What happens if an employer's LCA is not certified before the H-1B filing deadline after an employee wins the lottery?
If the LCA is not certified before the filing deadline, the employer cannot submit a valid H-1B petition and your lottery selection is permanently forfeited, with no USCIS exception for Department of Labor delays. Filing with only a pending LCA also results in an outright rejection every time.
An uncertified LCA at your filing deadline is a hard stop, not a delay you can work around, since USCIS treats a certified LCA as a strict legal requirement for the petition. Understanding this now helps you push your employer to move fast.
What Happens In Each Scenario
| Scenario | Outcome |
|---|---|
| Employer waits for certification | Misses window, lottery slot lost |
| Files with pending LCA anyway | USCIS rejects petition outright |
| LCA certified in time | Petition proceeds normally |
How Employers Can Avoid This
- File the LCA through the DOL FLAG system in the first week of April, since processing takes about 7 business days.
- Pre-verify the employer's FEIN with the DOL well before lottery results are released if it is their first LCA filing.
- Double-check prevailing wage, SOC codes and work location details, since mismatches trigger rejections that eat up the 90-day window.
My Advice
If you are the employee, ask your employer directly which week they plan to submit the LCA, and flag politely if it is not filed within the first week of April. If certification does slip past your deadline this cycle, immediately confirm with your employer's immigration counsel whether they will re-enter you in next year's lottery so you do not lose a full cycle unnecessarily.
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