H-1B Proclamation Requires $100,000 Payment for New Petitions

What the proclamation requires

Section 1 restricts the entry of H-1B workers unless their petition is accompanied or supplemented by a payment of $100,000. The Department of Homeland Security is directed to restrict decisions on petitions not accompanied by the payment for beneficiaries currently outside the United States. Employers must obtain and keep documentation of the payment before filing a petition for a worker outside the country, and the State Department and Homeland Security are to coordinate to deny entry where the payment has not been made.

The Secretary of Homeland Security may exempt individuals, all workers of a particular company or all workers in a particular industry where their employment is in the national interest and does not pose a threat to the security or welfare of the United States. Under section 3, the restriction applies only to individuals who enter or attempt to enter after the effective date.

Duration and further rulemaking

Absent extension, the restriction expires 12 months after the effective date, and a recommendation on whether to extend it is due within 30 days after the next H-1B lottery. The proclamation also directs the Secretary of Labor to begin rulemaking to revise prevailing wage levels for the programme, and the Secretary of Homeland Security to begin rulemaking to prioritise the admission of high-skilled, high-paid workers.

Who is affected

The measure is most relevant to US employers that recruit foreign graduates and specialists, including technology, consulting, healthcare and research organisations, and to multinational groups that move staff into the United States. Employers with pending or planned petitions for workers outside the country will need to assess whether the payment applies, whether an exception may be available and how the agencies implement the requirement.

Sources

• The White House: Proclamation on restriction on entry of certain nonimmigrant workers
• GovInfo: 8 U.S.C. 1182, Inadmissible aliens