H-1B shock: Trump administration tightens screws, moves to scrap 60-day window

The Trump administration is considering eliminating the 60-day grace period that gives H-1B and other foreign workers time to find a new job after losing employment, a move that could leave thousands of skilled professionals and their families facing an abrupt immigration crunch.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) submitted a proposal titled “Eliminating the Discretionary 60-day Grace Period” to the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) on August 6 under Regulatory Information Number 1615-AD22. The regulatory record shows that the proposal received an OIRA conclusion of “Consistent with Change” on 27 August.

However, the proposal has not yet been published in the Federal Register, and its full text remains unavailable. The existing 60-day grace period therefore continues to apply.

Under current rules, eligible workers can generally remain in the US for up to 60 consecutive days after their employment ends, or until their authorised stay expires, whichever comes first. The window allows them to secure a new employer, pursue a change of immigration status or make arrangements to leave the country.

For foreign workers, the proposed rollback could turn a job loss into a race against time. Finding another employer willing to sponsor a visa can involve weeks of interviews, negotiations and immigration paperwork, while families may also have to deal with housing, schooling and other commitments.

The potential impact is particularly significant for Indian professionals, who account for the largest share of H-1B beneficiaries. The visa programme is widely used by US employers to recruit workers in specialised fields, particularly technology, engineering and healthcare.

According to USCIS data, Indian nationals account for about 72 per cent of H-1B beneficiaries, making them the group most exposed to any change in the grace-period rules.

Ajay Jain Bhutoria, a former member of the president’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders, has strongly criticised the proposal and called for the grace period to be expanded instead.

Bhutoria has previously advocated extending the window from 60 to 180 days, arguing that the current period can be insufficient for highly skilled workers navigating lengthy recruitment processes and visa-transfer requirements.

“Removing this window entirely will force skilled Indian professionals and their families out of the country overnight,” Bhutoria said, urging community organisations and business leaders to oppose the measure through the public-comment process.

The proposal would still have several procedural hurdles to clear before becoming policy. If DHS publishes it in the Federal Register, the public would be given an opportunity to submit comments. The department would then have to review the feedback before issuing a final rule.

Until that process is completed and any final rule takes effect, the existing 60-day protection remains intact.

For now, the grace period remains a safety net for foreign workers facing sudden layoffs. But the administration’s proposal has put thousands of visa-dependent professionals on notice that the rules governing their ability to remain in the US could soon change.

With IANS inputs