FY2026 H-1B Cap Update: Cap Reached and Closed After the Initial Selection Round

USCIS has announced that they have reached the H-1B cap limit for fiscal year 2026 (FY 2026) after the initial (and only) selection round.  This means that, for the first time ever, they will not be conducting additional lottery rounds of selection after the first round.  This also means that all H-1B cap registrants who were not selected under the first round are now considered as “Not Selected.”

High Number of Applicants and High Submission Rates Means No Additional Lottery Rounds

This year there were 343,981 eligible registrations USCIS had selected 120,141 registrations during the initial lottery round.    The selection number this year was lower than last year but after the first submission window closed on June 30th, it appears that a significantly higher percentage of the selected registrations have submitted an H-1B petition compared to prior years which means that there are no leftover unused H-1B cap registrations to be allocated during additional lottery rounds.

Below are the statistics for this and prior years for comparison:

H-1B Cap Alternatives

Many H-1B cap registrants who were not selected  under the first round this year have been hoping for a second round (like last year); unfortunately, no additional selection rounds will be conducted this year.

Now that the H-1B quota has been reached, we are receiving an increasing number of inquiries by both cap-subject employers and prospective employees about the alternatives – we invite you to review our guide with the most common H-1B cap visa alternatives.   Our office is also starting to accept and prepare registrations for the new upcoming H-1B cap lottery process for March 2026 and we offer flat fees to handle the entire application and you can contact us or request a flat fee quote.

Conclusion

Our office will continue to monitor developments relating to the H-1B program, this and next year’s caps and the immigration proposals.   In the meantime, please feel free to subscribe to our free weekly newsletter to obtain developments on this and related topics. If our office can be of any help with any of the H-1B visa alternative options, please feel free to contact us.