Agency Information Collection Activities; New Collection: Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker: H-1 Classifications, 2891-2892 [2022-00942]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
• U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 12 (Wednesday, January 19, 2022)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2891-2892]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-00942]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

[OMB Control Number 1615-NEW]


Agency Information Collection Activities; New Collection: 
Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker: H-1 Classifications

AGENCY: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: 30-Day notice.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Citizenship 
and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be submitting the following 
information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget 
(OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork 
Reduction Act of 1995. The purpose of this notice is to allow an 
additional 30 days for public comments.

DATES: Comments are encouraged and will be accepted until February 18, 
2022.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s) 
contained in this notice, especially regarding the estimated public 
burden and associated response time, must be submitted via the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal website at https://www.regulations.gov under e-Docket 
ID number USCIS-2021-0015. All submissions received must include the 
OMB Control Number 1615-NEW in the body of the letter, the agency name 
and Docket ID USCIS-2021-0015.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: USCIS, Office of Policy and Strategy, 
Regulatory Coordination Division, Samantha Deshommes, Chief, Telephone 
number (240) 721-3000 (This is not a toll-free number; comments are not 
accepted via telephone message.). Please note contact information 
provided here is solely for questions regarding this notice. It is not 
for individual case status inquiries. Applicants seeking information 
about the status of their individual cases can check Case Status 
Online, available at the USCIS website at https://www.uscis.gov, or call 
the USCIS Contact Center at (800) 375-5283; TTY (800) 767-1833.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Comments

    The information collection notice was previously published in the 
Federal Register on August 18, 2021, at 86 FR 46263 allowing for a 60-
day public comment period. USCIS received twelve comments in connection 
with the 60-day notice.
    USCIS made edits to the I-129H1 Form and Instructions in response 
to comments. USCIS also removed form items and instructional language 
that were associated with the final rule published on January 8, 2021 
titled, Modification of Registration Requirement for Petitioners 
Seeking To File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions (86 FR 1676) (H-1B Selection 
Final Rule). That rule was withdrawn on December 22, 2021 via 
publication of a final rule in the Federal Register titled Modification 
of Registration Requirement for Petitioners Seeking To File Cap-Subject 
H-1B Petitions, Implementation of Vacatur (86 FR 72516), as were 
information collection elements associated with that rule that would 
have gone into effect had the rule not been withdrawn. Therefore, the 
form items and instructional language associated with the January 2021 
final rule that were included in the 60-day notice version of Form I-
129H1 are not being implemented.
    You may access the information collection instrument with 
instructions, or additional information by visiting the Federal 
eRulemaking Portal site at: https://www.regulations.gov and enter USCIS-
2021-0015in the search box. The comments submitted to USCIS via this 
method are visible to the Office of Management and Budget and comply 
with the requirements of 5 CFR 1320.12(c). All submissions will be 
posted, without change, to the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov, and will include any personal information you 
provide. Therefore, submitting this information makes it public. You 
may wish to consider limiting the amount of personal information that 
you provide in any voluntary submission you make to DHS. DHS may 
withhold information provided in comments from public viewing that it 
determines may impact the privacy of an individual or is offensive. For 
additional information, please read the Privacy Act notice that is 
available via the link in the footer of https://www.regulations.gov.
    Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected 
agencies should address one or more of the following four points:
    (1) Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is 
necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, 
including whether the information will have practical utility;
    (2) Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of 
the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used
    (3) Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to 
be collected; and
    (4) Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those 
who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, 
electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or 
other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic 
submission of responses.

Overview of This Information Collection

    (1) Type of Information Collection: New Collection.
    (2) Title of the Form/Collection: Petition for a Nonimmigrant 
Worker: H-1 Classifications.
    (3) Agency form number, if any, and the applicable component of the 
DHS sponsoring the collection: I-129H1; USCIS.
    (4) Affected public who will be asked or required to respond, as 
well as a brief abstract: Primary: Business or other for-profit. USCIS 
will use the data collected on this form to determine eligibility for 
the requested nonimmigrant classification and/or requests to extend or 
change nonimmigrant status. An employer (or agent, where applicable) 
uses this form to petition USCIS for a noncitizen to temporarily enter 
the United States as an H-1B or H-1B1 nonimmigrant. An employer (or 
agent, where applicable) also uses this form to

[[Page 2892]]

request an extension of stay of an H-1B or H-1B1 nonimmigrant worker or 
to change the status of a beneficiary currently in the United States as 
a nonimmigrant to H-1B or H-1B1. The form serves the purpose of 
standardizing requests for H-1B and H-1B1 nonimmigrant workers and 
ensuring that basic information required for assessing eligibility is 
provided by the petitioner while requesting that beneficiaries be 
classified under the H-1B or H-1B1 nonimmigrant employment categories. 
USCIS compiles data from this form to provide information required by 
Congress annually to assess the effectiveness and utilization of 
certain nonimmigrant classifications. Data collected on employers 
petitioning for H-1B beneficiaries is provided to the media, 
researchers, and the general public via the H-1B Employer Data Hub.
    (5) An estimate of the total number of respondents and the amount 
of time estimated for an average respondent to respond: The estimated 
total number of respondents for the information collection Form I-129H1 
is 402,034 and the estimated hour burden per response is 4 hours.
    (6) An estimate of the total public burden (in hours) associated 
with the collection: The total estimated annual hour burden associated 
with this collection is 1,608,136 hours.
    (7) An estimate of the total public burden (in cost) associated 
with the collection: The estimated total annual cost burden associated 
with this collection of information is $207,047,510.

    Dated: January 13, 2022.
Samantha L. Deshommes,
Chief, Regulatory Coordination Division, Office of Policy and Strategy, 
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland 
Security.
[FR Doc. 2022-00942 Filed 1-18-22; 8:45 am]
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