US Scraps H-1B Visa Lottery: Who Gets Priority And Who Faces Setbacks – All We Know

H-1B Visa Lottery: The Donald Trump–led administration has overhauled the H-1B work visa selection system, formally scrapping the long-standing lottery process in favour of a model that prioritises higher wages and specialised skills. Announcing the change on Tuesday, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said future H-1B visas will be allocated based on a weighted assessment, giving preference to foreign workers with higher pay levels and advanced skill sets.

New Rules Take Effect From FY 2027

According to the DHS, the revised framework aims to better safeguard wages, working conditions and employment opportunities for American workers. The department said the random lottery had increasingly come under scrutiny for failing to reflect the programme’s original intent.

“The final rule replaces the random selection system with a process that places greater emphasis on higher-skilled workers,” the DHS said in its statement.

The new regulations will come into force on February 27, 2026, and will apply to the FY 2027 H-1B cap registration season. Currently, the US issues 65,000 H-1B visas annually, along with an additional 20,000 slots reserved for applicants holding advanced degrees from US institutions.

Government Flags Abuse Of Existing System

US authorities said the lottery-based process had been exploited by some employers, allowing low-wage and lower-skill applications to overwhelm the system. The DHS noted that this trend had undercut domestic workers and distorted the purpose of the visa programme.

“To address these concerns, the weighted selection process will increase the likelihood that visas go to higher-paid and higher-skilled foreign workers, while still allowing employers to access talent across wage levels,” the department said.

US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) spokesperson Matthew Tragesser echoed these concerns, stating that the existing system had been misused by employers seeking to hire foreign workers at lower wages than those paid to Americans.

Part Of Broader Trump-Era Immigration Push

Tragesser said the revised selection model aligns with Congress’s original vision for the H-1B programme and is intended to boost US competitiveness by encouraging employers to recruit top-tier global talent.

He added that the Trump administration would continue rolling out regulatory changes to curb abuse while supporting legitimate business needs.

The move follows other policy shifts under the administration, including a sharp increase in H-1B visa fees, reportedly rising to $100,000 per visa, as part of stricter eligibility and compliance measures.

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