Thousands of workers on H-1B visas looking to renew their legal status could face tougher scrutiny as the Trump administration looks to scrap a faster renewal process. The Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) planned changes, outlined in a Federal Register filing, would be the latest move by the current administration to alter the H-1B program amid concerns of long-term abuse by tech companies that leads to the exclusion of American-born workers. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) officers would no longer be allowed to defer to previous applications when processing H-1B and other work visa renewals, essentially starting the process over even if the applicant, employer and role remain the same.
DHS argued in the proposal that the current policy weakens oversight and may allow errors or fraud to continue into the new visa period. "During Trump’s first term, it was a leading cause of time-consuming, expensive Requests for Evidence and led to denials of H-1B renewals for many companies’ long-tenured employees. "Forcing companies to remove experienced employees from the United States only makes them less competitive.
It encourages U.S. companies to move more resources to other countries where they can find more stable employment arrangements.” Newsweek reached out to DHS for comment via email on Tuesday morning. Under current regulations, USCIS officers can generally defer to previous approvals involving the same employer, worker and facts unless there has been a material error, significant change or new adverse information that could affect a visa renewal. The policy was introduced in 2024 by the Biden administration as part of efforts to speed up application processing at USCIS, which has long struggled with application backlogs and a lack of staffing because the agency is predominantly funded by the fees it charges.
Under the new plan, USCIS officers would not be able to start from that presumption. Instead, they would need to review each extension application on its own merits, even if nothing has changed. While the H-1B will likely be the focus of the discussion around USCIS' plan, other visa holders looking for an extension will also be impacted.
The rule change applies to Form I-129, which employment-based nonimmigrant visa holders fill out to extend their stay. DHS estimates that around 208,000 extension applications yearly will be affected by the change, with H-1B filings making up around 75 percent of those, per the department's own analysis. The filing acknowledges that applications will likely take months longer, with more Requests for Evidence (RFEs) sent out to those seeking renewals, leading to greater uncertainty for workers and their employers.
DHS argues in its proposal that the burden of proof should always remain on employers, because it aligns with wider immigration policy. "This change would better align DHS regulations with the statute, which places the burden of proving eligibility for all immigration benefits on the petitioner, applicant, or beneficiary; strengthen adjudicatory review; and support agency priorities to improve the integrity of the immigration system and better protect the interests of U.S. workers," the filing reads. The department says in its proposal that the deference policy risks undermining the security of the H-1B and other programs by allowing errors or concerns to go unchecked.
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