Just this week, the US Citizenship and Immigration and Services (USCIS) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) finally greenlit the a rule it had long been pushing to see through till the finish line. Amid the continued H-1B program overhaul, US authorities have now created the weighted selection process for the annual cap associated with the ‘specialty occupations’ nonimmigrant visa program, thereby favouring high wage earners.
The official announcement saw many according it with a resounding round of applause, especially those from Donald Trump’s MAGA camp. One of those high-profile figure just happens to be Sri Lankan-born billionaire tech mogul Chamath Palihapitiya, who particularly turned a major Trump supporter and megadonor during the Republican’s 2024 presidential campaign.
Chamath Palihapitiya on H-1B lottery system being revamped
Sharing the word around like everybody else in the US thrilled to see the H-1B shake-up, the South Asian-origin Social Capital CEO pointed the finger at certain companies “abusing” the nonimmigrant work visa program.
“The H1B system has been manipulated by some companies as a form of labor arbitrage to staff up cheap labor – with many abuses well documented,” he wrote on X. Thereafter, he went on to declare the “displacement of qualified American workers” as the “most negative consequence” of the purported H-1B visa “abuse.”
Applauding the shift in the H-1B visa program from a random lottery system to wage-based selection, he added, “That is why this proposed change has the potential to make the H1B visa system much less prone to abuse and a more constructive part of the American labor model.”
The billionaire investor especially made headlines earlier this year after he was pictured at a September White House dinner alongside other tech titans like Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and OpenAI’s Sam Altman.
The H1B system has been manipulated by some companies as a form of labor arbitrage to staff up cheap labor – with many abuses well documented.
— Chamath Palihapitiya (@chamath) December 24, 2025
The most negative consequence is the displacement of qualified American workers.
That is why this proposed change has the potential to… pic.twitter.com/jF8BPXE7ZH
Among the many reactions under his post, a popular job posting page called ‘Jobs.Now,’ particularly known for its anti H-1B stance, wrote in comments, “Next we need them to clean up the green card pipeline – absolutely dominated by fraud and anti-American discrimination right now.”
What is the new H-1B visa rule change about?
Busting all chatter and setting things in stone, the USCIS pushed an press release dated December 23, 2025, announcing that the DHS is amending its regulations governing the H-1B work visa selection process. Per the given changes, applicants the program will prioritise applicants its describes as “higher-skilled and higher-paid aliens” in its bid to protect wages, working conditions and job opportunity for American workers.
Consequently, these shifting priorities will be replacing the random lottery selection method that weighed all applicants equally regardless of their wage levels. The final rule will be effective February 27, 2026, and will be impact the FY 2027 H-1B cap registration season.
.@DHSgov is publishing a final new rule for the H-1B work visa program to better protect American workers and wages. For too long, the H-1B program has failed to meet Congress’ intent.
— USCIS (@USCIS) December 23, 2025
Learn more: https://t.co/gHK64EAALO pic.twitter.com/3pIIvOyrPz
As per the congressional mandate, the annual regular cap for H-1B visa is set at 65,000, with an additional 20,000 for applicants with advanced US degrees.
“The existing random selection process of H-1B registrations was exploited and abused by US employers who were primarily seeking to import foreign workers at lower wages than they would pay American workers,” said USCIS spokesman Matthew Tragesser in a statement highlighted in the press release.
“he new weighted selection will better serve Congress’ intent for the H-1B program and strengthen America’s competitiveness by incentivizing American employers to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers. With these regulatory changes and others in the future, we will continue to update the H-1B program to help American businesses without allowing the abuse that was harming American workers.”
He further emphasised that under the Trump administration, officials will remain committed to H-1B reform. In their efforts to achieve the ‘America First’ agenda, authorities’ priority will be that American workers are “not undercut” by US employers and international workers.
Green Card lottery was also suspended
In addition to the changes being made to the H-1B program, US President Trump also suspended green card lottery system, which is also known as the Diversity Visa Program, after a Portuguese man was identified as the suspected Brown University shooter and possible MIT professor killer. Through this lottery program, a limited number of immigrant visas are made available each year to people from countries with low rates of immigration to the US.
However, this is not to be confused with the actual issuance of a green card, as winning the Diversity Visa lottery merely grants you the opportunity to apply for permanent residence. And so, the subsequent steps in the process would follow up with the same protocols involving interviews, background checks and other checklists that one must pass as per the necessary US immigration requirements needed to become a green card holder.
