What are changes now proposed to US H-1B visa? Fate of $100,000 fee, lottery system

Trump administration proposes new H-1B visa process favoring higher-skilled, better-paid workers

Days after President Donald Trump imposed a huge $100,000 fee for H-1B work visa, a programme used mostly by Indian tech workers, the United States administration has proposed more changes to the system.

India is the largest beneficiary of H-1B visas, accounting for over 70% of the approved beneficiaries, while China is second at 12%. US offers 65,000 H-1B visas annually to employers bringing in temporary foreign workers in specialized fields, with another 20,000 for those with advanced degrees.(Reuters)

There was speculation that the lottery system currently in place will be quashed, though it's more nuanced than that.

Here's what the proposed changes are:

In its proposal, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wants to amend the regulations by which US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) selects H-1B registrations.

• The DHS has proposed a weighted selection process that would generally favor allocation of H-1B visas to higher skilled and higher paid foreigners. The intention is also to maintain the opportunity for employers to secure H-1B workers at all wage levels.

• For this, the lottery system with a limit of 85,000 visas a year stays. But, there's a caveat. If the requests exceed this limit, more value will be given to applications by employers who pay high wages. This is aimed at protecting Americans from unfair wage competition with foreign workers.
• The one-time fee of $100,000 stays. But it does not apply to current H-1B holders, nor to renewals.

• As for the new selection rules, they are at the proposal stage. The notice suggested that these could be in place for the 2026 lottery before the March registration period.
• The H-1B program offers 65,000 visas annually to employers bringing in temporary foreign workers in specialized fields, with another 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees.

Donald Trump had tried to do something similar to the H-1B process during his 2017-2021 presidency, but the ran out of time. Then his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, held it back for a bit, before it was blocked by a court in September 2021. Biden withdrew it. Trump has revived it as part of his tightening of norms around immigration.

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services will give the public 30 days to comment beginning on Wednesday, a notice said.

(with inputs from Reuters)