Howard Lutnick Questions the H-1B Lottery System, Hints at Ongoing Talks on Whether it Should Continue or be Changed.

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In a recent statement, Trump aide Howard Lutnick, who is also the US Commerce Secretary, signaled the Government’s plan to make a “significant” number of changes to the H-1B visa system before 2026. The Donald Trump-led administration recently imposed a massive fee of $100,000 on fresh H-1B visa petitions, including renewals. However, it was later clarified that the existing visa-holders do not fall under the new system and can exit and return without any fee.

Current Visa Process ‘Wrong’

The US Commerce Secretary feels “the current visa process is just wrong, that low-cost tech consultants are allowed to enter the US and bring their families”.

“This procedure and process goes into effect in February of 2026, so my guess is going to be, there are going to be a significant number of changes between now and 2026,” Lutnick said.

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“I think the H1-B lottery needs to be fixed. Right? I think we should only give jobs, highly skilled jobs, to the most highly skilled people. Doctors should be able to come in, and educators who are highly skilled and have high degrees. Of course, these people should be able to come in. And if you want to hire engineers, you should hire highly paid ones. The idea of having tech consultants and trainees who are inexpensive should be eliminated,” the Trump aide mentioned.

Is the Lottery System Effective?

“This H1-B is a lottery. Yesterday, I talked to the heads of two of the top five tech companies in the world, and they said that doing a lottery for skilled workers coming into America is bizarre. I mean, why, when you’re trying to take in skilled workers, would you do it by a lottery? That just does not make any sense. So everyone agrees that the process that was set up in the 1990s and sort of butchered along the way needs to change,” Lutnick stated.

While addressing the steep rise in fees, Lutnick said, "At least it shouldn't be overrun with these people. But I think you're going to see a really thoughtful change going forward. And that's what I expect will happen."

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He mentioned that the “one-time fee of USD 100,000 will be there to get in as of now”.

About ‘Project Firewall’

The US Department of Labour has recently introduced ‘Project Firewall’ to strengthen enforcement and protect American workers. “Launching Project Firewall will help us ensure no employers are abusing H-1B visas at the expense of our workforce,” said the Secretary of Labour, Lori Chavez-DeRemer. With this initiative, direct investigations, with penalties such as back wage recovery or fines, can be imposed on the organizations.

If implemented strictly, the changes in the H-1B visa could impact skilled foreign workers working in the US to retain their employment status, especially within high-demand sectors like tech and engineering.

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