Modification of Registration Requirement for Petitioners Seeking To File H-1B Cap-Subject Petitions

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has published a final rule that withdraws the Modification of Registration Requirement for Petitioners Seeking to File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions final rule, also known as the H-1B Selection Final Rule, issued Jan. 8, 2021. The California Northern District Court vacated the H-1B cap “highest paid” lottery rule, finding that that former acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolfe was not legally appointed to that position, and therefore had no authority to issue it.

The final rule would have modified how USCIS managed the H-1B cap-subject registration requirement "by generally first selecting registrations based on the highest Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) prevailing wage level that the proffered wage equals or exceeds for the relevant Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) code and area(s) of intended employment." Currently, cap-subject registrations received during the registration period are counted in a random selection process.