On September 19, 2025, the Department of Labor ("DOL") launched "Project Firewall", a broad enforcement initiative aimed at strengthening employer compliance with the H-1B visa program "to protect America's highly skilled workforce." This coincided with President Trump's proclamation, "Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers", issued the same day. A key feature of Project Firewall is the use of Secretary-certified investigations. For the first time in DOL history, the Secretary of Labor will personally certify the initiation of investigations where there is "reasonable cause" to believe an employer is not in compliance. Investigations may be launched through secretary certification or traditional enforcement channels. This marks a significant expansion of the DOL's enforcement role and, according to a report by Bloomberg Law on April 7, 2026, a DOL official noted "the department has marked a 48% increase in its caseload" of H-1B investigations since launching the program.
Read moreFY2027 H-1B Lottery Kick Off
Here we are, ready to kick off the fiscal year 2027 (“FY2027”) H-1B cap. US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) announced the initial registration period for the FY2027 H-1B cap will begin at 12 Noon Eastern on March 4, 2026, and run through 12 Noon Eastern on March 19, 2026. During this registration period, prospective petitioners and representatives will be able to submit their H-1B registrations using online accounts and pay the required fee of $215 for each registration submitted on behalf of individual beneficiaries. The Service is maintaining its beneficiary-centric selection process launched for FY2025.
Read moreAILA files Lawsuit Challenging H-1B Wage-Based Selection Process
On Monday, May 17, 2021 under the representation of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA), five nonprofit organizations and businesses filed a lawsuit against President Joe Biden’s administration challenging the move from an H-1B lottery system to a wage-based selection process.
The suit addresses the implementation of a Trump administration regulation that replaced the H-1B random, computerized H-1B lottery with a system that allocates H-1B visa numbers according to the Department of Labor’s four-level wage system. The final rule which was made effective as of March 9, 2021, and later delayed by the Biden administration to December 31, 2021, gives priority in the H-1B selection process to foreign nationals whose offered salary falls within the highest level of their occupation, continuing on to select cases in descending order from OES wage levels III, II and I.
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