in effect
Proclamation 10973, signed September 19, 2025, is a presidential action that restricts entry into the United States for H-1B nonimmigrant workers in specialty occupations. It invokes the President’s authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act to impose conditions on who may enter, citing alleged widespread abuse of the H-1B program to replace American workers with lower-paid foreign labor.
Starting 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on September 21, 2025, an H-1B worker outside the United States cannot enter unless the sponsoring employer has paid a $100,000 fee per petition. The restriction also pauses processing of H-1B petitions for workers currently outside the country who have not triggered that payment, for 12 months from the effective date. The Department of Homeland Security may grant exceptions for individuals, companies, or entire industries if it determines the hiring is in the national interest and poses no security threat. The Departments of Labor and Homeland Security are directed to initiate separate rulemakings to raise prevailing wage requirements and to prioritize admission of higher-paid, higher-skilled workers. Within 30 days after the next H-1B lottery completes, four cabinet-level officials must jointly recommend to the President whether to extend or end the restriction.
Employers seeking to sponsor new H-1B workers from outside the United States face an immediate $100,000 per-petition cost to proceed, making the program significantly more expensive for high-volume users such as IT outsourcing firms. Foreign nationals with approved or pending H-1B petitions who are currently outside the country and whose employers have not made the payment will have their entry restricted for up to 12 months. Employers and workers already inside the United States on H-1B status are not directly restricted by this proclamation, which applies only to entries occurring after the effective date.