Headlines:
New $100,000 Charge on H-1B Entries by Presidential Proclamation, USCIS Clarifies – On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation requiring a $100,000 payment for sure H-1B petitions the place the employee is exterior the USA.
Trump Administration Unveils Gold & Platinum Immigration Plans – The Trump Administration has introduced a plan for 3 new immigration pathways: the Gold Card, the Company Gold Card, and the forthcoming Platinum Card.
Court docket Reinstates Venezuela’s TPS Designation – The Ninth Circuit has upheld a district court docket choice restoring Venezuela’s Non permanent Protected Standing (TPS) designation.
State Division Places a Worth Tag on the Variety Visa Lottery—One Greenback – Beginning September 16, 2025, each hopeful Variety Visa lottery entrant should pay the token cost on the time of registration.
USCIS Unveils New Naturalization Civics Check – USCIS is reintroducing a revised civics check that can apply to candidates submitting on or after October 20, 2025.
USCIS Pronounces First-Half FY 2026 H-2B Visa Cap Reached – Employers topic to the cap and in search of to rent H-2B employees to begin between October 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, can not file new petitions.
Egypt Reaches Variety Visa Cap for FY 2025 – The U.S. Division of State (DOS) introduced that Egypt has reached its annual restrict underneath the Variety Visa (DV) Program for fiscal yr 2025.
EB-5 Unreserved Visa Cap Reached for FY 2025 – The U.S. Division of State has introduced that the unreserved class of EB-5 immigrant investor visas has reached its annual restrict for fiscal yr 2025.
State Division Expands Visa Interview Waiver Eligibility; DHS Restores Hungary’s ESTA Eligibility – DOS introduced updates to its interview waiver coverage for nonimmigrant visa candidates and DHS restored Hungary’s ESTA eligibility.
Korean Employee Detentions Revive Questions Over B-1 Visa Use – The detention and swift elimination of a whole lot of South Korean employees at a Georgia electrical automobile battery plant this month has reignited debate over the usage of the short-term enterprise visa.
A Subject of Goals for California Immigrants – On this New York Occasions article, learn concerning the rolling acres of Sonoma County, the place lies a baseball diamond.
AVITS Now Options Actual-Time DS-160 Validation – There’s a brand new function within the Division of State’s AVITS visa scheduling system: real-time DS-160 validation.
USCIS NTAs Throughout the H-1B 60-Day Grace Interval – A rise in Notices to Seem (NTAs) issued when an employer withdraws an H-1B petition, even when a change-of-employer (COE) or change-of-status (COS) petition has been well timed filed inside the grace interval.
October 2025 Visa Bulletin Launched with Notable Progress – Ahead motion in key employment-based classes (particularly for India), creates a worthwhile alternative for a lot of to file early and safe advantages.
Particulars:
New $100,000 Charge on H-1B Entries by Presidential Proclamation, USCIS Clarifies
On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a Presidential Proclamation requiring a $100,000 payment for sure H-1B petitions the place the employee is exterior the USA. Efficient September 21, 2025, U.S. entry will probably be restricted until the petition is accompanied by this cost. The restriction is short-term (12 months, by means of September 20, 2026) however could also be prolonged.
The Proclamation doesn’t finish the H-1B program. Employers might proceed to file extensions, amendments, and transfers for H-1B workers already inside the USA. Pending or accepted petitions for employees who stay within the U.S. won’t be topic to the brand new payment. Nevertheless, worldwide journey is strongly discouraged, as returning workers may face the brand new cost requirement. The Division of Homeland Safety might exempt people, corporations, or industries if using H-1B employees is within the “nationwide curiosity,” although the usual for these exemptions is just not but outlined. Cap-exempt entities (universities, nonprofits) should not particularly carved out however might qualify underneath this exemption.
On September 20, 2025, USCIS Director Joseph Edlow issued a memorandum making an attempt to make clear implementation of the Proclamation. In keeping with USCIS, the $100,000 payment applies solely prospectively, to petitions not but filed. The Proclamation doesn’t apply to beneficiaries of petitions filed earlier than the efficient date, beneficiaries of accepted petitions, or people holding validly issued H-1B visas.
Regardless of this clarification, key questions stay unanswered. The memorandum doesn’t specify whether or not the payment applies to petitions requesting a change or extension of standing, or a change of employer. It additionally leaves open the likelihood that USCIS might try to restrict the payment to cap-subject petitions within the FY27 lottery, however no affirmation has been supplied. Furthermore, the USCIS steering departs from the Proclamation’s language, creating inconsistencies that heighten uncertainty.
Trump Administration Unveils Gold & Platinum Immigration Plans
On September 19, 2025, the Trump Administration introduced a plan for 3 new immigration pathways: the Trump Gold Card, the Trump Company Gold Card, and the forthcoming Trump Platinum Card. These packages symbolize a departure from the standard job-creating EB-5 immigrant investor mannequin, introducing donation-based routes to present employment-based inexperienced card classes.
The Trump Gold Card would enable people to qualify underneath the EB-1A “extraordinary capability” or EB-2 “nationwide curiosity waiver” classes by making a nonrefundable $1 million donation to the U.S. authorities. Gold Card holders can be handled like different everlasting residents, topic to worldwide taxation and reporting obligations, and their standing might be revoked underneath the identical guidelines that apply to immigrant visas.
For employers, the Trump Company Gold Card requires a $2 million donation to sponsor an worker. Sponsorship might be transferred between workers, although it stays unclear whether or not a switch can be attainable after the initially sponsored worker secures a inexperienced card.
The administration additionally previewed a Trump Platinum Card, which might contain a $5 million donation and permit recipients to spend as much as 270 days in the USA yearly with out U.S. taxation on international earnings.
Implementation of those packages is predicted inside 90 days, however purposes can not but be filed till the Division of Homeland Safety and the Division of Commerce problem detailed procedures.
Court docket Reinstates Venezuela’s 2023 TPS Designation
In a serious ruling for a whole lot of 1000’s of Venezuelans residing within the U.S., the Ninth Circuit has upheld a district court docket choice restoring Venezuela’s 2023 Non permanent Protected Standing (TPS) designation. The court docket discovered that DHS Secretary Kristi Noem’s February 2025 try to vacate and terminate the nation’s TPS standing was “arbitrary and capricious” and exceeded her statutory authority underneath the Administrative Process Act.
The choice signifies that greater than 300,000 Venezuelan nationals who depend on TPS protections—lots of them spouses and oldsters of U.S. residents—can stay shielded from deportation and keep their work authorization till October 2, 2026. The court docket emphasised that DHS’s abrupt reversal ignored established procedures, did not seek the advice of different companies, and relied on pretextual reasoning somewhat than real nation situation proof.
USCIS has since confirmed that Venezuela’s 2023 TPS designation is reinstated, with protections and work authorization prolonged underneath the phrases of that designation. Eligible Venezuelan nationals might proceed to use for or renew TPS, safeguarding their capability to dwell and work lawfully in the USA whereas situations in Venezuela stay unsafe.
On Friday, September 19, 2025, the administration filed an emergency enchantment with the U.S. Supreme Court docket. Individually, the 2021 TPS designation for Venezuela will terminate on November 7, 2025.
State Division Places a Worth Tag on the Variety Visa Lottery—One Greenback
The State Division has instituted a new rule for the Variety Visa (DV) lottery: a $1 registration payment. Beginning September 16, 2025, each hopeful entrant should pay the token cost on the time of registration.
Why the change? Officers say it’s about equity—shifting the fee burden from the small group of winners to everybody who throws their identify within the hat. Winners who advance within the course of will nonetheless face the usual $330 visa software payment, however now even the long-shot dreamers should chip in. Funds will probably be processed by means of a safe authorities portal throughout registration, and candidates are urged to stay alert to scams, because the official U.S. authorities web site is the one authentic cost channel.
It’s a small payment with an enormous message: even the lottery of American alternative has a canopy cost.
USCIS Unveils New Naturalization Civics Check
USCIS has introduced the primary modifications in a deliberate multi-step overhaul of the naturalization course of, reintroducing a revised civics check that can apply to candidates submitting on or after October 20, 2025. Referred to as the 2025 Naturalization Civics Check, the replace is a modified model of the 2020 check, which briefly changed the long-standing 2008 model earlier than being rolled again.
The brand new check expands the civics query financial institution from 100 to 128 attainable questions. Candidates will probably be requested as much as 20 questions and should reply a minimum of 12 appropriately to move. In contrast to in 2020, examiners will cease asking questions as soon as an applicant has both handed or failed, streamlining the method.
USCIS has emphasised that the replace is meant to offer a extra complete evaluation of candidates’ information of U.S. historical past and authorities, whereas additionally claiming that the method is uniform and truthful. Up to date examine supplies at the moment are out there on the USCIS web site, and the company will quickly hold 2008 check sources on-line for many who filed earlier than the transition.
This marks step one in what the company has described as a broader effort to “strengthen assimilation, promote a unified American id, and safeguard the tasks of citizenship.” Future modifications to the naturalization course of are anticipated to observe.
USCIS Pronounces First-Half FY 2026 H-2B Visa Cap Reached
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Providers (USCIS) has introduced that the quota for H-2B non-agricultural employee visas for the primary half of fiscal yr 2026 has been reached on September 12, 2025. Employers in search of to rent H-2B employees for begin dates between October 1, 2025, and March 31, 2026, who’re topic to the cap can not file new petitions underneath that cap interval.
Nevertheless, sure petitions stay eligible: H-2B employees who’re exempt from the cap, these altering employers, extending standing, and different non-cap-subject petitions will nonetheless be thought of.
Employers planning to make use of the H-2B program ought to monitor USCIS updates intently for when the second-half cap opens for April 1, 2026 employment begin date.
Egypt Reaches Variety Visa Cap for FY 2025
The U.S. Division of State (DOS) introduced that Egypt has reached its annual restrict underneath the Variety Visa (DV) Program for fiscal yr 2025. As of September 15, no additional DV-2025 visas will probably be issued to Egyptian nationals.
By regulation, no single nation can obtain greater than seven p.c of the 52,056 range visas out there every fiscal yr. Egypt hit that threshold on September 15th, making it the primary nation to achieve the cap for the 2025 program yr.
DOS emphasised that choice within the lottery doesn’t assure a visa. Annually, extra people are chosen than the variety of visas out there, to account for candidates who might not qualify or who decline to pursue the method.
EB-5 Unreserved Visa Cap Reached for FY 2025: New Purposes on Maintain Till October
The U.S. Division of State has introduced that the unreserved class of EB-5 immigrant investor visas has reached its annual restrict for fiscal yr 2025, efficient as of mid-September. Because of this, no new EB-5 unreserved visas will probably be issued by U.S. consulates or accepted for adjustment of standing till the brand new fiscal yr begins on October 1.
This USCIS/DOS motion impacts the portion of the EB-5 program allotted underneath the unreserved visa classes (identified by their codes C5, T5, I5, R5, RU, NU), which make up about 68% of EB-5 visas. It additionally consists of unused reserved visas carried over from prior years, in accordance with the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022.
For EB-5 candidates, because of this until they’re making use of underneath one of many reserved subcategories (i.e. concentrating on rural areas, high-unemployment areas, or infrastructure tasks), they need to wait till October to proceed. The backlog stays heavy for nationals of nations with excessive demand; for instance, the “Ultimate Motion Date” for China stays in December 2015, whereas India has superior however continues to be topic to an extended wait.
Whereas the annual cap displays regular demand for the investor-immigrant pathway, the pause underscores how rapidly visa numbers are being exhausted. The reset on October 1 presents a recent begin, however candidates planning for EB-5 underneath unreserved classes are suggested to behave early and to discover set-aside classes that stay present to keep away from delay.
State Division Expands Visa Interview Waiver Eligibility; DHS Restores Hungary’s ESTA Eligibility
On September 18, 2025, the U.S. Division of State (DOS) introduced an replace to its interview waiver coverage for nonimmigrant visa candidates, efficient October 1, 2025. The coverage expands consular officers’ authority to waive in-person interviews for sure low-risk candidates, comparable to renewals and particular visa classes, when native situations allow. The DOS said that every one waivers will proceed to be selected a case-by-case foundation, with nationwide safety and program integrity remaining priorities.
In a associated growth, the Division of Homeland Safety (DHS) confirmed that Hungary’s eligibility for the Digital System for Journey Authorization (ESTA) has been restored. Hungarian nationals are as soon as once more capable of apply for journey to the USA underneath the Visa Waiver Program, which permits short-term visits with out first acquiring a visa. AILA famous that the reinstatement follows diplomatic discussions and displays Hungary’s compliance with U.S. safety necessities.
Each companies emphasised that vacationers ought to overview official updates and seek the advice of the related web sites earlier than planning, as insurance policies stay topic to alter.
Korean Employee Detentions Revive Questions Over B-1 Visa Use
The detention and swift elimination of a whole lot of South Korean employees at a Georgia electrical automobile battery plant this month has reignited debate over the usage of short-term enterprise visas for actions that edge into unauthorized employment. The employees, lots of whom had entered the USA on enterprise customer visas or underneath the visa waiver program, had been aiding with gear set up and challenge setup when U.S. immigration authorities intervened. Inside days, most had been returned to South Korea, prompting diplomatic concern and elevating alarms concerning the chilling impact such enforcement actions may have on future funding in U.S. manufacturing tasks.
The controversy highlights a longstanding stress in immigration regulation: the B-1 visa is meant for restricted actions like conferences, supervision, or coaching, however the line between permissible “enterprise” and prohibited “work” has typically been contested. Corporations argue that short-term technical roles are important to launching main tasks, whereas regulators view such practices as a circumvention of employment-authorized visas.
This isn’t a brand new problem. In 2013, the Indian IT agency Infosys confronted one of many largest immigration settlements in historical past—$34 million—over allegations it used B-1 visas to carry international workers to the USA for work assignments that ought to have required H-1B visas. Though felony costs had been finally dropped, the case underscored how reliance on enterprise visas for project-critical labor has lengthy been scrutinized by U.S. authorities.
With out clearer guidelines or new choices for short-term technical work, coupled with an enforcement-first administration within the White Home, corporations might rethink testing the bounds of enterprise visas, or might keep away from bringing manufacturing tasks to the USA altogether.
A Subject of Goals for California Immigrants
On this New York Occasions article, learn concerning the rolling acres of Sonoma County, the place pinot noir and chardonnay vines stretch towards the horizon, there lies a baseball diamond—carved not by the main leagues, however by the calloused palms of winery employees. For greater than twenty years, it has been a sanctuary the place laborers, line cooks, electricians, and the like have traded their gloves of toil for leather-based mitts, discovering within the crack of a wood bat a reprieve from life’s heavier burdens.
However this yr, the Vinedos (or the Vineyards), members of the beginner Bay Space Latin League, struggled to subject a whole roster. Concern has crept in alongside the vines. With the return of ICE raids underneath a brand new administration, many gamers keep residence, cautious of a knock on the door or a shadow within the car parking zone.
Nonetheless, the sector stays. Manuel Vallejo, the winery supervisor who first dreamed it into existence, tends each grapes and recreation, figuring out the 2 are certain by the sweat of immigrant labor. Younger males like Ervin, a Nicaraguan asylum seeker, come to the sector to overlook their peril, if just for just a few innings. “Once I’m on the baseball subject, I overlook about all the things,” he says.
Within the waning summer time gentle after one other recreation, with ranchera songs drifting and an American flag fluttering close to residence plate, the sport endures, fragile and fleeting, however no much less sacred. For on this winery subject of goals, baseball isn’t just a sport. It’s remedy. It’s resistance. It’s hope.
AVITS Now Options Actual-Time DS-160 Validation
AILA not too long ago issued a follow alert highlighting a brand new function within the Division of State’s AVITS visa scheduling system: real-time DS-160 validation. Rolled out in collaboration with DOS, the software immediately cross-checks candidates’ DS-160 quantity, passport, and date of start in opposition to the Consular Digital Utility Middle (CEAC).
If the data matches and the DS-160 hasn’t already been used, candidates can transfer ahead seamlessly with payment cost and scheduling. If not, they’ll be prompted to confirm their particulars in CEAC earlier than attempting once more. This modification aligns with the DOS’s earlier necessities that DS-160s be submitted a minimum of two enterprise days earlier than an interview, and mirrors related methods like Yatri and Traveldocs. In essence, this new software means fewer surprises later within the course of.
Whereas the function goals to streamline scheduling and cut back errors, practitioners ought to be ready for some hiccups because the system continues to roll out. Candidates might encounter interruptions if the validation fails, making it vital to double-check info earlier than submission.
As AVITS continues to evolve, real-time DS-160 validation is a step in the direction of larger effectivity in consular processing. Whereas the adjustment interval might carry some preliminary bumps, the long-term purpose is a smoother, extra dependable visa scheduling expertise for candidates and practitioners alike.
USCIS NTAs Throughout the H-1B 60-Day Grace Interval
AILA experiences a rise in Notices to Seem (NTAs) issued when an employer withdraws an H-1B petition, even when a change-of-employer (COE) or change-of-status (COS) petition has been well timed filed inside the grace interval. The 60-day grace interval was supposed as a safeguard underneath 8 CFR § 214.1(l)(2), during which H-1B professionals who lose their jobs can stay in the USA for as much as 60 days to seek out new employment or change standing with out being thought of out of standing. But current follow reveals that this safety is fraying. The withdrawal step, required to finish an employer’s wage obligations, now typically paradoxically triggers the very elimination discover it was meant to forestall.
USCIS factors to a February 2025 coverage memo increasing its authority to problem NTAs when petitions are denied or revoked. However the memo additionally emphasised discretion. The authorized mismatch is placing. H-1B portability underneath AC21 permits a employee to begin for a brand new employer as soon as a non-frivolous petition is filed. Immigration judges typically dismiss these NTAs as a result of the employees stay legally current and approved for employment. However by then, the harm is finished: careers disrupted, journey plans frozen, and households put by means of unnecessary concern.
By treating employees with pending, bona fide filings as probably out of standing, USCIS is reshaping a long-standing safety for high-skilled employees. At minimal, this overreach not solely chills hiring, but additionally alerts to international expertise that the USA is a dangerous place to stake a profession. Till the company realigns with its personal guidelines, the 60-day grace interval stays much less a cushion than a entice ready to ensnare.
October 2025 Visa Bulletin Launched with Notable Progress
The October 2025 Visa Bulletin has been launched, marking the beginning of a brand new fiscal yr and a reset of annual visa limits. USCIS has introduced that candidates ought to use Chart B (Dates for Submitting) this month for each employment-based and family-sponsored classes. This implies many people could also be eligible to file adjustment of standing purposes sooner, unlocking advantages like work and journey authorization whereas they wait for his or her inexperienced card.
Highlights embody ahead motion throughout most employment-based classes, with notably significant reduction for Indian nationals in EB-2, EB-3, and EB-5. EB-1 stays present for many international locations, creating alternatives for sooner filings, whereas EB-5 set-aside classes stay totally present worldwide. Nevertheless, EB-5 Unreserved for China has retrogressed by three months. Household-sponsored classes additionally see modest however regular progress.
Employers ought to reap the benefits of this early-year momentum to reassess immigration methods, transfer rapidly on pending instances, and determine workers who might now be eligible to file. Staff ought to verify their eligibility and put together documentation to file promptly. Appearing now can cut back uncertainty and safe worthwhile interim advantages whereas ready for inexperienced card approval.
Agency within the Information
About Friday’s Presidential Proclamation on H-1B entry restrictions and payment, Cyrus Mehta was quoted in this Forbes article, this Occasions of India article on the reduction to H-1B employees, and this separate Occasions of India article concerning the prohibitive payment.
Cyrus Mehta was quoted on this Occasions of India article: BIA Ruling Ends Bond for Unlawful Entrants in US – However Overstays and Laid Off H-1Bs Nonetheless Eligible, in addition to this Law360 article.
