Overview
- Officials clarified the surcharge is a one‑time fee on new petitions and does not apply to renewals, with guidance indicating current H‑1B holders can maintain normal travel and reentry.
- Homeland Security’s proposal to prioritize higher‑paid roles over a random lottery is moving into notice‑and‑comment, positioning merit‑based selection as the administration’s preferred framework.
- Major employers issued travel advisories and hiring pauses, while startups warned they cannot absorb the cost and analysts forecast a pivot to offshore delivery, remote contracting, and staffing models.
- India, whose nationals make up the majority of recent H‑1B beneficiaries, faces outsized effects as Canada, Europe, Hong Kong and others court talent priced out of U.S. roles.
- Legal challenges are widely expected and the Labor Department signaled stricter oversight through “Project Firewall,” framing the shift as a crackdown on perceived program abuse.