The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) published a proposal to update the H-1B program. The H-1B visa is an employment-based visa that allows U.S. employers to temporarily hire foreign workers with specialized knowledge and degrees.

The proposed changes aim to make the program more efficient, beneficial, and secure. They include:

  • Adjusting the selection process
    • Currently, the more times a person’s name is submitted in the H-1B registration, the higher their chances of selection.
    • The new proposal suggests that each individual should only be entered once, regardless of how many times their name is submitted.
    • It may provide beneficiaries with more choice between legitimate job offers as each registrant who submits a beneficiary would have the option to file the H-1B petition for that individual.
    • This minimizes the advantage of submitting multiple registrations for one person and increases the chances of a legitimate registration being chosen.
  • Clarifying eligibility criteria
    • Revisions to the criteria for specialty occupation positions to provide clearer guidelines about the relationship between the required degree and job duties.
  • Enhancing program efficiency
    • Adjudicators would generally rely on prior determinations when there are no significant changes at the time of a new filing
  • Offering more benefits and flexibility
    • Certain exemptions from the H-1B cap are proposed to be expanded for nonprofit entities, governmental research organizations, and beneficiaries not directly employed by a qualifying organization
    • Additionally, students on F-1 visas seeking to switch to H-1B status would have added flexibility
    • New eligibility requirements for rising entrepreneurs would be introduced
  • Strengthening integrity measures
    • To reduce misuse and fraud in the H-1B registration process, related entities would be barred from submitting multiple registrations for the same beneficiary
  • The proposal also reaffirms USCIS’ authority to conduct site visits and clarifies that refusal to cooperate during site visits may lead to petition denial or revocation

The public has a 60-day window to provide comments following the proposal’s publication in the Federal Register.

If you have questions about the H-1B visa or any other immigration-related issue, contact us at ILBSG. We put our extensive experience to work ensuring our clients get the right advice to maximize their results of a positive outcome.

h-1b