US Plan to End H-1B Extension Deference Nears Comment Deadlineਅਮਰੀਕਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਐੱਚ-1ਬੀ ਵਿਸਥਾਰ ਸਖ਼ਤ ਹੋ ਸਕਦੇ ਹਨ

A United States proposal that could make H-1B visa extensions harder for thousands of Indian workers is approaching a key date, with public comments closing on Friday, November 13. The Department of Homeland Security published the proposal on October 14, 2026, and it would end the rule that tells immigration officers to defer to their own earlier approval when they review an extension. For the many Punjabis working in the United States on H-1B visas, the change could mean longer waits, tougher questions and more paperwork each time their status comes up for renewal.

Nothing has changed yet. The proposal is only a proposal, and the current rule stays in force until the department publishes a final rule and it takes effect. But the deadline gives workers, employers and immigration lawyers their last formal chance to weigh in before the department decides what to do next.

What is the proposal?

The proposal, titled Removing Deference to Prior USCIS Determinations of Eligibility, would delete a single regulation, 8 CFR 214.1(c)(5). That rule requires officers of US Citizenship and Immigration Services to give deference to a prior approval when they decide an extension petition involving the same employer, the same worker and the same facts, unless there is a material error, a material change or new material information.

The rule covers every petition filed on Form I-129, the form used for nonimmigrant workers. That includes H-1B, L-1, O-1, TN, E and P visas, among others. Under the proposal, officers could still look at an earlier approval, but they would no longer have to start their review from a position of deference. In practice, an extension would be examined much like a first-time application, even when nothing about the job has changed.

What would change for workers?

The department's own estimates show the scale of the change. About 208,000 petitions a year would lose the benefit of deference, and the department expects roughly 6,000 more requests for evidence each year as officers dig deeper into cases they once approved quickly. Immigration lawyers say extensions could take longer and carry a higher risk of delays, because officers would re-examine eligibility from scratch rather than relying on the earlier decision.

The proposal follows a long back-and-forth over the deference policy itself. The practice was set out in a 2004 memo, rescinded in 2017, reinstated in April 2021, and then written into regulation in December 2024 as part of the H-1B modernisation rule. The current proposal would undo that codification. Workers who file an extension before their authorised stay ends can keep working for the same employer for up to 240 days while the petition is pending, a protection that the proposal does not touch.

Why does it matter for Punjabis?

Indians form the largest group of H-1B holders in the United States, and Punjabis are heavily represented among them. The proposal arrives in a season of tightening rules: the United States has already floated a 70,000 dollar fee on the OPT student work programme, and IBM has told most of its consulting staff it will end H-1B and green card sponsorship. Each change on its own is narrow, but together they point to a harder path for Indians seeking to live and work in America.

The Times of India reported on November 12 that the proposed rule change could affect thousands of H-1B visa extensions, and analyses by major law firms and advisers, including EY, have warned employers to prepare for more scrutiny of extension filings. For families in Punjab with children working abroad, the practical advice from lawyers is unchanged for now: file extensions early, keep documentation ready, and watch for the final rule.

Does the proposal change H-1B extensions now?

No. It is a proposal, not a final rule. Deference to prior approvals remains in effect, and nothing changes unless the department publishes a final rule and it takes effect.

When do comments close?

Public comments close on Friday, November 13, 2026, under docket USCIS-2026-0529 on Regulations.gov.

Which visas does it cover?

All petitions filed on Form I-129, including H-1B, L-1, O-1, TN, E, P and R-1 workers, among others.