The FY2027 H1B cap registration window just closed on March 19, 2026. This is the first lottery in history to use wage-weighted selection, which means your odds this year depend entirely on how much the job pays relative to your local market. If you registered, here is what you need to know about how the selection works and what your chances look like.
The Registration Window Just Closed
USCIS opened registration on March 4, 2026, and closed it at noon Eastern on March 19, 2026. If your employer submitted a registration for you during that window, you are in the pool. USCIS plans to notify selected registrations by March 31, 2026, through USCIS online accounts. Use our lottery odds calculator to estimate your selection probability based on your wage level.
FY2027 registration statistics have not been published yet. They typically come out after the selection process completes.
This Is the First Wage-Weighted Lottery in History
Every H1B lottery before FY2027 was a pure random draw. Everyone had the same odds regardless of salary or job level. That changed this year.
DHS published a final rule on December 29, 2025, effective February 27, 2026, that assigns each registration multiple lottery entries based on the offered wage's position in the Department of Labor's four-tier Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) prevailing wage system.
The structure:
| Wage Level | Lottery Entries | Approximate Odds |
|---|---|---|
| Level 1 (entry) | 1 entry | ~15% |
| Level 2 (some experience) | 2 entries | ~29% |
| Level 3 (experienced) | 3 entries | ~44% |
| Level 4 (expert) | 4 entries | ~61% |
A Level 4 registration is entered into the selection pool four times. A Level 1 registration is entered once. Same cap, very different odds.
How Wage Levels Are Determined
Your wage level is not something your employer chooses freely. It is calculated from two inputs: the SOC (Standard Occupational Classification) code for the job and the work location.
USCIS uses the highest OEWS wage level that the offered salary meets or exceeds for that SOC code and metropolitan area. If the Level 2 threshold for your role in your city is $95,000 and you are being paid $110,000, but Level 3 requires $120,000, your registration is filed at Level 2 with two lottery entries.
For positions involving multiple work locations, USCIS uses the lowest qualifying wage level across all worksites. A role spanning a high-wage and low-wage city gets pegged to the lower one.
How FY2027 Compares to Recent Years
FY2027 selection data is not out yet, but the prior two years provide context.
FY2026 (last random lottery): 336,153 unique beneficiaries registered, 118,660 selected, 35.3% overall selection rate.
FY2025: ~470,342 registrations, ~29% selection rate.
FY2024: ~24.8% selection rate.
The drop in total registrations from FY2025 to FY2026 reflects a crackdown on duplicate and fraudulent registrations that inflated earlier numbers.
FY2027 numbers are not available until USCIS publishes them, likely in April or May 2026. The wage-weighted system will redistribute selection rates significantly: lower for Level 1 and Level 2, higher for Level 3 and Level 4.
What the Wage-Weighted System Means in Practice
For most software engineers, data scientists, and product managers at tech companies, offered wages typically fall in the Level 2 to Level 3 range depending on location and experience. Big Tech roles in San Francisco or Seattle often qualify at Level 3 or Level 4. Consulting and staffing roles frequently land at Level 1 or Level 2.
The practical effect: candidates sponsored by large tech employers with high salaries will see meaningfully better odds. Candidates in staffing arrangements or lower-cost markets will see worse odds than in prior random lotteries. Check your employer's historical wage level distribution on our company search tool to understand where your filing is likely to land.
What Happens After Selection
If your registration is selected by March 31, 2026:
- Your employer has a 90-day window to file the full H1B petition with USCIS starting April 1, 2026.
- Premium processing is available for a faster decision ($2,805 fee as of 2026).
- Your H1B would be valid starting October 1, 2026 (the start of FY2027).
If your registration is not selected, your employer can resubmit in a second lottery round if USCIS determines it did not receive enough registrations to fill the 85,000-slot cap.
Key Dates
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| March 4, 2026 | Registration opened |
| March 19, 2026 | Registration closed |
| By March 31, 2026 | Selection notifications sent |
| April 1, 2026 | Earliest petition filing date |
| October 1, 2026 | FY2027 H1B validity begins |
The $100,000 Employer Fee
Starting September 2025, employers with more than 50% H1B or L1 workers on staff must pay a $100,000 fee per petition filed. This does not affect the lottery registration. It applies at the petition filing stage after selection.
Most large employers are exempt because their H1B workforce is well below 50% of total headcount. Smaller IT staffing firms are the most affected.
We Will Update This When Data Drops
USCIS typically publishes FY registration statistics within a few weeks of the selection process completing. When that data comes out, we will update this article with the actual FY2027 numbers.
In the meantime, search any employer on H1BSignal to see their wage level distribution and historical filing patterns.