Trump Administration Proposes Changes to H-1B Visa Selection Process

Proposed Changes to H-1B Visa Process

On Tuesday, the administration of Donald Trump announced a proposal aimed at revising the H-1B visa selection criteria to prioritize higher-skilled and better-compensated workers, as detailed in a notice from the Federal Register.

If this proposal is approved, it will introduce a new system that gives preference to applications from employers offering higher salaries when the annual demand for visas surpasses the statutory cap of 85,000.

The intention behind this change is to safeguard American workers from wage competition posed by foreign labor.

This announcement follows a proclamation from the White House issued four days earlier, which mandated that companies must pay a one-time fee of $100,000 for new H-1B visa applicants, effective from Saturday.

Previously, companies were required to pay $215 to enter the H-1B visa lottery, along with various other filing fees.

The H-1B visa program enables U.S. companies to temporarily hire foreign professionals in specialized fields.

In recent years, Indian nationals have made up the majority of H-1B visa recipients, accounting for 72.3% of all visas issued in the fiscal year 2022-2023.

The proposed changes would modify the current lottery system by establishing wage tiers, enhancing the selection chances for higher-paying positions.

Finalizing this regulation could take several months or even years, according to reports.

Nonetheless, the proposal suggests that these changes might be in effect for the 2026 lottery or potentially before the registration period in March.

Estimates from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security indicate that total wages for H-1B workers could rise to $502 million in the fiscal year 2025-2026, starting October 1, and exceed $1 billion in the following year.

The public will have a 30-day window to provide feedback on the proposal released by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.