President Trump issued an executive order and a proclamation that, together, impose new H-1B restrictions, direct the Secretary of Labor to review previously submitted labor condition applications, and extend through September 21, 2027, the $100,000 payment requirement tied to certain new H-1B petitions for workers outside the United States.
Below are highlights of the order and proclamation:
- On September 18, 2026, President Trump signed the executive order, Enhancing Program Integrity and Interagency Coordination in the Administration of the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Program. The order directs the Secretaries of State, Labor, and Homeland Security to “take into account in any labor condition application, petition, visa, and entry of aliens entering or attempting to enter the United States as H-1B nonimmigrants to perform services in a specialty occupation whether the employer sponsor directly or indirectly engaged in layoffs within the previous year or plans future layoffs that negatively affect the employment of similarly situated United States workers.”
The order also directs the Secretary of Labor, through the Wage and Hour Division, to “begin reviewing data related to previously submitted labor condition applications to determine whether further action against sponsoring employers is warranted.”
- On September 19, 2026, President Trump issued the proclamation, Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers, which extends his $100,000 fee on new H-1B nonimmigrant visa applications to September 21, 2027, with certain exceptions, such as for the national interest. Litigation over the $100,000 fee by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and others remains pending.
