Trump Administration Revokes H-1B Extension Rule and Spousal Work Permit Renewals

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has moved to scrap a rule that lets H-1B and other skilled foreign workers routinely win extensions when their facts have not changed, and has made permanent a separate rule ending automatic renewals of work permits for spouses of H-1B workers and others.

Both measures, issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), were posted for public inspection at the Federal Register on Tuesday and are scheduled to be published on Wednesday.

Indians account for the bulk of H-1B visa holders and of H-4 spouses with work permits, and are expected to be among the most affected.

In the first, a proposed rule, DHS "proposes to remove 8 CFR 214.1(c)(5), which generally provides that USCIS gives deference to a prior approval involving the same facts when adjudicating a request to extend a petition for an alien's employment or stay."

The provision covers extension petitions for workers such as those on H-1B and L-1 visas. It was codified in a rule published in December 2024, in the final weeks of the Biden administration.

DHS said the 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."

The department said that in practice "the deference regulation and policy effectively shift the burden from the petitioner to the USCIS officer to justify departing from a prior approval."

It said the policy risked "potentially perpetuating erroneous prior approvals and creating an environment in which fraudulent and meritless petitions are less likely to be detected."  (IANS)

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