USCIS Reached the FY 2027 H-1B Cap — Is There a Second Lottery?

TL;DR: USCIS confirmed on July 17, 2026 that it received enough petitions to fill both the 65,000 regular H-1B cap and the 20,000 US advanced-degree ("master's cap") exemption for fiscal year 2027. Because both caps were filled from the initial selection round, USCIS is not running a second lottery for FY2027 — unlike some past years where a shortfall triggered additional selection rounds.

Claim and evidence

Each fiscal year, USCIS runs an electronic registration lottery for H-1B cap-subject petitions. If the initial round doesn't produce enough approved petitions to fill both the regular and master's caps, USCIS draws additional registrations in a second (or third) round. For FY2027, USCIS's July 17, 2026 alert confirmed the cap was reached without needing extra rounds — meaning everyone not selected (or not registered) in the initial FY2027 lottery has no further chance until the FY2028 registration period opens.

What this means if you weren't selected

• No second-round selection is coming for FY2027. Your options now are to wait for the FY2028 lottery (registration typically opens in March), pursue a cap-exempt employer (universities, nonprofit/government research organizations), or explore an alternative visa category.
• Cap-exempt employers don't need the lottery at all — petitions filed for or by higher-education institutions, nonprofit research organizations, or governmental research organizations are exempt from the numerical cap year-round.
• Alternative categories worth evaluating: O-1 (extraordinary ability), L-1 (intracompany transfer if you have a qualifying foreign affiliate), TN (Canadian/Mexican citizens under USMCA), E-3 (Australian citizens), or H-1B1 (Chile/Singapore citizens).

Step-by-step: what to do after a cap miss

1. Confirm your current status and its expiration date so you know your runway — OPT/STEM OPT cap-gap protection generally doesn't extend past the fiscal year in which you weren't selected.
2. Talk to your employer about cap-exempt options, including affiliations with universities or nonprofit research entities that could support a cap-exempt H-1B.
3. Evaluate alternative visa categories with an attorney based on your nationality, employer structure, and qualifications.
4. Register again for the next lottery cycle if H-1B remains your best path — registration for FY2028 typically opens in March 2027.
5. Track USCIS alerts at uscis.gov/newsroom for any late-year announcements about additional selection rounds, which remain possible in future fiscal years even though FY2027 didn't need one.

FAQ

How many H-1B visas are available each fiscal year? 65,000 under the regular cap, plus an additional 20,000 for people with a US master's degree or higher — 85,000 total cap-subject visas per year.

Will USCIS run a second lottery round for FY2027? No. USCIS confirmed the FY2027 cap was reached in the initial registration round, so no supplemental selection is planned for this fiscal year.

What if my employer is a university or nonprofit research organization? Cap-exempt employers can file H-1B petitions at any time during the year without registering for the lottery, regardless of whether the annual cap has been reached.

Can I try again next year if I wasn't selected? Yes. There's no limit on how many years in a row you can register for the H-1B lottery, though repeated non-selection has pushed many applicants toward alternative categories.

Sources: USCIS "USCIS Reaches Fiscal Year 2027 H-1B Cap" alert (July 17, 2026); Ogletree and Reddy Neumann Brown FY2027 cap analyses.

By Pinal Dave Last updated: 2026-08-03