Legal Updates

DHS Announces Weighted Selection Process for FY27 H-1Bs

On December 29, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a final rule implementing a weighted selection process applicable to H-1B petitions. The new rule will generally favor the allocation of cap-subject H-1B visas to higher-paid workers, thereby putting international students at a disadvantage (especially recent graduates). Registrants offered a position that corresponds to a Department of Labor (DOL) Level IV salary (the highest) will have four chances to be selected, a Level III registrant three chances, a Level II registrant two chances, and a Level I one chance. According to Forbes, in FY2025 approximately 90% of H-1B applications for international students were at Level I or Level II salaries due to lack of work experience. This rule will be effective on February 27, 2026, in time for the FY2027 H-1B cap registration season. It replaces the random lottery for selecting petitions to be adjudicated. 

Contact us with questions about the H-1B selection process.

DOS Expands Online Presence Review for H-1B/H-4 Visa Applicants

The Department of State (DOS) recently announced that starting on December 15, 2025, it will expand the requirement that an online presence review (also known as expanded vetting) be conducted for all H-1B applicants and their dependents, in addition to students and exchange visitors who are already subject to this review. The DOS directive instructs H-1B and H-4 applicants, as well as F, M, and J applicants already subject to this vetting, to ensure that the privacy settings on their social media accounts are set to “public” to facilitate screening. Reuters reported that a cable accompanied the announcement from DOS. The cable requires consular officers to review LinkedIn profiles or resumes of H-1B and H-4 visa applicants. Resumes are to be reviewed to see if the applicants or their family members have performed work in areas that include “activities such as misinformation, disinformation, fact-checking, compliance and online safety, among others.” The cable further states that if a consular officer “uncover[s] evidence an applicant was responsible for, or complicit in, censorship or attempted censorship of protected expression in the United States, [they] should pursue a finding that the applicant is ineligible,” under the INA. The expanded vetting may contribute to delays in visa processing. 

Clients are reminded that while having a social media account is not required, removing or altering online information after filing may raise credibility or misrepresentation concerns. 

In a related move, USCIS has announced the establishment of a USCIS Vetting Center to be headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia. USCIS has stated that the center will “centralize the enhanced vetting” of applicants and “allow the agency to respond more nimbly to changes in a shifting threat landscape.”

Contact us with questions about expanded vetting.

Following Announcement of Expanded Vetting for H-1B/H-4 Applicants, Consular Posts Start Rescheduling H-1B Appointments

Beginning December 8, 2025, some applicants with H-1B and H-4 visa appointments began receiving notices that their consular interviews scheduled on or after December 15, 2025, were being unilaterally rescheduled for months later (many between March and September 2026). Consular posts attribute these changes to the Department of State’s (DOS) implementation of the expanded online presence review for H-1B/H-4 visa applicants.

While many of the rescheduled appointments are at Mission India posts, there have been reports of posts rescheduling appointments in Ireland and Vietnam. Applicants have been advised that their Visa Application Centre (VAC) biometrics appointments remain valid and unaffected. Applicants who cannot attend on the new date may reschedule online but are limited to one opportunity to reschedule.

Immigration attorneys are reporting some successes with emergency visa appointment requests, specifically if the H-1B visa holder has a child (or children) who will miss school as a result of the delayed visa appointment.

Contact us with questions about rescheduled consular post appointments.

In Another Move Intended to Increase Vetting of Foreign Nationals Working in the US, USCIS Reduced its Maximum Validity Period for EADs

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) updated its Policy Manual to reduce the maximum validity period for Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) for certain categories of aliens. According to USCIS, the reduced maximum validity periods will result in more frequent vetting of aliens who apply for authorization to work in the US. 

The maximum validity period for initial and renewal EADs will be changed from 5 years back to 18 months for several categories of aliens:

• Aliens admitted as refugees
• Aliens granted asylum
• Aliens granted withholding of deportation or removal
• Aliens with pending applications for asylum or withholding of removal
• Aliens with pending applications for adjustment of status under INA 245
• Aliens with pending applications for suspension of deportation, cancellation of removal, or relief under the Nicaraguan Adjustment and Central American Relief Act

This change affects aliens with applications for employment authorization that are pending or filed on or after December 5, 2025, and based on any of the above categories.

In the announcement of the updates to the Policy Manual, USCIS pointed out that pursuant to H.R. 1 - One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Public Law, the validity period for initial and renewal employment authorization documents will be one year or the end date of the authorized parole period or duration of Temporary Protected Status (TPS), whichever is shorter for the following categories:

• Aliens paroled as refugees
• Aliens granted TPS
• Aliens granted parole
• Aliens with a pending TPS application
• Alien spouse of entrepreneur parole

Trump Administration Issues Expanded Travel Ban and Then an Expanded Hold on All Benefit Application

On December 16, 2025, President Trump issued an expanded travel ban. By way of explanation, the expanded travel ban states that the listed countries “exhibit woeful inadequacies in screening, vetting, and provision of information.” The expanded ban took effect on January 1, 2026. 

The expanded ban provides for a full suspension on entry for nationals of some countries, and a partial restriction for others:

• The expanded ban continues the full suspension of entry for nationals from the following countries: Afghanistan, Burma (Myanmar), Chad, Republic of the Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen. It also adds the following countries to the full suspension on entry: Burkina Faso, Laos, Mali, Niger, Sierra Leone, South Sudan, Syria, and individuals using travel documents issued or endorsed by the Palestinian Authority (PA).
• The partial bans restrict entry to the United States on B-1, B-2, B-1/B-2, F, M, and J visas, and reduces the validity of other nonimmigrant visas (presumably to reciprocity schedule minimums) for: Burundi, Cuba, Togo, and Venezuela. It also adds the following countries to the partial suspension on entry: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Cote d ‘Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, The Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

The expanded ban only applies to those outside the US as of 12:01am EST on January 1, 2026, and who do not have a valid visa as of that date. It does not apply to:

• Lawful permanent residents of the US
• Any dual nationals of a listed country when the individual is traveling on a passport issued by a country not subject to the travel ban
• Any foreign national traveling on the following visas: A-1, A-2, C-2, C-3, G-1, G-2, G-3, G-4, NATO-1, NATO-2, NATO-3, NATO-4, NATO-5, or NATO-6.
• Athletes, coaches, those in supporting roles, and immediate relatives, traveling for the World Cup, Olympics, or other major sporting events as determined by the Secretary of State
• Special Immigrant Visas for US Government employees
• Immigrant visas for ethnic and religious minorities facing persecution in Iran
• Individuals granted asylum and refugees previously admitted to the US

The new ban provides for exceptions in the national interest based on a determination by the Attorney General, Secretary of State or Secretary of Homeland Security.

On January 1, 2026, USCIS issued a policy memo expanding the existing hold on all benefit applications to include people from countries subject to the expanded travel ban (all the countries listed above). The memo further directs re-review of all approved benefit requests for people from those countries who entered the US on or after January 20, 2021.

Contact us with questions about the expanded travel ban.

DHS to Terminate Family Reunification Parole Processes Effective January 14, 2026, Ending EADs for Employees from Seven Countries

On December 11, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced the termination of family reunification parole for nationals from Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, and Honduras and their immediate family members. Parole and Employment Authorization Documents (EAD) will end on January 14, 2026, unless the individual has a Form I-485 pending that was postmarked or e-filed by December 15, 2025. For individuals with pending I-485s, parole remains valid until the earlier of the parole expiration date or a final decision on the application.5

Contact us with questions about EADs for employees from the seven countries mentioned above.

Federal Court Order Extends EADs Issued Under TPS Syria

On December 5, 2025, USCIS updated the TPS website for Syria to state:

The validity of Employment Authorization Documents (EADs) issued under the TPS designation of Syria with an original expiration date of Sept. 30, 2025, March 31, 2024, Sept. 30, 2022, or March 31, 2021, is extended per court order. 

With this announcement, USCIS acknowledged that employees with an EAD based on TPS Syria (EAD category A12 or C19) can continue to retain their work authorization and protections until the court issues another order.  

Contact us with questions about TPS Syria. 

Trump Administration Implements the "Gold Card" Program

On December 10, 2025, USCIS posted the forms and instructions for the Gold Card, an immigration program created by Executive Order on September 19, 2025. Under the program (not approved by Congress) individuals and corporate sponsors can register for the Gold Card through TrumpCard.gov. Applicants are required to pay a nonrefundable $15,000 application fee per person, including dependents. Once applicants receive confirmation that USCIS has accepted their TrumpCard.gov submission and application fee(s), they may complete and submit Form I-140G. After a background check has been completed, applicants will then be instructed to pay the required “gift.” For an individual filing Form I-140G on his or her own behalf, the required gift to the United States is $1 million for each person requesting a Gold Card. A family of four would require a $4 million donation and $60,000 in filing fees. If a corporation or similar entity is filing Form I-140G on behalf of an individual, the required gift is $2 million for the principal applicant requesting a Gold Card, and $1 million for each derivative.

The program raises several legal concerns. Chief among these concerns, from an employment-based immigration perspective, is whether or not the regulatory EB-1 Extraordinary Ability and EB-2 NIW Advanced-Degree/Exceptional-Ability requirements still apply. Immigration attorneys are waiting for USCIS to confirm explicitly that the EB-1 and EB-2 NIW statutory requirements remain unchanged and are not superseded or modified by the executive-order-based Gold Card pathway. A closely related concern is that the Gold Card will draw visa numbers from the EB-1 and EB-2 categories, which will likely adversely impact visa number availability in these categories.

DHS has indicated that it will publish a rule on employment based first, second, and third immigrant visas. While immigration attorneys are not certain of the contours of the planned rule, it’s anticipated that the requirements may be modified, with the possibility that applicants and beneficiaries would be subject to higher scrutiny and that the agency has broad discretion.

When we learn more about the effect of the Gold Card program on the EB-1 Extraordinary Ability and EB-2 NIW categories, we will inform readers.