Trump signs order to add further scrutiny to H-1B visa program

Pres. Trump signed a new executive order at the end of last week aimed at increasing scrutiny of the heavily abused H-1B visa program. The order requires improved cooperation between the Departments of State, Labor, Homeland Security, and Education, as well as the Small Business Administration, in an effort to crack down on wage suppression, American worker displacement, and visa fraud.

The order comes just weeks after a joint investigation conducted by the Department of Labor’s Inspector General and the White House Task Force, led by Vice President JD Vance, imposed an enforcement action against the multinational IT outsourcing giant Cognizant. In 2024, Cognizant was found liable by a jury for using the H-1B visa program to discriminate against American workers. 

Specifically, Pres. Trump’s order instructs agencies to work together to ensure that H-1B visa applications comply with labor conditions, wage, and non-discrimination statutory requirements. It also requires agencies to further scrutinize companies that have recently laid off American workers when filing H-1B petitions, and to review Labor Condition Applications (LCAs). H-1B employers often abuse the LCA process by filing petitions for workers at a lower job classification in order to suppress wages.

The Trump Administration has already taken several actions to protect American workers from H-1B visa abuses. The administration is currently implementing:

• A $100,000 fee for petitions filed on behalf of foreign workers who aren’t currently present in the United States;
• A $103,000 fee for all employers petitioning for cap-subject H-1B workers, including those already in the United States;
• A weighted selection process to improve the allocation of cap-subject H-1B visas to petitions with higher salaries; and
• The elimination of the 60-day grace period for H-1B workers to find another job if the one for which they were imported is terminated. (This one is still in the comment period until Nov. 11.)

The Immigration Accountability Project has a fact sheet that provides more details on the H-1B visa program and includes recommendations for legislative and executive action.

Some House Members Show Support for American Tech Workers, while Others Don’t

Climbing 📈in the immigration rankings

Reps. Mary Miller (R-IL) and Sheri Biggs (R-SC) moved up in the Congressional Immigration Rankings this week by cosponsoring Rep. Eli Crane’s (R-AZ) End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026 (H.R. 8443). Rep. Miller moved up two spots, entering the top 10 to rank 9th overall in the House. Rep. Biggs, who was already ranked inside the top 10, moved up one spot to rank 5th overall.

Rep. Crane’s bill would end the Optional Practical Training (OPT) program and immediately freeze the H-1B visa program for three years to allow it to reset. Once restarted, the bill would reduce the cap to 25,000, eliminate existing exemptions to the cap, codify Pres. Trump’s $100,000 application fee while extending it to all applications, and prohibit H-1B visa holders from adjusting their status to permanent residency, among other things. The bill is supported by IAP Action and designated as key legislation.

Sliding 📉in the immigration rankings

Conversely, Reps. Deborah Ross (D-NC) and Valerie Foushee (D-NC) saw the biggest drops in this week’s ratings after both cosponsored the Keep Innovators in America Act (H.R. 8013). The bill would make the OPT program permanent, making it more difficult for American college graduates, particularly those with degrees in science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM), to obtain jobs. The bill is opposed by IAP Action and designated as key legislation.

Rep. Ross fell 14 spots to rank 387th overall in the House, while Rep. Foushee fell 11 spots to rank 399th.

You can view the full Congressional Immigration Rankings at IAPAction.com.

Immigration Articles

The Federalist: Booming El Salvador Begs U.S. Migrants To Return, But The Media Keep Lying About It

Writing for The Federalist, Todd Bensman details how El Salvador’s historic security turnaround has spurred an economic boom and increased labor demand, prompting the Bukele Administration to offer aggressive tax incentives to lure Salvadoran migrants home. This debunks corporate media claims that ending Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for Salvadorans would send the country into instability. As of now, the Trump Administration has still failed to end TPS for El Salvador.

The Hill: Homan: ICE isn’t ‘going anywhere’ amid immigration enforcement scrutiny

White House Border Czar Tom Homan defended ICE operations at a Department of Justice summit, declaring the agency is “not going anywhere” and will flood sanctuary jurisdictions with enforcement resources without apology despite mounting pushback from Democratic officials and moderate Republicans over recent operations targeting illegal aliens.

Washington Times: DHS takes ‘third countries’ deportation fight to Supreme Court

The Department of Homeland Security has asked the Supreme Court to intervene and uphold its authority to deport illegal aliens to third countries, warning that lower court procedural restrictions have spawned chaos and risk forcing the release of dangerous criminals into American communities.

Next Week

The Senate is returning next week to wrap up business before the election, while the House remains out.