Seniority, Salary Key Parameters for Issuing H1B Visas

In what could be a threat to many Indians aspiring to secure US visas, US President Donald Trump’s administration has initiated efforts to revive the old process for issuing H1B visas. As part of this, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has sent a proposal to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs for review at the White House.

Last Friday, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services announced that the process for issuing H1B visas for 2026 has been stopped, as the application quota has already been exhausted. This indicates that there will be no lottery-based selection of applications for 2026. However, for 2025, visa applications will still be selected through the lottery system, based on the cap, and then companies will submit lists of foreign employees who are expected to join by October.

During his earlier term as US President, Trump proposed replacing the lottery method with a salary-based visa selection process. He stated that this method would encourage companies to hire experts, implying that the US should not accommodate immigrants with average skills.

In 2021, after Joe Biden assumed office, he rolled back Trump’s approach. Now, the DHS is planning to revive the older method, which could significantly reduce the number of H1B employees eligible for recruitment, according to a report by Bloomberg.

The lottery system was originally introduced to avoid allegations of favoritism towards certain companies. However, in practice, it has mostly benefited large firms that submit a high volume of applications and secure the majority of the visas.

In January this year, the Institute for Progress, a think tank organization, suggested eliminating the lottery system altogether. Instead, they proposed issuing visas based on an applicant’s seniority and salary, which, according to the IFP, would increase the value of the H1B visa by 88%.

The revival of the old rules could potentially shatter the dreams of many Indians hoping to settle in the US.