As the Donald Trump administration Thursday moved towards ending the 60-day grace period for several work visa holders, panic spread as the H-1B visa is one of them and the proposal would mean that an H-1B holder will have to leave the US immediately if they lose their jobs.Under current immigration laws, holders of certain visas, particularly H-1B visas, which are non-immigrant visas that allow employers to sponsor skilled workers with Bachelor’s degrees or higher, get a 60-day grace period to find a new job if they lose the employment tied to their visa. “This proposal restores a direct relationship between an alien’s nonimmigrant status and the specific employment or activity that formed the basis of his or her admission or grant of status in the United States and reduces administrative burden,” the proposal said.Immigration lawyer Sonal Sharma cautioned that it is still a proposal and can be rejected, modified, or implemented as is.“This is only a proposal. The 60-day grace period is still in effect right now. Don’t make any decisions based just on this proposal, and be careful about online claims that the grace period is already gone. The final rule could be adopted as is, changed, delayed, or even withdrawn. Its start date and any transition rules will be set if and when a final rule is issued,” Sharma wrote in a LinkedIn post.
6 things to do if this rule takes effect exactly as the proposal
- Consider your last day of work as your last day of visa status. Make sure you have a plan to leave or transition before your job ends, not after.
- Submit any change-of-employer, change-of-status, or extension applications early, ideally before your job ends, since there won’t be time to stay and look for new work.
- Think about using premium processing or portability options (like H-1B AC21 portability) to make sure a new petition is filed before your current job ends.
- Employers should plan for immigration timing when offboarding employees, and remember that H-1B and O-1 sponsors may need to cover reasonable return travel costs.
- Keep in mind that leaving and reentering the US can be a backup plan, since a new approved petition usually allows you to come back.
- Keep an eye on the Federal Register and the official docket for updates on the final rule and when it will take effect.