The H-1B rule changes are set to alter the landscape of employment drastically across the US, making it critical for HR to follow along with how the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the administration handle the change. The modern H-1B visa rules and reforms are tightening up the systems that determine who gets to take advantage of the immigration system in place to bring specialized professionals into the country. As the DHS strengthens the H-1B program, HR leaders will have to work doubly hard to ensure their foreign candidates of choice are able to secure the necessary visa to operate in the region.
This could go two ways. The H-1B program updates for 2025 could result in organizations offering higher wages to increase the chances of their candidates securing a visa. Alternatively, organizations might lose interest in hiring candidates who require a visa to eliminate the hassle of making arrangements. Understanding the details of the H-1B visa status changes will help determine how your organization updates its hiring practices.
The H-1B rule changes will mean a dissolution of the lottery-based system in exchange for a more involved approach to visa approval. (Image: Freepik)
H-1B Rule Changes You Should Know About in 2025
The H-1B rule changes are being made under the recommendation of the current administration, with the Department of Homeland Security and its United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) department handling the change. The changes aim to streamline the process, enhance flexibility, and strengthen the integrity of the visa program.
The H-1B visa program is designed to help employers bring in specialized workers from overseas. The program sees great use in the tech sector, but it is far from the only industry that puts it to good use. Only 85,000 of the H-1B visas are offered every year. Of these, 20,000 are offered to non-citizens who earn advanced degrees in the US, making it a competitive program. The H-1B visa system is currently based on a lottery format to determine which applications are approved. This might be changing soon enough.
H-1B Program Updates 2025: What HR Needs to Know
For HR, the H-1B visa reforms of 2025 bring both opportunity and challenges in managing talent and compliance, all while planning for what is best for the workforce. U.S. work authorization permits are highly sought after, and the H-1B modernization rules could provide greater control over who gets to walk away with the golden ticket.
The system is expected to shift from a lottery-based system to a weighted-selection system that takes the skills and wages of the applicant into account. This would mean more restrictions on bringing in cheaper labor from outside the country, as organizations will have to offer higher wages to foreign candidates to ensure they can secure their H-1B visas under the new system.
When Will the H-1B Program Updates from 2025 Go Into Effect?
The change was cleared by the White House’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) earlier this month. Once it appears on the Federal Register, there should be a 30- to 60-day public comment period where feedback will be gathered on the proposed changes. The exact details of the weighted-selection may become clearer once it its published.
While there is expected to be some resistance and legal action in enforcing this regulation, it could be formalized over the next few months.
How Will the Modern H-1B Visa Rules Affect HR?
If the H-1B rule changes favoring a weighted-selection system are made official, HR teams will have to be a lot more proactive in their recruitment of talent from outside the country. Bigger businesses might have an easier time securing specialized talent with more experience, as they will be able to offer better wages to guarantee their experts are able to get the visas. Smaller businesses might have to work harder to offer a deal good enough to meet the criteria of the H-1B visa reforms.
Additionally, fresh young talent may hesitate to apply to roles in the US if experienced specialists are prioritized. HR teams intent on hiring from this population might find themselves paying out a higher salary to bring them in compared to what a fresher might have been offered in previous years. There may be alternate ways to bring in more experts, but this will have to be navigated carefully.
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