New Bill Would Pause and Overhaul the H-1B Program
A new bill proposed in the U.S. House of Representatives aims to pause new H-1B visas for three years and dramatically reshape the program, including lowering the annual cap and eliminating cap exemptions for certain employers.
On April 22, 2026, Rep. Eli Crane (R-AZ) introduced the End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026 to the U.S. House of Representatives. Although framed as an H-1B bill, the legislation’s reach extends well beyond a single visa category.
In addition to cutting H-1B visas by more than half, the bill would end Optional Practical Training (OPT), eliminate the H-4 dependent category, and bar most nonimmigrants from adjusting status or switching visa categories from inside the U.S.
As of April 27, 2026, neither chamber of Congress has voted on the bill.
Ana Gabriela Urizar, an immigration attorney at Manifest Law, says it’s important to understand the proposal without overstating where it stands.
“While it’s important to understand the scope of this bill, it’s equally important to remember that it is not currently in effect,” she says. “Many proposed bills change significantly, stall, or fail to advance during the lawmaking process, and headlines often don’t reflect that. The practical next step is to monitor the bill and speak with qualified immigration counsel before changing any filing strategy.”
What the “End H-1B Visa Abuse Act of 2026” would change
Below is a breakdown of each major provision in the bill, published by Rep. Crane’s office, and what each would mean for the H-1B program if the bill were enacted.
A three-year pause on H-1B issuance
The bill would put a hard pause on H-1B visa issuance for three years after it’s enacted. During that window, no new H-1B visas would be granted, regardless of cap selection or employer demand.
An end to dual intent for H-1B workers
H-1B is currently a “dual intent” visa, meaning workers can pursue a Green Card without it jeopardizing their nonimmigrant status. The bill would eliminate that benefit for H-1B holders, requiring applicants to maintain a foreign residence they do not intend to abandon. Without dual intent, an H-1B applicant could be denied for showing intent to seek permanent residency in the U.S.
A reduced annual cap with no exemptions
Today, the H-1B program has an annual cap of 65,000 visas, plus an additional 20,000 reserved for workers with U.S. master’s degrees or higher. The bill would reduce the cap to 25,000 and eliminate existing exemptions.
The master’s cap would also be cut. The 25,000 figure would become the total annual H-1B visa limit, with no separate carve-out for advanced-degree holders.
No more cap-exempt employers
Universities, nonprofit research organizations, and government research organizations are currently cap-exempt, meaning they can sponsor H-1B workers without going through the lottery. The bill would end that carve-out and bring all H-1B sponsorship under the new 25,000-visa annual limit.
A three-year cap on H-1B duration
H-1B status is currently granted for up to three years and can be extended to a total of six years, with further extensions available for workers in the Green Card process. The bill would limit H-1B status to three years total.
A $100,000 fee on every petition
The bill would both codify and expand the existing $100,000 fee President Trump added in 2025 for some H-1B petitions. It would require charging the fee to employers filing petitions to grant H-1B status or to authorize an H-1B worker to change employers. The fee would apply whether the petition is filed domestically or processed at a U.S. consulate abroad.
A $200,000 minimum wage for H-1B workers
Today, H-1B wages must meet the prevailing wage for the role and location based on Department of Labor wage levels. The bill would set a flat statutory floor of $200,000 per year for every H-1B worker, regardless of role, region, or experience level. That could price out many roles that currently qualify as specialty occupations. USCIS’s report on H-1B data from 2024 shows that a salary of $200,000 was above the 75th percentile of H-1B visa roles.
Wage-based selection instead of a lottery
The H-1B lottery would be eliminated. Instead, USCIS would rank petitions by the wage offered and issue visas to the highest-paying roles first, following a registration period of no more than two weeks. The FY 2027 wage-weighted lottery already gives higher-paid roles better odds, but this bill seeks to remove the random selection element altogether.
New attestations on recruitment and layoffs
Every petitioning employer would have to attest that there are no qualified U.S. workers available for the role, that the employment will not adversely affect U.S. workers, and that the employer has not laid off workers in the previous 12 months and will not lay off workers in the following 12 months.
No concurrent H-1B employment
Currently, H-1B workers can hold concurrent H-1B employment with more than one employer if each files a separate petition. The bill would prohibit H-1B workers from being employed by more than one employer at a time.
A ban on third-party staffing arrangements
The bill would prohibit third-party employment and staffing agencies from filing H-1B petitions or facilitating H-1B recruitment or employment on behalf of another employer. The change would significantly affect employers such as IT consulting and staffing companies that rely on placing H-1B workers at client sites.
No more H-4 dependents
The bill would remove derivative spouse and minor-child eligibility language from the relevant section of the Immigration and Nationality Act, effectively ending the H-4 dependent visa for spouses and children of H-1B workers. Only the principal worker would be admitted under the H category.
The end of OPT for international students
Optional Practical Training (OPT) currently allows F-1 students to work in the U.S. for up to 12 months after graduation, with an additional 24-month STEM extension for eligible degrees. The bill would prohibit employment authorization for F and M students, as well as for certain J exchange visitors admitted to attend educational or training institutions.
The change would also affect the H-1B pipeline. Many international graduates first work for a U.S. employer through OPT before the employer sponsors them for an H-1B. Eliminating the work authorization would make it harder for employers to recruit U.S.-educated international graduates long enough to pursue H-1B sponsorship.
No adjustment of status from inside the U.S.
Adjustment of status is the process that allows a nonimmigrant in the U.S. to apply for a Green Card without leaving the country. The bill would bar nonimmigrants, parolees, and other groups with temporary authorized presence from adjusting status while living in the United States. The bill includes narrow exceptions: people who filed for adjustment before enactment and have their case adjudicated within one year, refugees, asylum applicants who applied before enactment and are adjudicated within one year, and conditional permanent residents.
The bill would also immediately rescind existing employment authorization documents (EADs) issued to adjustment-of-status applicants on the date of enactment, and pending EAD applications would be denied with fees refunded. That means current Green Card applicants who depend on a renewed EAD to keep working could lose their authorization the day the bill becomes law.
No changes between nonimmigrant categories
Changing status — for example, from F-1 to H-1B, or from H-1B to L-1 — currently happens through a USCIS filing without leaving the country. The bill would prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from authorizing a change from any nonimmigrant classification to any other nonimmigrant classification, meaning anyone wanting to switch categories would have to depart the U.S. and reapply through a consulate.
A ban on federal employment of nonimmigrants
The bill would prohibit any federal agency, department, or instrumentality from filing a petition for any nonimmigrant. It would also prohibit federal agencies from employing any nonimmigrant, either directly or through a contract. This provision applies to all nonimmigrant categories, not just H-1B, meaning federal contractors and agencies could no longer hire workers on visas like H-1B, L-1, O-1, or TN.
Why the scope of the bill matters
Urizar notes that the bill’s reach extends well beyond a single visa category. “What stands out is how broad the proposal is,” she says. “Although it is being discussed as an H-1B bill, the draft reaches OPT, H-4 dependents, adjustment of status, change of status, and even federal employment of nonimmigrants. That means its impact would extend well beyond one visa category if it were ever enacted.”
The bill wouldn’t just tighten the H-1B program. It would undo several long-standing features of U.S. immigration policy at once, including the ability of many international students to work after graduation, the ability of H-1B workers to bring spouses and children, and the ability of many nonimmigrants to move from temporary status toward permanent residence without leaving the country.
Taken together, those changes would represent a fundamental restructuring of the way many people enter and move through the employment-based immigration system. Workers, students, universities, employers, federal contractors, and families could all be affected by the same bill.
What the OPT changes would mean for international students
OPT is one of the most common pathways from a U.S. degree to longer-term work authorization. Eliminating it would close the most direct route students currently use to gain U.S. work experience and pursue H-1B sponsorship.
“The proposed OPT changes would leave many international graduates without the post-graduation work authorization they rely on to gain experience in their field and pursue H-1B sponsorship,” says Urizar. “OPT is often the bridge between a U.S. degree and a longer-term work visa strategy, so eliminating that bridge would change planning for students, universities, and employers.”
What the bill would mean for employers
Between the higher wage floor, the new fee, the smaller cap, and the restrictions on staffing and concurrent employment, the bill would reshape the economics of H-1B sponsorship.
“This proposal would add a much higher wage floor, a major new fee, a smaller cap, and new restrictions on staffing and concurrent employment,” says Urizar. “For many employers, these additional changes would make H-1B sponsorship impractical.”
What happens next
For now, the End H-1B Visa Abuse Act remains a proposal. Neither chamber of Congress has voted on it, and many bills change significantly or fail to move forward during the legislative process. Workers, students, and employers do not need to take immediate action based on the bill alone.
That said, the proposal signals continued legislative interest in restructuring the H-1B program and other pieces of the nonimmigrant work visa landscape. Anyone considering an H-1B filing, an OPT-based career plan, or an adjustment of status application should monitor the bill’s progress and plan with current law in mind, while staying flexible in case any provisions advance.
Manifest Law’s immigration attorneys help workers, students, and employers navigate H-1B filings, OPT planning, and long-term immigration strategy under fast-changing rules. Request a consultation to talk through your options.
