The Trump administration has warned of a "big week ahead" on foreign labour visas, sharpening the crackdown on the H-1B programme that has kept India's IT industry and hundreds of thousands of visa holders on edge.
The warning
On Monday, October 5, 2026, US Department of Labor Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito posted on X: "Big week ahead on the foreign labour visa front. We're taking LFG to a whole new level. American jobs. American workers." He tagged the official accounts of the president, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling, the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division.
The post named no specific visa programme, employer or investigation — it is a warning of coming action, not an announcement of a specific new enforcement measure.
Vance backs elimination
Just days earlier, on October 2, Vice President Vance told the conservative outlet Real America's Voice that the H-1B programme was "completely broken" and said he would support eliminating it, arguing companies had used it to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labour. "If you're going to bring in an accountant making $45,000 a year to replace an accountant who is an American making $60,000 a year, that's not you using the programme to bring in a genius," Vance said.
The executive order and the fee fight
On September 18, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Departments of State, Labor and Homeland Security to consider whether employers sponsoring H-1B workers had carried out or planned layoffs affecting similarly situated US workers. The order also directed the Labor Department to review previously filed labour-condition applications for possible violations.
The administration's $100,000 fee on new H-1B applications — the proclamation has been extended through September 21, 2027 — has been blocked by two federal courts. On October 1, US District Judge Haywood Gilliam blocked enforcement, ruling federal agencies had not followed required rulemaking procedures. The Department of Homeland Security has separately supported a proposal for a permanent $103,256 fee.
What is at stake
According to USCIS data cited in the reporting, applicants from India have secured over 70% of all specialty-occupation work visa approvals in recent years. The annual H-1B cap is 65,000, plus 20,000 for holders of US advanced degrees. The administration has also replaced the H-1B lottery with a wage-weighted selection process that prioritises higher-paid workers.
Sources:
- Financial Express: H-1B visa crackdown: Trump admin warns of 'Big Week Ahead' for foreign labour
- bdnews24: US signals major action on foreign-worker visas as H-1B scrutiny grows
The warning
On Monday, October 5, 2026, US Department of Labor Inspector General Anthony D'Esposito posted on X: "Big week ahead on the foreign labour visa front. We're taking LFG to a whole new level. American jobs. American workers." He tagged the official accounts of the president, Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of Labor Keith Sonderling, the White House Task Force to Eliminate Fraud and the Justice Department's National Fraud Enforcement Division.
The post named no specific visa programme, employer or investigation — it is a warning of coming action, not an announcement of a specific new enforcement measure.
Vance backs elimination
Just days earlier, on October 2, Vice President Vance told the conservative outlet Real America's Voice that the H-1B programme was "completely broken" and said he would support eliminating it, arguing companies had used it to replace American workers with cheaper foreign labour. "If you're going to bring in an accountant making $45,000 a year to replace an accountant who is an American making $60,000 a year, that's not you using the programme to bring in a genius," Vance said.
The executive order and the fee fight
On September 18, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Departments of State, Labor and Homeland Security to consider whether employers sponsoring H-1B workers had carried out or planned layoffs affecting similarly situated US workers. The order also directed the Labor Department to review previously filed labour-condition applications for possible violations.
The administration's $100,000 fee on new H-1B applications — the proclamation has been extended through September 21, 2027 — has been blocked by two federal courts. On October 1, US District Judge Haywood Gilliam blocked enforcement, ruling federal agencies had not followed required rulemaking procedures. The Department of Homeland Security has separately supported a proposal for a permanent $103,256 fee.
What is at stake
According to USCIS data cited in the reporting, applicants from India have secured over 70% of all specialty-occupation work visa approvals in recent years. The annual H-1B cap is 65,000, plus 20,000 for holders of US advanced degrees. The administration has also replaced the H-1B lottery with a wage-weighted selection process that prioritises higher-paid workers.
Sources:
- Financial Express: H-1B visa crackdown: Trump admin warns of 'Big Week Ahead' for foreign labour
- bdnews24: US signals major action on foreign-worker visas as H-1B scrutiny grows
