H-1B lottery history and data: Selection rates 2008-2026
Every year, thousands of skilled workers compete for a chance to work in the United States. This is the H-1B lottery.
By law, the government can only approve 85,000 new H-1B visas each year: 65,000 for general workers and 20,000 for those with advanced degrees from a U.S. institution. The lottery was created to parcel out these limited slots. But the demand and the rules have shifted since its inception.
Data on H-1B visas goes by fiscal year. The government’s fiscal year runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30. So for example, fiscal year 2011 began Oct. 1, 2010 and ended Sept. 30, 2011.
In this article, Manifest Law provides an overview of the history and evolution of the H-1B lottery.
Key takeaways
- H-1B lottery selection odds have fallen over time—from nearly 100% in early years to about 35% recently.
- The lottery occurs when registrations exceed the annual cap of 85,000 visas.
- Electronic registration, introduced in 2021, significantly increased the number of entries.
- Starting with the FY 2027 season, the lottery will prioritize workers offered higher salaries.
The H-1B first lottery
The H-1B program began with the Immigration Act of 1990. For many years, there were enough visas for everyone who applied. If you had a job offer and the right skills, you got the visa.
That changed in April 2007. For the first time, the government received more applications than the law allowed. Employers sent in about 150,000 applications for the 85,000 available spots.
The rise in demand led U.S Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to create a new regulation to use a random lottery to decide who got a spot. What was once a sure thing became a coin flip—the selection rate that year was 57%. This marked the beginning of the H-1B lottery.
The H-1B lottery during the recession years
Almost as soon as it was created, the need for a lottery effectively disappeared. The world economy crashed in 2008.
Between fiscal years 2010 and 2013, the annual demand for H-1B visas fell below the 85,000 limit. During the years following the Great Recession, the filing window stayed open for months because of a lack of demand. In FY 2011, it took 300 days to reach the cap.
This meant the selection rate was effectively 100%. If you were qualified and applied before the limit was reached, you could get an H-1B visa. There was no need for a lottery.
H-1B Lottery Selection Rates (FY 2008 to 2020)
After H-1B registration went electronic
In 2020, the rules changed. Before this, applying for an H-1B was an analog, paper-based process. To enter the lottery, the employer had to submit the full H-1B petition.
This changed with the electronic registration system in FY 2021. Today, to enter the lottery, all employers have to do is pay a fee and submit information online.
This lowered the barrier significantly. Within four years, the number of entries jumped from about 269,000 when the system was introduced to a record peak of 758,994 in FY 2024.
The government also changed its process. In the table below, you might notice that selected registrations are much higher than the visa limit of 85,000.
The government over-selects lottery winners because it expects that some people won’t finish the paperwork or will be denied. It picks enough winners to make sure all 85,000 spots are filled with successful petitions.
Recent reforms
By FY 2024, the selection rate hit an all-time low of 25%. Because digital entry was so accessible, some people had multiple companies submit their names. To address this, the government introduced beneficiary-centric selection in FY 2025.
Under these rules, each worker enters the lottery just once, no matter how many companies sponsor you. This reduced the number of beneficiaries with multiple registrations, and may have helped push the selection rate back up.
The lottery is changing further for FY 2027 by introducing a wage-weighted system. Instead of a random drawing, the system will prioritize workers with the highest salaries.
Navigating the changing rules
The history of the H-1B lottery often reflects how America views outside talent. The long filing windows of the early 2010s reflected the struggles of the economy, while the electronic registration system and the subsequent beneficiary-centric selection rules show how the government can open the door, then close it to foreign workers, depending on the priorities of the time.
Frequently asked questions
What’s the difference between the two tables for H-1B registration?
Before FY 2021, a lottery entry was a full paper petition. After FY 2021, entering the lottery became much easier and cheaper. Because of that, the number of entries skyrocketed.
Where does the limit of 85,000 H-1B visas come from?
Congress set a hard limit of 85,000 H-1B visas in a law that took effect in 1996. The government can invite more people to apply through the lottery, but it’s legally forbidden from approving more than 85,000 new visas per year.
What triggers the H-1B lottery?
In the pre-registration era, by regulation, the government had to accept applications for at least the first five business days of April. If, during those five days, the government receives more than 85,000 applications, they stop accepting applications and run the lottery. (This regulation is still on the books, but has been superseded by electronic registration.)
If it receives fewer than 85,000 applications, there’s no lottery. The application window stays open, and visas are awarded on a first-come first-served basis until every spot is gone. This is what happened from FY 2010 to FY 2013.
Starting in FY 2021, under the electronic registration system, the government keeps the registration period open for at least 14 calendar days. There have been more than 85,000 registrations each year since.
This story was produced by Manifest Law and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.
