Putting America first this holiday: Trump DHS ends random work visa lottery

The Trump administration’s Department of Homeland Security is changing regulations governing work visas, arguing the changes will protect American workers.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the DHS had implemented a new rule to change the H-1B recipient selection process, ending the current random lottery system in favor of prioritizing those with higher skills.

'As part of the Trump administration’s commitment to H-1B reform, we will continue to demand more from both employers and aliens so as not to undercut American workers and to put America first.'

The agency contended that the new policy would “better protect the wages, working conditions, and job opportunities for American workers.”

USCIS noted that the current random selection process has been criticized for “allowing unscrupulous employers to exploit it by flooding the selection pool with lower-skilled foreign workers paid at low wages, to the detriment of the American workforce.”

The not-yet-published final rule states that the new weighted selection process will favor higher-skilled, higher-paid foreign nationals while continuing to allow employers to obtain H-1Bs across all wage levels.

The rule will take effect on February 27 and apply to the H-1B registration season for fiscal year 2027.

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Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

“The existing random selection process of H-1B registrations was exploited and abused by U.S. employers who were primarily seeking to import foreign workers at lower wages than they would pay American workers,” USCIS spokesperson Matthew Tragesser stated.

“The new weighted selection will better serve Congress’ intent for the H-1B program and strengthen America’s competitiveness by incentivizing American employers to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers. With these regulatory changes and others in the future, we will continue to update the H-1B program to help American businesses without allowing the abuse that was harming American workers.”

In September, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation requiring employers to pay an additional $100,000 per H-1B visa.

“As part of the Trump administration’s commitment to H-1B reform, we will continue to demand more from both employers and aliens so as not to undercut American workers and to put America first,” Tragesser added.

RELATED: Trump admin announces major H-1B visa abuse investigation, but critics want more

Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images

Up to 65,000 new H-1B visas can be issued each year, with an additional 20,000 for individuals with a master’s degree or higher. Recipients are generally admitted for up to three years, with the option to extend for up to another three years. Some recipients may be eligible for more than six years. Certain organizations, such as some universities and nonprofits, are exempt from the annual cap.

FWD.us estimated that there are as many as 730,000 H-1B holders in the U.S., along with 550,000 of their dependents, including spouses and children. The estimated total number of H-1B holders and their dependents exceeds the population of eight states, including Montana and Rhode Island.

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