In the March 2027 H-1B cap registration (Fiscal Year 2028), where an employee works can matter as much as what they are paid. The lottery is now weighted by wage level. Wage levels are set by geography. So the same salary can earn one lottery entry in one city and four in another.
The FY 2028 lottery will be the second run under the weighted selection rule DHS finalized in December 2025. Employers with remote workers or multiple offices now have a planning lever they did not have under the old random lottery. Employees deciding where to live have one too. This post explains how it works, what the data shows so far, and how to use location choices properly.
How the weighted lottery works
Each registration gets one to four entries in the lottery, based on the Department of Labor OEWS wage level the offered salary reaches. Selection is still random, but a Level IV registration is four times as likely to be drawn as a Level I registration. The final rule (90 Fed. Reg. 60864, Dec. 29, 2025) took effect February 27, 2026 and applies to both the 65,000 regular cap and the 20,000 advanced-degree cap.
| OEWS wage level | Lottery entries |
|---|---|
| Level IV | 4 |
| Level III | 3 |
| Level II | 2 |
| Level I (or below Level I) | 1 |
Three mechanics drive the location strategy in this post:
- The level is the highest one the salary clears, not the level used on the LCA. An employer might file the LCA at Level II, but if the offered salary actually meets the Level III prevailing wage for that job and area, the registration is Level III.
- The level is measured against the area of intended employment. The registration states the SOC code, the worksite area and the wage level. The same salary is compared against that area’s OEWS wages.
- Multiple worksites count at the lowest level. If the worker will split time between locations, including hybrid office-plus-home arrangements, the registration must use the lowest wage level among those locations. A salary below Level I (based on another legitimate wage source) is registered as Level I.
What the selection data shows
Each step up in wage level roughly adds 15 percentage points to the odds of selection, based on DHS projections. USCIS has not yet published official selection rates by wage level for the first weighted lottery (FY 2027, held March 2026), so the best figures available are DHS’s projections and early results reported by practitioners.
| Wage level | DHS projected selection rate | One firm’s FY 2027 client results |
|---|---|---|
| Level IV | 61.2% | 65.2% |
| Level III | 45.9% | 69.2% |
| Level II | 30.6% | 50.0% |
| Level I | 15.3% | 24.5% |
DHS projections are from the final rule’s regulatory analysis, which assumed a uniform 29.6% rate under the old random lottery (TRAC, citing 90 Fed. Reg. at 60948).
Early results ran above the projections, most likely because far fewer employers registered. FY 2028 odds will depend on how many register in March 2027, but the relative gap between levels is built into the rule and will persist.
Why geography changes the wage level
A salary that is entry-level in a high-cost metro can be top-tier somewhere else. Prevailing wages are published by occupation and area, and the gaps between areas are large. Here are the current prevailing wages for a software developer (SOC 15-1252):
| Wage level | San Jose, CA | Dallas, TX | Hattiesburg, MS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Level I | $152,797 | $95,202 | $58,157 |
| Level II | $187,075 | $116,896 | $81,578 |
| Level III | $221,374 | $138,590 | $104,978 |
| Level IV | $255,653 | $160,285 | $128,398 |
Annual wages from the OFLC Wage Search, All Industries, July 2026 – June 2027 data series (the one that applies to a March 2027 registration), for the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington and Hattiesburg BLS areas (Santa Clara, Dallas and Forrest counties). Retrieved November 6, 2026.
Now take one developer offered $160,000:
- San Jose: clears Level I only ($152,797) and falls $27,075 short of Level II. One lottery entry.
- Dallas: clears Level III ($138,590) and misses Level IV by just $285. Three entries.
- Hattiesburg: clears Level IV ($128,398) with room to spare. Four entries.
Same job, same pay, and the odds of selection roughly quadruple from San Jose to Hattiesburg. The Dallas case shows the other side of it: a raise of a few hundred dollars would add a fourth entry.
DHS says the rule “neutralizes geographic differences in salary amounts” by measuring wages against the local area. That is true for comparing like with like. But it means the choice of worksite directly sets the lottery weight, which is exactly why location deserves attention before March.
For remote employees: where you live sets your lottery weight
For a fully remote worker, the area of intended employment is where they physically work, which is usually home. That makes the employee’s choice of where to live a direct input into their lottery odds.
- Run the numbers for each place you are considering. Look up the four wage levels for your SOC code in each metro area and see which level your salary clears. A move from a high-cost metro to a mid-cost one can raise a registration one or two levels.
- Weigh the whole picture, not just the lottery. Cost of living, family, commute to any office, state taxes and career plans all matter. The lottery is one factor, and a meaningful one.
- Hybrid arrangements count at the lowest level. If you will work from home and also report to an office some days, the registration uses whichever location yields the lower wage level. A low-cost home does not help if you also regularly work from a high-cost office.
- The employer has to agree. The worksite is part of the employer’s job offer and registration. Employees should raise a planned move with their employer early, and employers should have a consistent policy on where remote H-1B workers may live.
For companies with multiple offices: compare your worksites
If a role could be performed from more than one office, the office you assign can change the registration’s wage level without changing the salary. Meltzer Hellrung can help you make this assessment.
The goal is not to send people somewhere they will never work. It is to make sure that, among real options, the worksite choice does not leave lottery odds on the table. For a company with a software team that can sit in either Dallas or San Jose, for example, the $160,000 developer above is Level III in one office and Level I in the other.
Timing: when the move has to happen
The employee needs to be working in the registered area when H-1B employment begins, which for cap cases is October 1, 2027 at the earliest. The FY 2028 calendar is expected to follow the usual pattern:
| Step | Expected timing |
|---|---|
| Registration period | March 2027 |
| Petitions filed for selected registrations | From April 1, 2027 |
| Earliest H-1B start date | October 1, 2027 |
USCIS typically announces the exact registration dates early in the calendar year.
So a move does not legally have to happen before registration. But there are good reasons, especially for remote workers, to move before March 2027 rather than after selection:
- The job offer must be bona fide at registration. A worksite the employee already works from is the clearest evidence that the registered location is real.
- Post-selection relocations draw scrutiny. If the area changes after registration in a way that would have produced a lower wage level, USCIS will consider that in deciding whether the registration unfairly increased the odds, and may deny or revoke the petition.
- Hybrid ties are easier to cut cleanly. An employee who still regularly goes into a higher-cost office is a multi-location worker, and the lowest level applies.
- Practical lead time. Leases, school years and family logistics rarely line up with an October 1 start date on short notice.
After the H-1B starts: when can an employee move?
We recommend that an employee stay in the registered location for at least 12 to 18 months after the H-1B takes effect before moving. USCIS is looking for evidence of gaming the system, and a quick move after approval is one of the clearest signals it can see.
The rule gives USCIS tools to act on that. It may revoke an approved petition, or deny a later amended petition, if it concludes the registration was part of an attempt to unfairly increase the odds of selection. A worksite change that would have produced a lower wage level is something USCIS has said it will consider in that analysis.
- Moves to higher-wage areas carry the most risk. If the same salary would have been a lower wage level at the new location, the move suggests the original location was chosen for the lottery rather than the job.
- Timing matters. A move a few weeks or months after October 1 looks very different from one that follows a year or more of real work at the registered site.
- Normal H-1B rules still apply. A move to a new metropolitan area generally requires a new LCA and an amended petition filed before the move, which puts the change directly in front of USCIS.
- Document real business reasons. If a move is needed sooner (an office closure, a reorganization, a promotion), keep records of why. A salary increase that keeps the employee at the registered wage level in the new area also reduces the concern.
It is too early in the life of this rule to know how USCIS will apply these provisions or what patterns it will flag. Until there is a track record, a 12 to 18 month stay is the most practical way to show the registration was filed in good faith.
Guardrails: plan location, don’t game it
DHS wrote the rule expecting this kind of planning. It says the lowest-level requirement “removes a potential incentive to inflate wage levels through strategic location choices, including through remote work” (90 Fed. Reg. at 60910). Location planning is legitimate only when the location is real.
- Registration and petition must match. The employer, beneficiary, SOC code, area of intended employment and offered wage in the petition and LCA must be consistent with the registration.
- A later change can cost the case. USCIS may allow a change in worksite after registration in its discretion, but only if it is consistent with a bona fide job offer at the time of registration. It may deny or revoke a petition that does not meet that standard.
- Cutting pay after selection is a red flag. USCIS may revoke an approved petition or deny an amended one if a wage was raised for the lottery and then reduced.
- Multiple registrations take the lowest level. If more than one employer registers the same person, that person enters the lottery at the lowest level among the registrations.
- The wage data is a moving target. A March 2027 registration falls in OFLC’s 2026–27 wage year (July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027), and the level is measured as of the registration date. Separately, DOL proposed in March 2026 to raise the prevailing wage percentiles (Level I from the 17th to the 34th, Level IV from the 67th to the 88th). As of late October 2026 it had not been finalized, but if it takes effect before registration, many salaries would drop a level or more. Recheck your numbers close to March.
Action checklist before March 2027
Employers
- Identify every FY 2028 cap-subject candidate by December.
- For each, confirm the SOC code and look up the wage level at every legitimate worksite.
- Set or update a remote-work location policy for H-1B candidates.
- Decide worksite assignments and salary adjustments early enough for moves to happen before registration.
- Save dated OFLC wage records supporting each registration’s level.
Employees
- Ask your employer which wage level your current salary and location would produce.
- If you work remotely and plan to move, compare levels across the places you are considering.
- Talk to your employer before you move, and aim to be settled before registration.
- Plan to stay at the registered worksite for at least 12 to 18 months after your H-1B starts.
Meltzer Hellrung can model wage levels across your locations and help structure worksite decisions that hold up at the petition stage.
