US Visa: New rules for H-1B registration and filing process in 2024.
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has taken several steps to improve the H-1B registration process and lessen the possibility of fraud. Some of the measures were implemented earlier while many other key rules related to immigration and H-1B went live from April 1, 2024. The new visa fee schedule will influence the cost of numerous non-immigrant visa categories, including the most popular among Indians: H-1B, L-1, and EB-5 visas.
Cost of H-1B registration
The cost of H-1B registration and petition filing fees for Form I-129 will climb significantly beginning April. Petitioners use Form I-129 to file on behalf of a nonimmigrant worker to come to the United States temporarily to perform services, or to receive training, as an H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, H-3, L-1, O-1, O-2, P-1, P-1S, P-2, P-2S, P-3, P-3S, Q-1 or R-1 nonimmigrant worker.
The $10 H-1B registration process fee will be raised to $215, a 2,050% increase and the petition filing fee for Form I-129 is now $780. The Form I-129 H-1B petition filing fee is in addition to the H-1B registration charge. There will be no grace period for submitting the new version of Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, as it must be updated with the new fee computation. The increased fees will go into effect on April 1, 2024.
Beneficiary-Centric Registrations
Starting with the fiscal year 2025 for the initial registration period, USCIS will require registrants to furnish valid passport or document information for each beneficiary. The passport or travel document presented must be the one the beneficiary plans to use to enter the United States if granted an H-1B visa. Each beneficiary must be enrolled under a single passport or travel document. The beneficiary-centric method selects registrations based on unique beneficiaries.
Filing Form I-129 petitions from April 1
From April 1, 2024, USCIS service centers are no longer accepting Form I-129 petitions requesting H-1B or H-1B1 (HSC) classification. USCIS will reject H-1B or H-1B1 (HSC) petitions received at a USCIS service center on or after April 1, 2024.
Beginning on April 1, 2024, all paper-filed Form I-129 petitions requesting H-1B1 (HSC), or H-1B classification, including those with a concurrent Form I-907, Request for Premium Processing Service, and those with concurrently filed Form I-539 and/or Form I-765, must be filed at a USCIS lockbox facility.
USCIS will accept prior editions of most forms during a grace period from April 1, 2024, through June 3, 2024. During this grace period, USCIS will accept both previous and new editions of certain forms, filed with the correct fee.
There will be no grace period for the following new forms, however, because they must be revised with a new fee calculation.
Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker;
Form I-129 CW, Petition for a CNMI-Only Nonimmigrant Transitional Worker;
Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers;
Form I-600A, Application for Advance Processing of an Orphan Petition (and supplement 1, 2 and 3); and
Form I-600, Petition to Classify Orphan as an Immediate Relative.
Filing H-2B petitions
H-2B petitions postmarked on or after April 1, 2024, must include the new fees and be filed on the 04/01/24 edition of the form or USCIS will not accept them. The H-2B program allows U.S. companies or agents to hire foreign nationals for temporary non-agricultural occupations if they meet particular regulatory conditions. Form I-129, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker, must be filed by a U.S. employer or agent on behalf of the prospective worker.