The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has begun notifying applicants of their selection status for the H-1B visa lottery for the 2026 fiscal year.
How to Check Your Application Status
Applicants can verify their lottery outcome through their employer, legal representative, or the USCIS online portal.
Understanding Your Lottery Outcome
– Selected:Â If your application status is marked as “Selected,” you have successfully passed the lottery phase.
The next step is to submit a comprehensive petition, ensuring all required documents are in order while preparing for potential requests for additional evidence from USCIS.
– Submitted:Â If your status remains “Submitted,” your application is still under consideration in the lottery pool, and you should await further updates.
– Not Selected: If your application does not change to “Selected” by April 1, 2025, it means you were not chosen in this round.
For those not selected, alternative visa options exist, such as the **O-1 visa** for individuals with extraordinary abilities and the **L-1 visa** for intracompany transfers.
Key Dates and Updates
The registration period for the H-1B visa for fiscal year 2026 ran from March 7 to March 24, 2025. During this timeframe, U.S. employers submitted electronic registrations for prospective employees in specialized fields such as technology, healthcare, and engineering.
Notably, the H-1B registration fee saw a significant increase from **$10 to $215 per applicant**, aimed at covering administrative costs and discouraging frivolous applications.
To enhance fairness in the selection process, USCIS has also introduced procedural adjustments to streamline the visa allocation process.
Increase in Student Visa Denials
Recent data from the U.S. State Department indicates a **sharp rise in student visa rejections**.
During the last fiscal year (October 2023–September 2024), **41% of international student visa applications were denied**—a stark contrast to 2014, when the rejection rate was nearly half of this figure.
With the H-1B lottery results being released in batches, applicants are advised to stay informed and monitor their status closely.
