US Court Rejects Trump-Era Rule on H-1B Visa

Key Highlights:

• Overview 
• Judgement on the Visa
• H-1B Visa in the US

A rule by the Donald Trump administration that was set to replace the current H-1B visa cap lottery system with a wage-level based selection system was struck down recently by a federal judge in the United States.

Judgement on the Visa

Jeffrey S White, the Northern District of California District Court judge, set aside the rule because the then-Acting Secretary for Homeland Security, Chad Wolf, was not legally serving his role when the regulation was enacted.

The judge said in the order that “Because Mr. Wolf was not lawfully appointed as Acting Secretary at the time the Final Rule was approved, the Court concludes the rule must be set aside. In light of this ruling, the Court does not reach Plaintiffs’ alternative arguments. Accordingly, the Court vacates the Final Rule and remands this matter to DHS.” 

According to the court order, the judge granted a motion to the US Chambers of Commerce for summary judgement in the lawsuit challenging the rule.

H-1B Visa in the US

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant type of visa granted by the US government that allows American companies to hire foreign workers in specialized jobs that either require technical or theoretical expertise.

It is mainly used by tech companies that use it to employ thousands of skilled IT professionals from particularly India and China. 

The number of these visas issued per year is limited to 65,000, along with an additional 20,000 visas set for professionals with advanced degrees.

The current system for selecting candidates to be granted a visa is a mix of the first-come, first-serve, and lottery systems.

During the end of the Trump-era, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced doing away with the traditional system.