The Trump administration is considering another broad set of changes to the H-1B visa program, including revised rules for cap exemptions, closer scrutiny of employers with compliance violations, and additional oversight of workers placed at third-party sites. The proposal reached the White House on August 25, 2026, though many implementation details remain undisclosed.
The effort comes alongside a separate Department of Homeland Security proposal to impose a $103,265 fee on cap-subject H-1B petitions. Together, the measures could reshape how employers use one of the United States’ main programs for hiring foreign workers in specialty occupations, particularly in technology, engineering, healthcare, finance and research.
Cap Exemptions and Employer Oversight Face Possible Changes
The H-1B program generally provides 65,000 visas each year, with another 20,000 available for workers holding advanced degrees from U.S. institutions. Universities, affiliated nonprofit organizations and certain research institutions can currently qualify for exemptions from that annual cap.
According to Newsweek, DHS is considering revising eligibility for those exemptions while increasing scrutiny of employers that have previously violated program requirements. The department also plans greater oversight of third-party placements, in which an H-1B employee works at a site operated by a company other than the worker’s direct employer.
The administration has not yet explained exactly how cap-exemption eligibility would change. Narrowing the category could affect universities, research institutions, hospital systems and nonprofit affiliates that currently recruit foreign workers outside the annual lottery.
DHS has also said its planned rule is intended to protect U.S. wages and working conditions. Complaints surrounding the program have historically included wage violations, incomplete labor-condition records, inaccurate descriptions of job duties and misuse of the sponsorship process.
Employer demand for H-1B visas has already fallen sharply. According to Reuters, employers registered for about 344,000 H-1B visas last year, down more than 25 percent from 2024 and fewer than half the 759,000 registrations recorded in 2023.
A Proposed $103,265 Fee Faces Legal and Economic Scrutiny
Separate from the proposed eligibility and enforcement changes, DHS has proposed charging $103,265 for every cap-subject H-1B petition, including petitions covered by the 20,000 advanced-degree allocation. The charge would be added to existing filing costs.
According to Forbes, DHS says the fee would provide dedicated revenue to recover part of the federal government’s immigration-administration costs across DHS, the Department of Justice, the State Department and the Department of Labor. Cap-exempt petitions filed by universities and nonprofit or government research organizations would not be subject to the new charge.
The proposal follows a legal dispute over an earlier $100,000 H-1B payment imposed through a presidential proclamation in September 2025. A federal judge ruled in June that the earlier policy was unlawful and vacated it. The administration appealed, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit later declined to pause the lower court’s ruling while the appeal proceeds.
The new proposal is also expected to draw legal challenges. Attorneys quoted by Forbes questioned whether DHS can use its fee-setting authority to finance costs across multiple federal agencies. DHS, meanwhile, argues that H-1B cap-subject petitioners are comparatively able and willing to pay the additional amount.
The proposed fee remains subject to a 30-day public comment period. The wider H-1B rule covering exemptions, employer scrutiny and third-party placements is expected to proceed through the federal rulemaking process as DHS releases further details.
