H1-B visa deadline likely to get extended as users face technical glitches

USCIS took to Twitter to announce that some users have not been able to register, and thus they will extend the deadline

The deadline to register for an H1-B visa will be extended as users face technical issues. In a tweet, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said, "Currently, some users are not able to complete the H-1B registration process. We apologise for any inconvenience & are working to fix the issue. We will extend the registration deadline. Stay tuned for more details."

The last date for registration, as per the USCIS website, is today.

The USCIS has launched the electronic registration process for H1-B visas. Under it, the applicants and their employers can register by providing basic information. The initial registration process for the H1-B visa is 14 days. 

The cost of each application is a non-refundable $10.

How to register for an H1-B visa?

To register for the H1-B visa electronically, the applicants must create a "registrant" account with myUSCIS. The applicants creating an account for themselves need to enter all the details about their employers.

The applicant then needs to select the "I am an H1-B registrant" account type option.

Once a user selects this, their account gets blocked and does not let them enter any more details until the 14-day registration period opens.

When the window opens, the candidates can fill in the rest of the details and complete their registration. Then, USCIS notifies the selected candidates and asks them to fill out their applications.

This year, the last date for first registration is March 17 as of now. By March 31, USCIS is expected to notify the selected candidates. Then from April 1, the H1-B applicants can start filing their applications.

How does USCIS shortlist the candidates?

The USCIS looks into the history of the candidate, their approvals, denials and other details before fixing the cap on the number of H1-B applications. They then notify the suitable candidates by looking into their records.

This year, the department has received 48,000 application requests.