H-1B Visa Sponsorship Terms Glossary

H-1B Visa Sponsorship Terms Glossary

Visa sponsorship discussions are full of terms that get used loosely. Here's what they actually mean.

LCA (Labor Condition Application)

A certification an employer must file with the Department of Labor before submitting an H-1B petition, attesting to prevailing wage compliance and working conditions. LCA disclosure data is the primary public source for verifying a company's real H-1B filing history.

H-1B Cap

The annual numerical limit on new H-1B visas: 65,000 under the regular cap, plus an additional 20,000 for candidates with a US master's degree or higher, for a combined 85,000 per fiscal year.

Registration Fee

The fee required to enter the H-1B cap registration lottery — $215 per beneficiary for FY 2026, a significant increase from the previous $10 fee.

Wage Level (I-IV)

A four-tier system (Level I lowest, Level IV highest) the Department of Labor uses to set the prevailing wage an employer must pay for a given role and location. Since February 27, 2026, wage level also determines entry weight in the H-1B lottery.

Entry Weight

Under the wage-weighted registration system effective February 27, 2026, each registrant receives lottery entries based on wage level: Level I = 1 entry, Level II = 2, Level III = 3, Level IV = 4. Higher-wage-level registrations get proportionally more entries in the selection pool. This is distinct from a selection-odds percentage, which USCIS has not published as official aggregate data.

Cap-Exempt

H-1B petitions filed by universities, nonprofit research organizations, and certain government research organizations aren't subject to the annual cap or lottery — these employers can file H-1B petitions year-round.

PERM (Program Electronic Review Management)

The labor certification process an employer must complete before filing a green card petition (EB-2 or EB-3) on an employee's behalf — a separate, generally longer process than H-1B sponsorship.

EB-2 / EB-3

Employment-based green card categories. EB-2 generally requires an advanced degree or a bachelor's degree plus five years of progressive experience; EB-3 generally requires a bachelor's degree (skilled worker) or less than two years of training (other worker).

Dual Intent

A legal doctrine allowing H-1B holders to simultaneously seek permanent residence (a green card) while maintaining nonimmigrant H-1B status — unlike some other visa categories (such as TN), where pursuing a green card can raise status complications.

$100,000 H-1B Proclamation Fee

A one-time fee applying specifically to new H-1B petitions filed on or after September 21, 2025, for beneficiaries outside the US without a valid H-1B visa, approved for consular processing. It does not apply to change-of-status or extension petitions for people already in the US. As of mid-2026 this fee is being actively litigated — a federal court found it unlawful in June 2026, then paused that ruling pending the government's appeal, so its final legal status remains unresolved.

H-4 Status

The dependent status available to spouses and unmarried children under 21 of H-1B visa holders. Certain H-4 spouses may separately qualify for their own work authorization (H-4 EAD) under specific conditions.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is entry weight the same as selection odds?

No. Entry weight determines how many lottery entries a registration receives based on wage level — it is not the same as a percentage chance of selection, which depends on total registrant volume and hasn't been published as official aggregate data by USCIS.

Does the $100,000 fee apply to H-1B renewals?

No — it applies only to new petitions for beneficiaries outside the US filed on or after September 21, 2025, for consular processing. Existing H-1B holders extending or changing status while in the US are not subject to it. Its legal status is also still being litigated as of mid-2026.

What's the difference between PERM and an LCA?

An LCA is filed for H-1B sponsorship (a temporary work visa). PERM is filed for green card sponsorship (permanent residence) — a separate, generally longer and more involved process, even though both involve labor-condition-style attestations to the Department of Labor.

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