The Trump administration is moving to eliminate a 60-day grace period that has provided crucial flexibility for foreign workers since 2017. According to Business Standard, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has proposed eliminating the discretionary 60-day grace period available to certain employment-based nonimmigrants when their employment ends before their authorized stay expires. The proposal, formally titled "Eliminating the Discretionary 60-day Grace Period," cleared review by the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) on August 27, 2026. If finalized, foreign nationals whose employment ceases prematurely would no longer be maintaining status and would generally be required to depart the United States immediately, unless US Citizenship and Immigration Services exercises separate discretion to forgive the lapse in status. The current system allows eligible workers to receive up to 60 consecutive days or until their authorized validity period expires, whichever comes first, but cannot work during this period.
The Trump administration is implementing a comprehensive mass revocation of B1 and B2 visas for foreign nationals who entered the US as short-term visitors but later applied for asylum. According to Associated Press reports citing State Department documents, hundreds of thousands of visas are affected, with the majority issued to citizens from Brazil, mainland China, India and Pakistan. US State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott confirmed that obtaining a visa to seek asylum is fraudulent and grounds for visa revocation, stating that the number of revocations remains dynamic and will be carried out on a rolling basis. Since President Trump took office, the administration has cancelled more than 175,000 visas of foreign citizens for various reasons, according to State Department data. The revocations target holders of B1 and B2 visas issued between 2016 and 2026 who have sought asylum or are currently seeking asylum, as these visas were issued with the clear understanding they were not for people intending to remain permanently in the US. This week, the Trump administration announced plans to revoke visas from up to 200,000 people seeking asylum who had initially entered the US for tourism or business purposes.
The proposed changes are particularly significant for Indian technology and skilled professionals, as Indians account for 71% of approved H-1B petitions in FY2024. According to Business Standard, the elimination of the grace period could disproportionately affect Indian professionals working in the US, as they represent a large share of H-1B workers. Under the current system, eligible workers can use the grace period to find another employer, change immigration status, or prepare to leave the US, with the provision covering H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1, E-1, E-2, E-3, and TN categories. Immigration attorney Sarah Schroeder from DiRaimondo & Schroeder noted that clearing OIRA review does not itself change the law, stating "The proposal still has to be published, opened to public comment and subsequently finalised before any regulatory change takes effect." The combination of this proposal with the $103,265 fee increase for new cap-subject H-1B petitions and enhanced regulatory scrutiny could make job transitions considerably more challenging for Indian professionals.
The US government's decision to pause immigrant visa appointments globally is creating significant uncertainty for Indian travelers planning trips to the United States. According to reports from Business Standard, travel industry executives expect some Indian travelers to defer trips or opt for alternative destinations, even as India-US traffic has already begun to weaken. Rajiv Mehra, general secretary of the Federation of Associations in Indian Tourism & Hospitality (FAITH), noted that while the reported action is not a blanket cancellation of all US tourist visas, the impression goes that the US is cancelling all visas, which is most likely to cause deferred bookings. The latest developments show that if your appointment has been rescheduled, it doesn't imply rejection, but a change in date while the US adjusts its visa processing. As per Financial Times, applicants with scheduled visa appointments were emailed that their slots had been cancelled, with new dates and times to be shared later. Immigration attorney Brian Simmons from Fragomen law firm highlighted the impact on affected applicants, stating "Many affected applicants had already spent thousands of dollars and disrupted their lives to attend scheduled interviews, only to have their appointments cancelled at the last minute."
The visa uncertainty is significantly impacting India-US air travel capacity. Airlines were operating 42 non-stop flights a week between India and the US in August 2026, compared with 97 a week in August 2025, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium as reported by Business Standard. Weekly seat capacity has fallen 58.1% to 12,096 from 28,860 a year earlier. The decline is entirely attributable to Air India, whose weekly flights have fallen to 14 from 69 a year earlier, while American Airlines and United Airlines continue to operate 14 weekly flights each. The State Department has not provided a timeline for when visa appointments will resume, stating "To accommodate this in-depth training, appointments for visa services will be adjusted."
The Trump administration has proposed a dramatic increase in H-1B visa fees to $103,265 for cap-subject petitions, representing a significant escalation from the previous $2,000-$5,000 range. According to Associated Press reports, the Department of Homeland Security estimates this fee increase will generate approximately $8.8 billion annually based on projected 85,000 annual volume of H-1B cap-subject petitions. The proposed changes would apply to H-1B petitions filed by employers, with the fee covering cap-subject petitions and petitions for workers qualifying for US advanced-degree exemptions. For 2024, American companies sponsored 880 Nigerian professionals for H-1B specialty worker visas compared to Indians, Chinese, and Australians, with the new proposal expected to further reduce Nigerian professional numbers. The fee increase is designed to recover federal government spending on immigration system legalization and support immigration-benefit decisions, fraud checks, and national security screening.
