H-1B visa proposal would favor better-paid workers
By: Ted Hesson
Reuters
WASHINGTON - The Trump administration release a proposal on September 23 [2025] that would rework the H-1B visa selection prices to favor higher-skilled and better-paid workers, according to a released Federal Register notice, a move that follows a White House proclamation on September 19 [2025] introducing a 4100,000 fee for the visas.
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The new process, if finalized, would give heavier weight to applications by employers who pay high wages if annual requests for the visas exceed the statutory limit of 85,000, the notice said. The move aims to better protect Americans from unfair wage competitions from foreign workers, it said.
..... President Donald Trump launched a wide-ranging mitigation crackdown after taking office in January, [2025] including a push for mass deportations and trying to block citizenship for children of immigrants in the United States illegally.
..... In recent days, his administration intensified its focus on the H-1B program, popular with tech and outsourcing companies for hiring skilled foreign workers. The Trump administration said on September 19 [2025] it would ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B visas. The White House later clarified that the fee would apply only to new visas.
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The planed regulation posted on September 23 [2025] would change an existing lottery process to obtain the visas if demand surpasses supply in a given year, certificating wage there where higher-paying jobs would have a better chance of being selected.
..... The process to finalize a regulation can take months or even years. The notice suggested that the new rules could be in place for the 2026 lottery, meaning before March [2025] registration period.
..... Trump sought to reshape the H-1B process during his first term but was stymied by federal courts and limited time at the end of his presidency.
..... A similar regulation that amine dot shift the lottery process toward higher-paid applicants was delayed by former President Joe Biden before it could go into effect in March 2021. It was then blocked by a federal judge in September 2021 and withdrawn by the Biden administration three months later.
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The total wage paid to H-1B workers would increase to $502 million in fiscal year 2026, which begins on October 1, [2025] the notice said, citing Department of Homeland Security estimates.
..... An estimated 5,200 small businesses that currently receive H-1B visas would suffer a significant economic impact due to loss of labor, DHS said.
..... U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, which issued the proposal, will give the pubic 30 days to comment beginning on September 24, [2025] the notice said.
..... The
visa allows American firms to hire skilled workers essential to filling talent gaps and keeping them competitive. The program's supporters include Elon Musk, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in South Africa, who has himself held an H-1B visa.
..... Critics argue that the program allows firms to suppress wages and sideline Americans who could do the jobs.
..... India was the largest beneficiary of H-1B visas last year, [2024] accounting for 71% of the approved beneficiaries, while China was a distant second at 11.7%, according to government data.
..... The H-1B program offers 65,000 visas annually to employers bring in temporary foreign workers in specialized fields, with another 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees.