On April 1, 2024, USCIS began accepting electronic submissions for all H-1B petitions, which allows employers to file paperless H-1B petitions through their online myUSCIS platform. USCIS launched organizational accounts earlier this year as part of their efforts to streamline the online filing process, which allows company groups to collaborate with their legal representatives on preparing, reviewing, and submitting H-1B petitions.
How Does it Work?
H-1B petitioning employers must create a company group using their online myUSCIS organizational account, where people within the company can be assigned the role of “administrator”, who has the broad authority to prepare, sign, and submit online forms, or the role of “member”, who can only edit forms and view case statuses. Company groups can invite legal representatives, and vis versa, to collaborate on preparing, signing, reviewing, and submitting online H-1B petitions. Form I-907 is also available to file online to request premium processing, which can be filed at the same time as the I-129, or at a later time to “upgrade” a pending electronically filed H-1B petition to premium processing.
Online versus Paper Filings
There are many benefits that come with filing H-1B petitions online, including:
- Instant receipt notice. USCIS considers electronically submitted applications to be received immediately upon submission, including on Saturdays, Sundays, and federal holidays, when USCIS would otherwise not accept paper-based applications. The receipt notice is generated just moments after submitting an H-1B petition online. Delays and costs associated with couriering petitions and waiting to receive physical notices in the mail are eliminated with online filing.
- Reduced filing fees for large employers. For H-1B petitioning companies with more than 25 employees, there is a $50 filing fee discount for filing online.
- Reduced chances of rejection. USCIS frequently rejects H-1B petition filings that are sent with the incorrect filing fees or form edition dates. However, the online platform will automatically calculate the appropriate filing fees for the application based on the selections made in the form, and since the form is electronic, there is no need to keep up with the edition dates. Concerns regarding the appropriate filing address to mail paper-based petitions to are also eliminated with the online filing platform.
- Avoid common mistakes. The online I-129 form is programmed to show alerts and warning messages when it detects missing or incomplete information that could potentially delay processing of the H-1B petition.
- Online case tracking. Company groups can view all drafted, pending, and submitted H-1B petitions along with their case status from their myUSCIS online account. For companies that frequently file H-1B petitions, this helps facilitate case tracking and simplify status checks.
- Paper Reduction. The online H-1B petition can be signed electronically, which eliminates the need to physically sign forms in wet ink. Supporting documentation can be uploaded, instead of printed, which helps reduce paper usage and waste.
Additional Comments
USCIS has confirmed that electronically filed H-1B petitions are not expected to process faster than paper-filed H-1B petitions. Furthermore, the online myUSCIS platform does not currently support concurrent filings of H-4 applications for dependents, which restricts applicants from the benefit of bundle adjudication for concurrently filed H-1B and H-4 applications. Nonetheless, there are many advantages to filing electronic-based H-1B petitions in lieu of paper, and it appears that USICS will continue to update and enhance their online platform to improve efficiency and encourage electronic filings within the H-1B program. For more information on how to set up a USCIS organizational account to file H-1B petitions online, see here.