Summary#
This bill would change many rules about H-1B and other nonimmigrant visas.
Key changes in the bill text:
- Pause H-1B visa issuance for 3 years after the law is passed.
- Reduce the annual H-1B cap to 25,000 visas and cut the maximum H-1B stay from 6 years to 3 years.
- Replace the H-1B lottery with a system that awards visas to the highest wage offers after a USCIS registration period of up to two weeks.
- Add a new employer fee of $100,000 for each H-1B petition filed (for fiscal year 2026 and each year after) with the fee deposited in the Treasury.
- Require employers to attest they did not lay off workers in the prior 12 months, will not lay off in the next 12 months, and will pay H-1B workers at least $200,000 per year, among other attestations.
- End H-1B dual intent by changing section 214(b) wording in the Immigration and Nationality Act.
- Prohibit H-1B workers from holding concurrent jobs and ban staffing or third-party agencies from sponsoring H-1B workers.
- Remove H nonimmigrant dependent status for spouses and minor children (restrict H visas to primary worker only).
- Prohibit federal agencies from filing H petitions and from employing H nonimmigrants directly or via contract.
- Eliminate work authorization for many students (removes Optional Practical Training and other student employment authorization for F, M, and certain J visa holders).
- Restrict and largely bar adjustment of status to permanent residence for nonimmigrants, rescind certain pending employment authorizations tied to adjustment, and require refunds for those pending applications.
- Prohibit changes from one nonimmigrant classification to another.
- All amendments take effect on the date of enactment.
The bill was introduced in the House and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
What it means for you#
- If you are an employer seeking H-1B workers: you could not get new H-1B visas for 3 years; when visas resume, you would face a 25,000 annual cap, a $100,000 petition fee per filing, a required minimum wage of $200,000 for each H-1B hire, and new attestations about layoffs. You could not use third-party staffing firms to sponsor H-1B workers, and concurrent employment would be banned.
- If you are a worker or applicant for H-1B status: new H-1B visa grants would be paused for 3 years. After the pause, H-1B grants would be limited, for shorter terms (up to 3 years), and awarded based on wage levels rather than a lottery. Dependents (spouse and minor children) would no longer be included under H visas.
- If you are an international student (F, M, or certain J status): the bill would remove employment authorization tied to study (including Optional Practical Training) so student work authorization would no longer be available under those provisions in the Immigration and Nationality Act.
- If you are a federal agency: the bill would bar federal agencies and instrumentalities from filing H petitions and from employing H nonimmigrants, either directly or through contracts.
- If you have or planned to apply to adjust status to permanent residence: most nonimmigrants and others with temporary authorized presence would be ineligible to adjust status while in the United States, with limited exceptions listed in the bill. Some existing employment authorizations tied to adjustment of status would be rescinded, and certain pending EAD applications would be denied with refunds.
Expenses#
- The bill creates an additional employer fee of $100,000 for each H-1B petition filed (fiscal year 2026 and each year after). The text says those fees shall be deposited in the Treasury.
- The bill requires employers to pay H-1B workers at least $200,000 per year, which would be an employer cost where applicable.
- No publicly available information on the total projected federal revenue, administrative costs, or broader economic costs or savings is contained in the provided bill text or metadata.
Proponents' View#
No publicly available information.
Opponents' View#
No publicly available information.