H-1B Visa Sponsorship: The Easiest Way to Sponsor Employees

Hiring internationally is no longer a competitive advantage — it’s a necessity. But when the right candidate needs H-1B sponsorship, many employers find themselves slowed down by complex rules, tight deadlines, and an increasingly competitive lottery.

The easiest way to sponsor an employee for an H-1B visa is to plan early, structure the role and compensation correctly, and manage the entire process through a single, employer-led workflow.

This guide is written specifically for employers. It explains how H-1B sponsorship works, what your responsibilities are, what’s changed recently, and how companies simplify the process while staying compliant.

What is the H-1B visa?

The H-1B is a temporary, nonimmigrant visa that allows US employers to hire foreign professionals in specialty occupations such as engineering, IT, law, finance, healthcare, and education.

Each year, USCIS makes 85,000 new H-1B visas available:

• 65,000 under the regular cap
• 20,000 reserved for candidates with US master’s degrees or higher

Most employers must participate in the annual lottery, which typically opens in March. Selected candidates may begin work from October 1.

The employer owns the sponsorship process and bears full compliance responsibility.

Some employers — including universities, nonprofits, and certain research organisations — are cap-exempt and can file year-round.

What’s the easiest way for employers to sponsor an H-1B visa?

For most companies, H-1B sponsorship becomes difficult when it’s handled reactively — across spreadsheets, email threads, and disconnected advisors.

The easiest employer approach follows four clear steps:

1. Confirm the role qualifies as a specialty occupation
2. Validate wage requirements before lottery registration
3. Register on time for the H-1B lottery (if cap-subject)
4. Prepare documentation in advance of selection

Alternatively, use an immigration service provider such as Deel to manage sponsorship, filings, deadlines, and compliance, as employers often see higher success rates with centralized, expert-led support.

Who can employers sponsor for an H-1B visa?

Employers may sponsor individuals in three main categories:

• Specialty occupation workers (most common)
• Department of Defense cooperative research professionals
• Fashion models of distinguished merit

The majority of H-1B petitions fall under the specialty occupation category.

How employers determine H-1B eligibility

Employer–employee relationship

The sponsoring employer must retain the right to hire, pay, supervise, and terminate the employee. Independent contractor relationships generally do not qualify.

Wage compliance (actual vs prevailing wage)

Employers must pay the higher of:

• The actual wage paid to similarly employed workers, or
• The prevailing wage for the role and geographic location

This is one of the most common failure points in H-1B sponsorship — and one of the easiest to misjudge without accurate data.

Early wage validation helps employers avoid RFEs, denials, and costly re-filings.

Specialty occupation requirements

The role must:

• Require specialised knowledge, and
• Require at least a bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) in a directly related field

Common H-1B specialty occupations include IT professionals, engineers, healthcare workers, financial analysts, architects, lawyers, scientists, and academics.

Recent changes employers need to know

New $100,000 H-1B registration fee

Employers must now pay a USD 100,000 registration fee per candidate to enter the H-1B lottery.
This fee applies at the registration stage and is separate from petition filing and premium processing fees.

For employers sponsoring multiple candidates, accurate fee tracking is now an important part of an efficient H-1B strategy.

Weighted selection process for cap-subject H-1B petitions

USCIS now uses a weighted selection process for the H-1B lottery, prioritising registrations associated with higher prevailing wage levels.

This means the lottery is no longer purely random.

For employers, this shift makes early role design and wage planning critical.
The “easiest” H-1B strategy isn’t just registering on time — it’s aligning job requirements, wage levels, and timing before the lottery opens.

How employers sponsor an H-1B visa (step by step)

Cap-exempt employers

• File a certified Labor Condition Application (LCA)
• Submit Form I-129 with supporting documentation
• Optional premium processing for faster decisions

Cap-subject employers (lottery route)

1. Register during the March lottery window
2. Pay the $100,000 registration fee
3. If selected, file Form I-129 within the 90-day filing window
4. Complete change-of-status or consular processing

Each stage has strict deadlines. Missing one can delay hiring by an entire year.

• March 7: Employers can register on the USCIS website at 12:00 pm Eastern
• March 24: H-1B registration period closed at 12:00 pm Eastern
• March 31: The USCIS notifies selected registrants
• April 1: Selected employers can begin filing FY 2026 H-1B cap-subject petitions
• June 30: The initial 90-day filing window for H-1B cap-subject petitions closes
• October 1: H-1B lottery recipients can begin working in the US from this date

How Deel Mobility simplifies H-1B sponsorship for employers

While the H-1B process is heavily regulated, it doesn’t need to be operationally complex.

Deel Mobility helps employers sponsor H-1B visas more easily by:

• Running role-and wage-specific eligibility checks before registration
• Managing lottery registration and petition filings
• Tracking deadlines, RFEs, and extensions in one place
• Providing in-house immigration experts instead of fragmented vendors
• Offering fallback options, such as Employer of Record, if a candidate isn’t selected

This allows HR and legal teams to focus on hiring — not paperwork.

Activating H-1B status

Once approved, employees activate H-1B status through:

• Change of status (if already in the US), or
• Consular processing (if outside the US)

The correct path depends on the employee’s location, current status, and travel plans.

See also: Change of Status vs. Consular Processing

What limitations should employers plan for?

• Annual lottery cap
• Six-year maximum stay (with limited extensions)
• Dependence on timing and selection outcomes

Because of these constraints, many employers plan alternative pathways in parallel for critical hires.

What’s next after the H-1B decision?

If approved

Plan early for green card strategy and long-term retention.

If not selected

Use an Employer of Record like Deel to hire internationally without losing the candidate.

Build your global team without H-1B roadblocks

H-1B sponsorship doesn’t have to slow your hiring down. With early planning, accurate wage analysis, and the right support, employers can sponsor efficiently and stay compliant.

With a 98% approval rate, an in-house mobility team, and up-to-the-minute legal guidance, we’ve helped 1,000+ companies hire across borders with confidence. Need to transfer an H-1B from a previous employer? We’ll handle that too, with no friction and no delays.

Ready to see how it could work for you? Schedule a free consultation with our Mobility team today.