No, Obama-era policy never restricted H-1B workers — the visa for skilled specialty jobs — the way Trump-era policy has. Obama added narrow fees and paperwork checks while also opening work rights for some spouses. Trump moved toward broad entry limits, wage-based selection, and higher wage floors. That difference matters for staffing firms, sponsoring employers, and families.
Table of Contents
- What Obama restricted
- Where Obama expanded H-1B options
- How Trump changed direction
- What the newest Trump limits would do
- What to check if you are affected
What Obama restricted
The Jan. 8, 2010 Neufeld memo required H-1B petitioners to prove a continuing employer-employee relationship. The burden fell mainly on IT staffing firms placing workers at third-party client sites. Mondaq/U.S. Immigration analysis described the added evidence burden in 2018. President Obama also signed higher fees for large H-1B-dependent employers.
Murthy Law Firm describes added fees for certain H-1B petitions as $2,000 in Aug. 2010 and $4,000 for employers with 50 or more U.S. workers over 50 percent H-1B and L-1 under the Dec. 18, 2015 appropriations act. Those were targeted costs and filing hurdles. They did not bar entry for new H-1B workers or replace the cap lottery.
Where Obama expanded H-1B options
Obama-era DHS expanded work options through a final rule effective May 26, 2015. It let certain H-4 spouses of H-1B workers seeking green cards seek employment authorization through Form I-765. The Congressional Research Service explains the H-4 rule in its H-4 work authorization FAQ.
The policy helped a defined group: spouses tied to a green-card process. It did not grant work rights to all H-4 holders. It also ran opposite to a broad restriction model.
How Trump changed direction
President Trump issued Executive Order 13788, "Buy American and Hire American," on Apr. 18, 2017. It directed DHS, Labor, State, and Justice to review H-1B rules to protect U.S. workers and prevent fraud. American Immigration Lawyers Association summarized the order in Apr.
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2017. Trump agencies then tried sharp wage increases in Oct. 2020 through Labor and DHS interim-final rules. The Northern District of California set both rules aside on Dec. 1, 2020 for violating notice-and-comment requirements, according to Minsky McCormick and Hallagan. The defeat was procedural, not a ruling that higher wages were unlawful.
What the newest Trump limits would do
The Sept. 19, 2025 Proclamation 10973 barred entry of new H-1B workers after Sept. 21, 2025 unless the petition carried a $100,000 payment. The University of Colorado international-student office tracks the narrowing of that fee to new petitions and the June 8, 2026 Massachusetts court block in its current status of the $100,000 H-1B fee. DHS separately published a final rule on Dec.
29, 2025 replacing random cap-lottery selection with wage-weighted selection. Mondaq/Immigration analysis describes wage-level selection for the new H-1B cap lottery as favoring higher OEWS wage levels, effective Feb. 27, 2026 for the FY2027 cap season. Labor also proposed on Mar. 26, 2026 to raise prevailing-wage percentiles from 17/34/50/67 to 34/52/70/88. Duane Morris estimated about $14,000 in added average certified wages yearly, with the heaviest effect on entry-level H-1B, H-1B1, E-3, and PERM cases if finalized.
What to check if you are affected
Your risk depends on petition type, worksite, wage level, and family status. Direct hires, staffing placements, renewals, cap cases, and H-4 spouses face different rules.
Keep the receipt notice, wage determination, client letter, and any USCIS fee notice together. An employer or immigration lawyer can match those papers to the current petition category before you travel or change jobs.
- Ask whether the job is at a third-party site and what proves supervision.
- Ask whether the employer pays the large-employer H-1B fee surcharge.
- Ask whether the petition is new, a renewal, or a cap case.
- Ask what OEWS wage level supports the offer.
- Ask whether an H-4 spouse can file Form I-765 under the 2015 rule.
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