DHS narrows H-1B specialty occupation and third-party placement rules

Validated finding · five-country-2010-20260922-v118-evidence-presentation-fix

CountryUnited States

Operative dateDecember 7, 2020

CategoryWork

Policy toolEligibility

Affected groupNew applicants

Policy effect

DHS issued an interim final rule revising H-1B specialty occupation definitions, employer-employee relationship requirements, third-party worksite validity periods, itinerary and contract evidence, and site-visit authority.

Official source excerpt

Quoted verbatim from the official source below. Ellipses indicate omitted text.

… amending certain DHS regulations governing the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program. Specifically, DHS is: Revising the regulatory definition of and standards for a ``specialty occupation'' to better align with the statutory definition of the term; adding definitions for ``worksite'' and ``third-party worksite''; revising the definition of ``United States employer''; clarifying how U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will determine whether there is an ``employer-employee relationship'' between the petitioner and the beneficiary; requiring corroborating evidence of work in a specialty … occupation; limiting the validity period for third-party placement petitions to a maximum of 1 year; providing a written explanation when the petition is approved with an earlier validity period end date than requested; amending the general itinerary provision to clarify it does not apply to H-1B petitions; and codifying USCIS' H-1B site visit authority, including the potential consequences of refusing a site visit. The primary purpose of these changes is to better ensure that each H-1B nonimmigrant worker (H-1B worker) will be working for a qualified employer in a job that meets the statutory … definition of a ``specialty occupation.'' These changes are urgently necessary to strengthen the integrity of the H-1B program during the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 public health emergency to more effectively ensure that the employment of H-1B workers will not have an adverse impact on the wages and working conditions of similarly employed U.S. workers. In addition, in strengthening the integrity of the H-1B program, these changes will aid the program in functioning more effectively and efficiently. DATES: This interim final rule is effective on December 7, 2020. Written comments …

Federal Register 85 FR 63918Federal Register 85 FR 63918. DHS narrows H-1B specialty occupation and third-party placement rules. Effective 2020-12-07.Open official source

Retrieved from https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/10/08/2020-22347/strengthening-the-h-1b-nonimmigrant-visa-classification-program

Review method

Two separate automated exact-claim source reviews

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DHS narrows H-1B specialty occupation and third-party placement rules

Policy effect

Official source excerpt

Review method

Other United States changes operative in 2020