Biden Administration Rolls Out H-1B Visa Overhaul: Boosting Innovation or Undermining U.S. Workers?

On Tuesday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) unveiled new H-1B visa rules aimed at increasing the program's agility, flexibility, and oversight. According to the Biden Administration, the changes are intended to help fill job vacancies in critical fields and strengthen the economy. However, critics argue that the visa program "routinely undermines" American workers.

The federal agency stated that the new measures will "modernize and improve" the H-1B program by "streamlining the approvals process, increasing its flexibility to better allow employers to retain talented workers, and improving the integrity and oversight of the program."

The rules also revise the definition of "specialty occupation," specifying that the worker's required field of study must have a clear and logical connection to the job duties. Additionally, students under the F-1 visa will be able to streamline their transition to H-1B status, and family members of H-1B status holders may also qualify for H-1B status if they meet the program's criteria.

H-1B visas are particularly popular in industries such as construction, engineering, finance, IT, and healthcare. Under the previous system, up to 85,000 visas were granted annually.

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas praised the changes in the following written statement:

"American businesses rely on the H-1B visa program for the recruitment of highly-skilled talent, benefiting communities across the country. These improvements to the program provide employers with greater flexibility to hire global talent, boost our economic competitiveness, and allow highly skilled workers to continue to advance American innovation."

However, opponents of the H-1B visa program argue that it is "about replacing Americans with cheaper foreign workers," as employers are not required to prioritize hiring U.S. workers before requesting foreign professionals.

The U.S. Techworkers Movement under the Institute for Sound Public Policy, criticized the program on X (formerly Twitter), calling it "a cheap labor indentured guest worker program masquerading as a visa for talented immigrants." The coalition added, "75% of H-1Bs go to Indian nationals. Top 10 users of H-1Bs are outsourcing firms."

Far-right figures have also advocated for lowering the cap on the program, including authors of Project 2025–a conservative guidebook authored by some of Donald Trump's cabinet picks.

Texas Republican Congressman Chip Roy responded to the new rules by stating on X: "H-1B, H-2A, and H-2B visas routinely UNDERMINE American white- AND blue-collar workers," asserting that the focus should be on securing the border rather than "importing more cheap labor."

Despite these criticisms, Donald Trump's political ally Elon Musk has relied heavily on foreign workers for his business ventures. According to H-1B visa data obtained by Forbes, Tesla was among the leading employers of foreign-born scientists and engineers in FY 2024, approving 724 H-1B petitions for initial employment.

Additionally, CNN reported that Musk recently sought visas for 2,000 highly skilled foreign workers for his companies Neuralink and X Corp. Musk, originally from South Africa, was an H-1B holder himself before becoming a naturalized U.S. citizen.