- Total H-1B registrations dropped thirty-eight percent for fiscal year 2027 as new selection rules took effect.
- A new wage-weighted selection system prioritizes high-salary roles, providing more lottery entries for senior positions.
- U.S. master’s degree holders secured seventy-one percent of all selections, while entry-level positions saw a significant decline.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services recorded 211,600 properly submitted H-1B registrations for FY 2027, a 38.5% drop from 343,981 in FY 2026 as Indian IT firms reduced new filings under weighted selection rules.
USCIS announced the figures on May 21, 2026, calling the decline evidence that recent reforms had reduced mass, low-wage registrations. The agency’s newsroom carried the statement.
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"The number of properly submitted registrations plummeted by 38.5%, from 343,981 in fiscal year 2026 to just 211,600 in fiscal year 2027. This data is a clear sign that the days of abusing the program with mass, low-wage registrations are over, and that the program is better serving its intended purpose of attracting highly skilled foreign workers."
The drop coincided with a sharp decline in approvals for large Indian technology companies. The top seven firms received 4,573 initial approvals in the most recent reporting period, a 70% decrease from 2015 levels.
Their total reached a decade-low. Indian nationals account for roughly 71% of H-1B holders, leaving Indian professionals and the companies that recruit them especially exposed to changes favoring higher-paid positions.
USCIS confirmed on July 17, 2026, that the FY 2027 cap had been reached. The agency said there would be no second lottery for the cycle.
Salary levels now determine how many chances a registration receives
The FY 2027 process ended the purely random model by assigning more selection entries to jobs at higher prevailing-wage levels. A Level I position received one entry; a Level IV position received four.
| Prevailing wage level | Selection entries |
|---|---|
| Level I, lowest | 1 |
| Level II | 2 |
| Level III | 3 |
| Level IV, highest | 4 |
The selected pool also changed. Beneficiaries with a U.S. advanced degree represented 71.5% of selections in FY 2027, compared with 57% in FY 2026. Only 17.7% of selected registrations fell in the lowest prevailing-wage category, Level I.
Those figures show who gained places in the selection pool. They also explain why large outsourcing companies that traditionally relied on lower-wage filings reduced their volume.
The process has counted people, not duplicate filings, since FY 2025
USCIS introduced beneficiary-centric selection in FY 2025. The system selects a unique beneficiary rather than counting total registrations, removing the advantage of submitting multiple entries for the same person.
The price of entering the process also rose. The registration fee increased from $10 to $215, making high-volume filing more expensive before an employer submits a petition.
The changes operate alongside the annual cap. Congress provides 65,000 regular H-1B places and 20,000 additional places for people with U.S. advanced degrees, for a total of 85,000.
Registration generally takes place around March. Selection follows in late March or April, petition filing runs from April 1 through June 30, and employment begins on October 1.
Higher-paying employers have moved ahead of Indian companies
Amazon, Meta, Google and Microsoft have overtaken Indian firms as the top four H-1B sponsors. Their positions typically carry the higher salaries that the new selection process prioritizes.
That employer mix differs from the model used by large-scale outsourcing companies, sometimes called IT body shops. Those companies have traditionally filed more often for Level I positions, which now receive the fewest selection entries.
The effect reaches workers as well. A beneficiary tied to a higher-paying job receives more entries than someone tied to a Level I position, while candidates with U.S. advanced degrees make up a larger share of selected beneficiaries.
A DHS proposal could end the 60-day post-layoff period
As of early August 2026, the Department of Homeland Security was reviewing a proposed rule identified as RIN 1615-AD22. The proposal would eliminate the 60-day grace period for H-1B workers who lose their jobs.
Under that proposal, workers who could not find a new sponsor would have to depart the United States immediately. The measure remains under review.
The worker consequence would fall after selection and employment, not during registration. Employers control the sponsorship and petition process, while employees face the immigration consequences of losing a job or failing to secure another sponsor.
USCIS linked the lower filing totals to investigations and revised selection procedures. On July 17, the agency said:
"We believe that the decreased filing rate. and the decreased registration numbers for FY 2025, FY 2026, and now FY 2027 indicate that these investigations and the new selection processes have been effective integrity measures."
The FY 2027 cap is closed, and USCIS will not conduct another lottery in this cycle. The agency’s H-1B cap-season updates and electronic registration statistics provide the official program records.
