Guide to Global Payroll Management - 2020 - 10-8

Guide to Global Payroll Management
by trade agreements that reserve some of these visas for nonimmigrants from Chile and
Singapore (H-1B1 visas, discussed below).
MASTER'S DEGREE EXEMPTION USCIS exempts the first 20,000 H-1B
petitions for individuals with a master's or higher degree earned in the U.S.
from the H-1B cap.
On December 6, 2019, USCIS announced that it would implement an electronic registration process for the fiscal year 2021 (FY 2021) H-1B cap. Prospective petitioners seeking
to file H-1B cap-subject petitions for the FY 2021 cap, including for beneficiaries eligible for
the advanced degree exemption, must first electronically register and then pay the associated $10 H-1B registration fee for each beneficiary. Under this new process, prospective
petitioners (also known as registrants), and their authorized representatives, who are seeking authorization to employ H-1B workers subject to the cap, will complete a registration
process that requires only basic information about the prospective petitioner and each
requested worker. We will open an initial registration period for the FY 2021 cap at 12 p.m.
ET on March 1, 2020. The initial registration period will remain open through 12 p.m. ET on
March 20, 2020. The H-1B random selection process, if needed, will then be run on properly submitted electronic registrations. Only those with selected registrations will be eligible
to file H-1B cap-subject petitions.
The earliest date a petition may be filed requesting fiscal year 2021 H-1B employment
with an employment start date of October 1, 2020, was April 1, 2020.

H-1B1, Specialty occupations from Chile and Singapore
The H-1B1 visa is limited to individuals employed in specialty occupations from Chile
and Singapore. This visa is treated in a manner similar to H-1B visas and, therefore, an
employer in the U.S. seeking to temporarily employ a foreign worker through an H-1B1 visa
must file an LCA with the DOL making the same attestations that are currently required
in connection with the entry of a foreign worker under the H-1B program.1 A maximum of
6,800 H-1B1 visas are available each year (1,400 from Chile; 5,400 from Singapore).

H-2, Temporary and seasonal workers
H-2 visas are given to temporary or seasonal agricultural workers (H-2A) and temporary
or seasonal nonagricultural workers (H-2B). Employers seeking to hire H-2A nonimmigrants
must obtain a temporary labor certification from DOL except in certain limited circumstances. Currently the H-2B visa also requires temporary labor certification. Aliens may remain
in the U.S. on H-2 visas for up to three years including extensions. Then they must leave
for at least three months before seeking readmission. H-2 visa holders may only work for
the sponsoring employer. The spouse and minor children of H-2 visa holders can get H-4
1.

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71 F.R. 126, 6-30-06.

Guide to Global Payroll Management - 2020

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