The Trump administration projects a 15 percent increase in H-1B visa holders with U.S. advanced degrees among the 85,000 visas offered each year as a result of the changes it plans to propose to the H-1B lottery system.
Looking to 2019: The USCIS regulatory agenda sets forth additional proposals focused on H-1Bs set to be published for comment next year, including:
- Revising the definitions of “specialty occupation,” “employment,” and “employer-employee relationship;” and
- Imposing requirements “designed to ensure employers pay appropriate wages to H-1B visa holders.”
On H-2Bs and H-2As: The regulatory agenda also includes vague proposals for “necessary improvements to modernize regulatory requirements for employer recruitment of U.S. workers” when seeking H-2B (service) or H-2A (agricultural) workers.
Silver lining? Despite the expected proposed regulations, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Francis Cissna said that his top priority is moving to a completely electronic visa application system, which he hopes will make the process simpler for employers.
Not so fast: USCIS has been accused of shortening the approval durations of H-1B visas by incredible margins. A lawsuit by an IT advocacy group representing over 1,000 tech companies alleges, "These petitions are often valid for only months or days at a time, and some cases are expired by the time the approval is received.”
