WASHINGTON, DC- The Trump administration has proposed scrapping a rule that generally allows H-1B and other skilled foreign workers to receive extensions when the facts of their cases have not changed, while finalizing a separate rule ending automatic extensions of work permits for H-4 spouses of H-1B workers and other eligible applicants.
Both measures, issued by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), were posted for public inspection in the Federal Register on October 13 and are scheduled to be published on October 14. Indians, who account for the bulk of H-…
The Trump administration has proposed removing a rule that generally allows H-1B and other skilled foreign workers to receive visa extensions when the facts of their cases have not changed. At the same time, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has finalized a separate rule ending automatic extensions of work permits for H-4 spouses of H-1B workers and other eligible applicants.
Both measures, issued by DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), were posted for public inspection in the Federal Register on October 13, 2026, and are scheduled for publication on October 14. Indians, who account for a large share of H-1B visa holders and H-4 spouses with work permits, are expected to be among those most affected.
The first measure is a proposed rule that would remove a provision under which USCIS generally gives deference to a previous approval when reviewing an extension petition involving the same facts. The provision applies to workers such as H-1B and L-1 visa holders and was introduced in a rule published in December 2024, during the final weeks of the Biden administration.
DHS said the proposed 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 argued that the existing policy effectively shifts the burden from the petitioner to the USCIS officer, who must justify departing from a previous approval. DHS said this could allow erroneous approvals to persist and make fraudulent or meritless petitions less likely to be detected.
DHS cited USCIS site-visit data showing that, among sites visited in H-1B extension cases during fiscal years 2022 through 2025, the combined rate of noncompliance and fraud was 22.39 percent. That compared with 16.77 percent during fiscal years 2018 through 2020, when USCIS followed a no-deference policy.
For L-1A extension cases, the rate among sites visited was 24.46 percent during fiscal years 2022 through 2025, compared with 18.37 percent during fiscal years 2018 through 2020.
According to USCIS data cited in the proposal, an average of 208,429 extension petitions annually during fiscal years 2022 through 2025 were of the type to which deference generally applies. These petitions accounted for about 30 percent of the 688,830 petitions filed each year.
The public will have 30 days after publication to comment on the proposed rule.
The second measure is a final rule confirming an interim rule DHS published on October 30, 2025. That rule ended automatic extensions of employment authorization documents (EADs) for applicants in certain categories who had filed timely renewal applications. The final rule takes effect upon publication.
Previously, a timely renewal application could keep a work permit valid for up to 540 days while the application was pending.
The rule drew objections from commenters representing H-4 spouses of H-1B workers. They said processing times for H-4 EADs frequently exceed the recommended filing period of 180 days and warned that applicants could face unavoidable employment gaps, loss of health insurance, and possible eviction. Some commenters also noted that women make up most H-4 EAD holders.
DHS said the rule “does not change the underlying eligibility of H-4, L-2, or other employment-based dependents to apply for employment authorization.”
The department acknowledged that affected dependents and adjustment-of-status applicants could face temporary lapses in work authorization, affecting income, benefits, and career continuity. However, DHS maintained that automatic extensions for these groups raised the same underlying security and programme-integrity concerns as automatic extensions for other categories.
DHS estimated that between 20,000 and 33,000 EADs could lapse during a single 18-month period beginning in May 2027. It estimated $138.1 million in lost productivity for employers and $312.1 million in potential labour-turnover costs during that period, with approximately 1,700 to 2,800 employers affected.
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