-129
  • The new Form I-129 (edition 01/17/25) is mandatory for all H‑1B petitions filed on or after January 17, 2025.
  • USCIS will reject older editions without a grace period, which can be costly if a filing window is short.
  • Employers should download the current edition directly from USCIS: Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker.

These procedural updates have been a frequent cause of rework for high-volume filers.

Proposed Wage-Based Selection (Status)

• A Trump-era proposal to prioritize higher-paid roles remains under review as of September 2025.
• Supporters say wage-priority would better match approvals with labor market needs.
• Critics warn it could sideline early-career workers and smaller firms.

Impact on Applicants and Employers

For Indian nationals, the headline is steady: their share remains near three-quarters, driven by the size of the applicant pool rather than any country preference. For Chinese nationals, the 10–12% share reflects demand in engineering and data roles. Applicants from other countries compete in a field heavily populated by a handful of sectors and large petitioning employers.

How the rule changes affect filings:
– The mix of stricter verification and clearer standards favors well-prepared filings.
– Companies that:
– Document job duties with care,
– Map degrees to specific tasks,
– Keep public access files current
report smoother adjudications.
– Firms relying on third-party placements should expect more scrutiny about right-to-control, supervision, and offsite work.
– Many employers now front-load evidence they once saved for a possible RFE to cut delays.

Students and early-career workers face two main crosscurrents:
– The extended cap-gap offers more breathing room between graduation and H‑1B start dates.
– A potential future wage-based selection could make entry salaries more important, prompting students to track prevailing wages by metro area and consider job levels/pay that meet or exceed norms.

Typical Annual Sequence (What Employers and Applicants Do Each Spring)

The sequence for FY 2026 is expected to mirror the current cycle:

1. Registration: Employers submit electronic registrations for prospective H‑1B workers during the March window. USCIS then notifies selections.
2. Petition filing: Selected employers file complete Form I-129 packages, including evidence that the role is a specialty occupation and that the beneficiary is qualified.
3. Case review: USCIS adjudicates, sometimes issuing RFEs or arranging site visits to confirm job details.
4. Visa stamping or status change: Approved workers outside the U.S. apply for visas at consulates; those in the U.S. may change status if eligible.

Officials note the lottery remains random within each category. There is no country-by-country selection mechanism. Approval shares therefore mirror employer registrations across countries and industries.

Resources and Compliance Checklist

For official program basics, USCIS maintains a public page outlining cap numbers, categories, and filing mechanics: USCIS H‑1B Specialty Occupations.

Enforcement and site visits:
– With codified site-visit authority, officers can appear at headquarters or client locations to confirm work details.
– Employers say helpful preparations include:
– Advance training for managers,
– A single point of contact for visitors,
– Ready access to contracts and statements of work,
– Accurate titles and current worksite addresses.

Small mistakes—like mismatched titles or outdated addresses—can derail an otherwise strong case.

Broader Debate and Likely Future Drivers

Policy analysts expect ongoing debate over wages and selection criteria:
– Proponents of prioritizing higher wages argue it would curb misuse and support U.S. workers.
– Opponents note regional and industry pay variation and the importance of entry roles to innovation pipelines.
– References to both President Biden’s labor stance and President Trump’s wage-priority proposal show bipartisan interest in reshaping program incentives, though substantive change would be incremental.

Any major shift in country distribution would likely come from:
– Changes in employer demand,
– Lottery design (if revised),
– Wage-based prioritization (if implemented).

Key Takeaways (Practical Guidance)

The most telling figures remain simple: India at roughly 73–74%, China at about 10–12%, and everyone else sharing the remainder. USCIS has not released a fresh country-by-country breakdown for FY 2025, but nothing suggests a sharp directional change.

For workers:
– Strong evidence, clean filings, and timely action matter more than ever.

For employers:
– Two compliance items deserve emphasis:
– Use the correct Form I-129 edition (01/17/25) for any H‑1B petition filed on or after January 17, 2025.
– Be ready for site visits with updated records, contracts, and point-of-contact procedures.

Those steps will not change the macro distribution of approvals, but they will help individual cases meet current review standards.