The H-1B visa application process for the fiscal year 2025 will commence on March 6, according to a US federal agency. In a major revamp of the annual lottery for this specialty occupation visa, the agency announced that H-1B visa applications will now be counted and accepted based on individual applicants. This change aims to prevent abuse and fraud that occurred in the past when individuals submitted multiple applications. The H-1B visa is utilized by technology companies to hire foreign workers with specialized skills. The new system will also introduce beneficiary-centric selection, ensuring equal opportunities for all applicants. Additionally, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) revealed new rules to enhance the integrity of the H-1B registration process and reduce the potential for fraud. The USCIS director, Ur M. Jaddou, stated that these improvements will make the H-1B selection process fairer and more streamlined. The initial registration period for the fiscal 2025 H-1B cap will commence on March 6 and run until March 22. During this period, prospective petitioners must register each beneficiary electronically and pay the required registration fee. Companies will be able to open their accounts for the registration process starting on February 28. The USCIS emphasized that the beneficiary-centric process will reduce the risk of fraud and ensure equal chances of selection for each beneficiary. Starting from fiscal 2025, registrants will be required to provide valid passport or travel document information for each beneficiary. USCIS will also clarify the requirements for the requested employment start date and may deny or revoke H-1B petitions that contain false information or invalid registrations. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) praised the new registration process, stating that it will create a fairer system. The changes were implemented in response to last year’s unworkable system, where over 750,000 registrations were submitted for only 85,000 visas.
Disclaimer: Only the headline and content of this report may have been reworked by Newsearay, staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed. The Article was originally published on Source link
H-1B visa application process starts on March 6.
