USCIS Petition Approvals Browser (H-1B / H-2A / H-2B)

Showing H-1B (Specialty Occupation) · FY2009–FY2026. FY2009–2023 comes from USCIS's archived per-year export files; FY2024–FY2026 was pulled directly from USCIS's live Crosstab View tool, with FY2026 reflecting data as of 6/30/2026 (a partial fiscal year, not a full-year total). "Approval"/"Denial" counts are workers covered by first decisions on petitions (initial + continuing employment), not unique petitions.
Note: FY2026 volume is well below FY2025 in this dataset — likely because FY2026 is a partial year (data as of 6/30/2026), not a real year-over-year drop.

270,419

Workers Approved, FY2026

Denial Rate, FY2026

15.5%

Peak Denial Rate (FY2018)

5,952,953

Total Approved, FY2009–2026

H-1B (Specialty Occupation) — Approvals vs. Denials by Fiscal Year

Denial Rate Over Time

Fiscal Year	Initial Approved	Initial Denied	Continuing Approved	Continuing Denied	Denial Rate	Distinct Employers
FY2026	132,405	4,206	138,014	4,021	3%	44,298
FY2025	182,972	4,739	223,375	4,186	2.1%	54,589
FY2024	205,072	4,932	194,327	3,298	2%	52,773
FY2023	38,315	2,432	138,635	3,918	3.5%	28,061
FY2022	138,381	3,132	327,810	6,454	2%	51,671
FY2021	141,194	5,667	333,929	7,800	2.8%	45,679
FY2020	122,894	18,276	303,830	21,639	8.6%	47,533
FY2019	132,967	35,633	256,356	33,880	15.1%	51,886
FY2018	87,889	28,181	247,072	33,165	15.5%	48,975
FY2017	96,166	14,518	277,229	15,338	7.4%	44,197
FY2016	105,092	11,295	252,120	11,737	6.1%	47,569
FY2015	111,846	7,644	176,656	5,429	4.3%	43,948
FY2014	130,616	10,645	202,190	6,120	4.8%	51,449
FY2013	130,736	9,596	164,538	4,552	4.6%	51,402
FY2012	140,809	7,401	129,023	4,028	4.1%	50,911
FY2011	114,863	8,583	155,186	4,548	4.6%	57,479
FY2010	84,037	7,355	108,932	5,224	6.1%	50,911
FY2009	99,790	18,099	127,687	7,967	10.3%	61,777