Calculate H1B Visa Probability

Every year, the number of H1B visa applicants has significantly exceeded the number of H1B visas issued. Thus, the number of applicants is reduced by random selection (H1B Lottery). How to calculate the probabilities/chances of getting H-1B visa? You can find out below.

Quota for Common ? :

Quota for Grads ? :

Total Applicants ? :

Percent of Grad Applicants ? :

Number of Sponsors ? :

1 2 3 4 5

Estimated Probabilities

Common Pool:

Grads:

Understand The Two-Step Random Selection Process

The lottery takes place when the number of H-1B applications exceeds the cap-limit. First, a lottery is held to award the 20,000 visas available to advanced degree (master’s/doctor's) holders, and those not selected are then entered in the regular lottery for the other 65,000 visas. Those without a U.S. master’s/doctor's are entered only in the second, regular, lottery. So people with advanced degrees have higher chances to win the lottery.

The probabilities depend on five factors:

• the quota (cap) for college students (65,000 since 2004)
• the quota for graduate students (20,000 since 2004)
• the number of total applicants: 236,000 in 2016, 233,000 in 2015, 172,500 in 2014, 124,000 in 2013)
• the percentage of graduate applicants in the total applicants (USCIS does not disclose this information, so need to guess)
• the number of sponsors*

*Please be advised that USCIS prohibits a given employer filing multiple or duplicative H-1B petitions for the same employee.