The US Department of Homeland Security has started work on a new regulation to revise several aspects of the H-1B visa programme. The proposal is currently under review by the Office of Management and Budget and will be published for public comments if it clears the review.
DHS has not released the details of the proposed rule. However, its regulatory description says the changes could revise eligibility for H-1B cap exemptions, increase scrutiny of employers found to have violated programme rules and strengthen oversight of H-1B workers placed at third-party worksites.
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The proposal was included in the agency’s regulatory agenda released in July. The H-1B programme has faced several other regulatory and fee-related changes in recent months.
The OMB is also reviewing a separate DHS proposal to impose a $103,265 fee on all H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap. The fee would apply to petitions involving both change of status and consular notification.
Earlier in August, DHS expanded a fee that applies to petitioners with a high share of H-1B and L-1 employees. The Department of Labor has also proposed increasing the minimum wages required under the H-1B programme and other wage-based immigration programmes.
If the new DHS proposal clears the review, it will be published in the Federal Register. The public comment period will remain open for either 30 or 60 days.
The proposal will not become effective immediately after publication. DHS will first review the comments and then issue a final regulation with a specific implementation date.
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A day after $103,265 H-1B fee plan
The latest DHS proposal comes a day after the department moved to impose a $103,265 fee on all H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap. The fee would cover petitions filed for workers seeking a change of status in the US as well as those applying through consular notification.
The fee proposal is also under review by the Office of Management and Budget. It will have to clear the federal review process before publication in the Federal Register, where it will be open to public comments. The latest regulation would add to the series of measures being considered to tighten oversight of the H-1B programme.
