Automated update. This note was compiled automatically from the official sources linked below, and its figures and dates were matched to those sources by software. It has not been reviewed by a lawyer. Read the source itself before relying on it, and take advice from a US-licensed immigration attorney on your own case.
| Documents | Proclamation 11069 and Executive Order 14431 |
|---|---|
| Signed | 18 September 2026 |
| Published | 23 September 2026 (91 FR 60497 and 91 FR 60501) |
| Restriction runs until | 21 September 2027, unless extended |
| Payment | $100,000 |
What changed
On 23 September 2026 the Federal Register published two presidential documents dated 18 September 2026. Proclamation 11069 extends, for an additional 12 months, the restriction on entry of certain H-1B nonimmigrant workers that Proclamation 10973 imposed in September 2025. Executive Order 14431 separately directs several departments to coordinate on H-1B compliance.
The restriction now runs until 21 September 2027 unless it is extended again. Both documents concern H-1B specialty-occupation workers only. The text does not address immigrant (green card) petitions.
How the $100,000 restriction works
The proclamation relies on sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. Its main provisions are:
- Section 1(a): entry as an H-1B specialty-occupation nonimmigrant is restricted, except for workers whose petitions are accompanied or supplemented by a payment of $100,000.
- Section 1(b): the Secretary of Homeland Security is to restrict decisions on H-1B petitions that are not accompanied by the payment, for workers who are currently outside the United States.
- Section 1(c): the restriction does not apply to an individual, to all workers at a company, or to all workers in an industry if the Secretary of Homeland Security determines, in the Secretary's discretion, that hiring them is in the national interest and does not threaten the security or welfare of the United States.
- Section 2: before filing an H-1B petition for someone outside the United States, an employer must obtain and retain documentation showing that the payment has been made. The Secretary of State verifies receipt of payment during the visa process.
- Section 3(a): the restriction applies to people who enter or try to enter after the effective date, including those who must seek admission to give effect to an approved petition.
What the proclamation says about the first year
The proclamation explains the extension by pointing to what it describes as measurable effects since September 2025. These are the government's own figures, as stated in the proclamation, and Lexverse has not independently verified them:
- The $100,000 payment has been made for over 700 petitions.
- The largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms reduced their combined H-1B registrations from 24,946 to 2,055, a 92 percent decrease.
- Consular processing requests fell by nearly 97 percent between the FY 2025 and FY 2027 cap seasons.
- Registrations for beneficiaries with at least a U.S. Master's degree rose from 45.1 percent of total registrants for FY 2026 to 66.1 percent for FY 2027.
It also refers to two related rulemakings: a DHS final rule published on 29 December 2025 creating a weighted selection process for cap-subject H-1B registrations, which applied to the FY 2027 cap season, and a Department of Labor notice of proposed rulemaking published on 27 March 2026 on prevailing wage levels, which the proclamation says will align wage levels with wages paid to similarly employed workers once it is finalized.
The companion executive order
Executive Order 14431 does not itself charge a fee. It directs the Secretaries of State, Labor and Homeland Security to coordinate with the Secretaries of Commerce and Education and the Administrator of the Small Business Administration when processing H-1B petitions, labor condition applications and visas. It also provides that:
- those departments are to take into account, in any labor condition application, petition, visa or entry, whether the employer sponsor directly or indirectly engaged in layoffs within the previous year, or plans future layoffs, that negatively affect similarly situated U.S. workers (section 3(a));
- within 30 days of the order, the Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division is to begin reviewing data from previously submitted labor condition applications to decide whether further action against sponsoring employers is warranted (section 3(b)).
Like the proclamation, the order states that it creates no right or benefit enforceable against the United States.
What to watch next
Section 3(b) of the proclamation requires the Secretaries of State, Labor and Homeland Security and the Attorney General to submit a joint recommendation on whether a further extension or renewal is in the interests of the United States. That recommendation is due no later than 30 days after the H-1B lottery that immediately follows the proclamation.
The Department of Labor's wage rule is still a proposal, according to the proclamation, so the final text and its effective date are separate developments to follow. The restriction's exceptions turn on a discretionary determination by the Secretary of Homeland Security, and anyone with a specific H-1B filing or visa application in progress will want to read sections 1 to 3 of the proclamation in full and take advice from a US-licensed immigration attorney.
Official sources and documents
- Proclamation 11069: Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers (Federal Register, 91 FR 60497) — Federal Register, 23 September 2026
- Proclamation 11069: official PDF on govinfo.gov (PDF) PDF — U.S. Government Publishing Office, 23 September 2026
- Executive Order 14431: Enhancing Program Integrity and Interagency Coordination in the Administration of the H-1B Nonimmigrant Visa Program (Federal Register, 91 FR 60501) — Federal Register, 23 September 2026
- Executive Order 14431: official PDF on govinfo.gov (PDF) PDF — U.S. Government Publishing Office, 23 September 2026
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