On December 23, 2025, the Department of Homeland Security - US Citizenship and Immigration Services (DHS/USCIS) released the text of the Final Rule regarding the “Weighted Selection Process for Registrants and Petitioners Seeking to File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions,” to be published on December 29, 2025. Upon review of 2,731 substantive comments, including the University of Michigan’s comment letter, DHS/USCIS is implementing this Final Rule without any modifications to its proposed regulatory text and will generally favor the allocation of H-1B visas to more senior and higher paid workers. The Final Rule will take effect sixty (60) days after formal publication. As a result, the new selection process will be in effect by the next H-1B registration season this Winter, for Fiscal Year 2027, which starts on October 1, 2026.
As previously mentioned, this regulation does not impact employment in H-1B status at U-M or other higher education or non-profit research institutions, as they are exempt from the cap and, therefore, the lottery. It will impact F-1 or J-1 students, among others, seeking H-1B sponsorship for work in other types of employment sectors.
The IC continues to monitor issues pertaining to our international student, scholar employee population and will share any additional information we learn about this matter.