The Department of Homeland Security has issued a new regulation that fundamentally reshapes how H-1B cap cases will be selected, replacing the long-standing random lottery with a wage-level-based selection system beginning with the upcoming H-1B registration cycle. Under this rule, registrations offering higher Department of Labor prevailing wage levels will be prioritized over lower-wage filings, marking a clear departure from the prior electronic registration process in which all properly submitted registrations had an equal chance of selection regardless of compensation. For employers, this change transforms the H-1B lottery from a game of chance into a system that directly rewards compensation strategy, role classification, and wage planning, making early analysis and thoughtful preparation far more critical than in prior years.

What Employers Must Have Ready Before the March H-1B Registration Window

With the shift to a wage-level-based selection system, employers should plan to have key position details finalized well before the H-1B registration window opens in March, as these inputs will directly affect both wage level assignment and selection priority. Employers should be prepared with a clearly defined job title, a detailed and accurate job description that reflects the true complexity and requirements of the role, the specific work location or locations where the employee will perform services, and the salary to be offered. Because even small changes to duties, location, or compensation can alter the applicable prevailing wage level, advance coordination between HR, hiring managers, and immigration counsel is essential to avoid last-minute adjustments that could weaken a registration’s competitiveness under the new system.

Consistency Requirements From Registration Through October 1 Start Date

Employers should also understand that the job details provided during the March electronic registration effectively lock in the position and must remain consistent through the entire H-1B lifecycle, including the petition filing period between April and June and the actual commencement of employment on October 1. USCIS will expect the job title, duties, work location, and salary reflected in the registration to align with what is later filed in the H-1B petition and what the employee ultimately performs once employment begins. Any changes to these elements must be driven by legitimate business needs that arise after registration and not by an effort to enhance selection prospects under the wage-based lottery, as discrepancies or strategic post-registration changes can raise compliance concerns and increase the risk of denial or future scrutiny.

How SOC Code Selection Drives Wage Level and Lottery Weighting

Under the new selection framework, the number of entries an employee effectively receives in the H-1B lottery is determined by the prevailing wage level that corresponds to the offered salary, making the selection of the appropriate SOC code the critical first step in the process. Because prevailing wage levels are tied directly to the SOC code and work location, identifying the correct occupational classification based on the job’s actual duties and requirements will dictate which wage data applies and how competitive the registration will be. In some cases, a position may reasonably fit within more than one SOC code, and where each option qualifies as a specialty occupation, this can create an opportunity to align the role with a higher prevailing wage level that the offered salary already meets. When done correctly and in good faith, this analysis allows employers to strengthen their registration while remaining compliant, but it requires careful documentation and a defensible connection between the job description, the SOC code selected, and the wage level claimed.

Wage Level Determination for Positions With Multiple Work Locations

When a position involves multiple work locations, the new regulation requires employers to determine the wage level used for selection based on the lowest prevailing wage level that the offered salary satisfies among all listed worksites. In practice, this means the employer must review the prevailing wage data for the selected SOC code in each geographic area where the employee may perform services and then identify the lowest wage level that the salary meets across those locations. USCIS will use that lowest qualifying wage level to determine how the registration is weighted in the wage-based selection process. As a result, including a lower-wage location can significantly reduce the competitiveness of a registration, even if the salary would support a higher wage level in another location, making careful and deliberate worksite planning a critical part of H-1B lottery preparation.

Impact of Multiple Employer Registrations for the Same Employee

Under the new selection system, an employee who is the beneficiary of multiple H-1B registrations filed by different employers will not receive separate or cumulative weighting for each registration. Instead, USCIS will determine the number of entries assigned to that individual based on the lowest prevailing wage level that corresponds to any of the salary offers submitted on the employee’s behalf. This means that even if one employer offers a salary that qualifies for a higher wage level, the presence of another registration tied to a lower wage level can reduce the overall number of entries for that employee in the selection process. As a result, coordination and awareness are increasingly important, since multiple filings by different companies can unintentionally dilute selection chances rather than improve them under the wage-based framework.

The $100,000 H-1B Filing Fee and Its Effect on Registration Volume

While the wage-based lottery will play a central role in selection this year, it is not the only factor likely to influence overall odds. The newly imposed $100,000 filing fee on H-1B petitions filed for beneficiaries outside the United States is expected to significantly alter employer behavior. For many companies, the substantial upfront government fee may lead to fewer registrations overall, as employers become more selective about which candidates they are willing to sponsor. This potential reduction in total registrations could indirectly improve selection chances, but it also raises the stakes for employers, making careful candidate selection, budgeting, and strategic planning more important than ever.

Ongoing Litigation Risk and the Importance of Flexible Planning

As employers prepare for this year’s H-1B season, it is also important to recognize that the regulatory landscape remains fluid. Both the wage-based lottery framework and the $100,000 filing fee for beneficiaries outside the United States are vulnerable to legal challenge, and litigation seeking to block or delay one or both measures remains a real possibility. While no court action has yet halted implementation, employers should plan based on the rules as currently written while remaining alert to last-minute developments that could affect registration strategy, budgeting, or filing timelines. In this environment, flexibility and close coordination with immigration counsel will be critical to adjusting quickly if litigation reshapes the H-1B process mid-cycle.

By: Emily Neumann

Emily Neumann is Managing Partner at Reddy Neumann Brown PC with over 15 years of experience practicing US immigration law providing services to U.S. businesses and multinational corporations. Emily has helped transform the firm from a solo practice to Houston’s largest immigration law firm focused exclusively on U.S. employment-based immigration.  She received her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Central Michigan University and her Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Houston Law Center. Emily has been quoted in Bloomberg Law, U.S. News & World Report, Inside Higher Ed, and The Times of India on various hot topics in immigration. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association and Society for Human Resource Management.