H-1B cap slashed from 65,000 to 25,000 under new legislation: What professionals need to know

A group of Republican lawmakers has introduced legislation proposing the suspension of the H-1B visas program for three years.

The legislation imposed sweeping reforms, potentially devastating working professionals.

Referred to as “End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026”, introduced by Congressman Eli Crane and supported by seven other Republicans, suggested that the annual cap will be reduced from 65,000 to just 25,000.

Additionally, the bill also set a minimum annual salary slab of $200,000 for foreign workers, replacing the current lottery system with a wage-selection process. This bans visa holders from bringing dependents to the United States.

Crane said: “The federal government should work for hardworking citizens, not the profit margins of massive corporations. We owe it to the American people to prevent the broken H-1B system from boxing them out of jobs they are qualified to perform.”

With this legalisation, the Optimal Practical Training (OPT) program was also ended, which was designed for foreign graduates. This blocks their transition to permanent residency (PR) and bars federal agencies from employing nonimmigrant workers.

All employers would have to prove that there was no qualified American before hiring the foreign talent.

This comes after the introduction of a $100,000 fee for any new H-1B applications introduced during the year. Nonetheless, previous measures seeking comprehensive reforms to the H-1B program have faced pushback from trade associations and advocates for immigrants. This latest proposal may be a lengthy process through Congress.