Current Policy Guide
Overview: This guide explains selected U.S. immigration changes during 2026 and links each included development to supporting government documents. Earlier rules appear where they provide relevant context. It separates proposals, finalized rules, effective dates and documented court actions, while directing readers to existing category guides and trackers for detail. Coverage reflects the sources checked on September 20, 2026, with additions dated September 29, 2026 in the final section. Check each item’s date and scope: an older announcement may describe a different stage from a later agency notice or court order. This edition includes verified material only; it is not a complete litigation docket or an assessment of anyone’s immigration case.
Coverage note: Additional policy and litigation topics remain under editorial review. Their absence does not mean they are unchanged.
At a glance
Jump to any topic below. Status definitions are in the legend beneath this list.
- H-1B weighted selection: Effective
- The proposed $103,265 H-1B fee: Proposed
- The $100,000 H-1B payment: Under appeal
- H-2 and R-1 guidance: Effective
- Duration of Status ending for F, J and I nonimmigrants: Enjoined
- Nationality restrictions and the 75-country pause: Monitoring
- Public-charge final rule: Effective
- USCIS form editions and cutoffs: Monitoring
- USCIS mandatory e-filing rule: Effective
- September Visa Bulletin and fiscal-year availability: Effective
- Consular operations and fees: Monitoring
- Court developments (CLINIC; Medani v. Trump): Monitoring
How to use this guide
Start with the status and last-verified line for each issue, then read its scope and official documents. “Last verified” identifies the review checkpoint and any limits; it does not mean every later docket event has been confirmed. A proposal, a Final ruleThe version of a federal regulation that an agency publishes in the Federal Register after reviewing public comments on a proposed rule. It sets an effective date, which generally falls at least 30 days after publication, and its text is added to the Code of Federal Regulations.See it in the glossary and an effective rule are different stages. A lawsuit is not a court order. Agency action, litigation, court orders, appeals or new guidance can change a policy’s operation.
Dates and labels describe the specific measure discussed. An entry marked Monitoring may contain a verified historical action while its current operation remains unconfirmed. Use the court section for procedural detail and the linked news articles for individual events.
Status legend
- Proposed: Suggested action; not final adoption.
- Finalized: Final text issued; the stated effective date may still be ahead.
- Effective: The cited measure has reached its effective date; read its scope and any litigation caveat.
- Delayed: Implementation has been postponed by a verified action.
- Enjoined: A court has prohibited specified conduct within the order’s scope.
- Stayed: An identified action or order has been temporarily suspended.
- Under appeal: An appeal is documented at the stated checkpoint; an appeal alone does not establish a stay.
- Rescinded: The issuing authority has withdrawn the measure.
- Expired: The measure’s stated period has ended.
- Monitoring: Current operation, a new development or a verification gap needs further checking.
H-1B weighted selection
Current status: Effective
Last verified: September 13, 2026.
The weighted-selection final rule is distinct from the separate payment litigation. This section describes the selection rule only.
Who is affected?
Registrants and PetitionerThe person or employer who files a petition on behalf of a beneficiary, such as a relative filing an I-130 or an employer filing an I-140.See it in the glossary seeking cap-subject H-1B selection.
What is in effect now?
The final rule became effective February 27, 2026 and provides weighted selection based on wage levels. Selection is not petition approval.
Key dates and timeline
Published December 29, 2025; effective February 27, 2026.
What remains uncertain?
No conclusion about an individual petition or a separate disputed payment is provided.
The proposed $103,265 H-1B fee
Current status: Proposed
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
DHS published a proposed additional fee for cap-subject Cap-subject and cap-exempt (H-1B)The H-1B category has an annual limit of 65,000 new visas or statuses per fiscal year, plus 20,000 more for people with a U.S. master's degree or higher. Petitions counted toward that limit are cap-subject. Petitions from higher education institutions, their related or affiliated nonprofits, and nonprofit or governmental research organizations are cap-exempt.See it in the glossary petitions. The proposal is distinct from the $100,000 policy in litigation.
Who is affected?
Petitioners within the proposal’s cap-subject scope, including the advanced-degree exemption.
What is in effect now?
This proposed rule does not itself create a payment obligation.
Key dates and timeline
Published August 25, 2026. The notice sets a September 24 comment deadline, before midnight Eastern time. As of September 20, 2026, that deadline is four days away.
What remains uncertain?
Whether a final rule will issue, its final scope, and any effective date. No adoption or litigation outcome is predicted.
The $100,000 H-1B payment
Current status: Under appeal
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
The $100,000 payment comes from a September 2025 Presidential proclamationA formal statement from the President addressed to the public. In immigration, proclamations are often issued under INA 212(f), which lets the President suspend or restrict the entry of noncitizens when the President finds their entry would be detrimental to the interests of the United States. The Supreme Court read that authority broadly in Trump v. Hawaii (2018), though courts have said it cannot override other parts of the INA.See it in the glossary, not from the proposed rule above. A federal court set aside the agency policy that implemented it, and the government has appealed.
Who is affected?
Employers filing certain new H-1B petitions, mainly for beneficiaries outside the United States who would enter through Consular processingApplying for an immigrant visa at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad, as an alternative to adjustment of status inside the United States.See it in the glossary, within the scope USCIS described in its guidance.
What is in effect now?
On June 8, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts vacated the policy implementing the payment. On July 24, 2026, the First Circuit denied a stay requested by the government, so the ruling stands while the appeal continues. The administration extended the underlying proclamation on September 18, 2026 (see the timeline), but sources checked on September 20 still describe the payment as blocked by the court ruling while the litigation continues. Confirm current USCIS guidance before filing.
Key dates and timeline
Proclamation 10973 issued September 19, 2025 and effective September 21, 2025 for 12 months. District court ruling June 8, 2026. Appeal filed June 11, 2026. First Circuit stay denial July 24, 2026. The original proclamation was set to expire on or about September 20, 2026. A September 18, 2026 proclamation extended the restriction through September 21, 2027. A separate September 18 Executive orderA directive from the President to federal agencies and officials about how to run the executive branch and carry out the law. Executive orders are numbered and published in the Federal Register, and they generally bind the executive branch.See it in the glossary directs agencies to increase scrutiny of H-1B applications, according to press reports. See our extension coverage and the earlier status explainer.
What remains uncertain?
How the First Circuit rules, whether and how DHS and State apply the extended proclamation while the ruling against the implementing policy stands, and how other pending challenges resolve, including a D.C. ruling that went the other way and is on appeal. No outcome is predicted.
H-2 and R-1: earlier guidance needs a date check
Current status: Effective
Last verified: September 13, 2026.
The H-2 modernization rule is retained as prior-year context. The R-1 return rule changed in January 2026. Neither change makes all older category requirements disappear.
Who is affected?
H-2A and H-2B workers and petitioners, and R-1 religious workers reaching their maximum stay.
What is in effect now?
H-2 modernization removed the general designated-country restriction. The R-1 interim rule removed the one-year foreign-residence requirement after maximum stay; departure is still required.
Key dates and timeline
H-2 rule effective January 17, 2025. R-1 Interim final ruleA rule that takes effect without a prior comment period. The agency accepts public comments after it is published and may revise the rule afterward.See it in the glossary effective January 16, 2026.
What remains uncertain?
Category-specific conditions and subsequent implementation guidance must be checked. The R-1 change does not authorize unlimited extensions.
Duration of Status ending for F, J and I nonimmigrants
Current status: Enjoined
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
DHS finalized a rule replacing Duration of status (D/S)The period of stay for F, J and I nonimmigrants, who are admitted for as long as they maintain their program or activity rather than until a fixed date. It appears as D/S on Form I-94.See it in the glossary with fixed admission periods, but a federal court has postponed the rule’s effective date while a legal challenge proceeds.
Who is affected?
F academic students, J exchange visitors and I representatives of foreign information media.
What is in effect now?
On September 14, 2026, a judge in the underlying case granted a preliminary injunction under the Administrative Procedure Act, postponing the rule’s effective date and barring DHS from implementing it while the litigation continues. The rule did not take effect on September 15 as scheduled, and F, J and I nonimmigrants remain on the pre-existing duration-of-status framework for now. The same order denied, without prejudice, the plaintiffs’ broader request to vacate the rule outright, so that question stays open. The government is expected to appeal, and a status conference in the case is set for October 2, 2026. No notice of appeal had been reported in the sources checked on September 20, 2026. The injunction also affects paperwork: AILA reports that the new 09/15/26 editions of Forms I-539 and I-765 did not take effect on September 15. See the form-edition section below.
Key dates and timeline
Published July 17, 2026; original effective date September 15, 2026, now postponed by court order. Lawsuit filed August 18, 2026. Preliminary injunction hearings September 3 and September 9, 2026. Preliminary injunction granted September 14, 2026. Status conference set for October 2, 2026.
What remains uncertain?
Whether the government’s expected appeal succeeds in reinstating the rule, and how long the postponement lasts while the underlying case proceeds. Congressional Review Act status and the plaintiffs’ request to vacate the rule outright also remain unresolved.
Nationality restrictions and the separate 75-country pause
Current status: Monitoring
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
These are different policies. The State Department’s dated update says the 75-country immigrant-visa pause ended; separate proclamation-based restrictions require their own scope and exception checks. A second, separate case has also vacated the 75-country pause specifically as it affects Diversity Visa applicants.
Who is affected?
Applicants covered by the nationality, document and visa-class provisions of the respective measures, and FY2026 Diversity Visa selectees and their family members specifically.
What is in effect now?
State’s August 28 update says the 75-country pause was no longer in effect as of August 21 under the CLINIC order. Its separate proclamation guidance describes full or partial restrictions and exceptions. In a second case, Medani v. Trump, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued an August 28, 2026 order that separately and specifically vacated the 75-country pause as applied to Diversity Visa applicants, along with a related USCIS hold on pending DV adjustment-of-status applications and a State Department pause on DV issuance; see the Medani entry in the Court developments section below.
Key dates and timeline
Proclamation restrictions effective January 1, 2026; separate 75-country update dated August 28; Medani v. Trump preliminary-injunction order dated August 28, 2026.
What remains uncertain?
Later court orders and other issuance restrictions. Ending one pause does not establish that every applicant can receive a visa. The government has appealed the CLINIC judgment, which remains in effect unless it is stayed. A related case focused specifically on the 75-country freeze, Syed v. Trump, has a hearing scheduled for September 21, 2026, and the Medani case has a status conference scheduled for September 21, 2026, at 12:30 PM; neither outcome is reflected here.
Public-charge final rule and its application dates
Current status: Effective
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
DHS has finalized a rule rescinding the 2022 public-charge regulations and revising bond provisions. The rule took effect September 18, 2026, and lawsuits challenging it are pending.
Who is affected?
Admission or adjustment applicants to whom the public-charge ground applies; this is not a finding about any person’s eligibility or exemptions.
What is in effect now?
The rule took effect September 18, 2026. Lawsuits challenging it were filed in the Southern District of New York by a coalition of states, a coalition of cities and legal aid groups. Its dates provision covers admission applications made on or after that date and adjustment applications postmarked or electronically submitted on or after that date. No court order blocking the rule was found in the sources checked on September 20, 2026.
Key dates and timeline
Published July 20; effective September 18. Lawsuits filed September 14 and September 18, 2026. The rule says earlier receipt of means-tested benefits is considered consistently with the 2022 rule.
What remains uncertain?
Whether any court will block or narrow the rule, plus case-specific scope, exemptions, bond implementation and later guidance, needs careful review. Do not infer that every pending application switches rules.
USCIS form editions and September to October cutoffs
Current status: Monitoring
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
Form-edition acceptance is a separate procedural issue from eligibility. This guide summarizes upcoming checkpoints and links to the existing form tracker for maintenance.
Who is affected?
Filers using Forms I-539, I-765, I-485 or I-864.
What is in effect now?
USCIS announced in an August 14 alert that new 09/15/26 editions of I-539 and I-765 would be required starting September 15. After the September 14 injunction in the Duration of Status case, AILA reports that those two editions did not take effect on September 15, and USCIS has since marked its original alert as out of date. Confirm the current edition on the I-539 and I-765 pages before filing. The 09/18/26 I-485 edition, tied to the public-charge rule, applies to filings postmarked or electronically submitted on or after September 18. These dates concern form-edition acceptance.
Key dates and timeline
I-539/I-765: 09/15/26 editions announced, but not in effect after the September 14 injunction. I-485: 09/18/26 edition in effect September 18. I-864: only 08/24/26 edition beginning October 1.
What remains uncertain?
Official indexed I-864 and I-864EZ instructions state that the 10/17/24 editions will not be processed if postmarked or electronically submitted on or after October 1; the accepted new edition is 08/24/26. This summary covers the stated edition cutoffs; consult each form’s instructions for other filing requirements.
USCIS mandatory e-filing rule
Current status: Effective
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
A DHS interim final rule lets USCIS require electronic filing of certain benefit requests. It does not by itself move any specific form to online-only filing. Our full explainer covers the details.
Who is affected?
Anyone filing a benefit request on a form that USCIS later designates as e-file only. USCIS may do so only after the form has been available online for at least 180 days and after at least 60 days of advance public notice on its website.
What is in effect now?
The rule took effect August 11, 2026, according to the USCIS announcement. Paper filing stays valid for a form until USCIS names that form as e-file only and the notice period runs. The rule also sets a process for requesting a waiver when a person cannot file electronically. The form tracker follows form-by-form changes.
Key dates and timeline
Published and effective August 11, 2026. Comments are due October 13, 2026 in docket USCIS-2026-0232, before midnight Eastern time.
What remains uncertain?
Which forms USCIS will designate and when, and whether the rule changes after public comment. No outcome is predicted.
September Visa Bulletin and fiscal-year availability
Current status: Effective
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
The September bulletin is a monthly allocation document, not a promise that a case can be approved. The existing Visa Bulletin tracker remains the home for category-by-category tables.
Who is affected?
Family- and employment-preference applicants and FY2026 Diversity Visa applicants, within their category and chargeability area.
What is in effect now?
Comparing August and September, EB-4 final-action dates move from October 15 to December 15, 2022; some family dates also advance. A headline saying all employment dates are unchanged is too broad.
Key dates and timeline
September 2026 bulletin; FY2026 ends September 30.
What remains uncertain?
The retrieved September Final Action Dates chart already marks India EB-2 as U (unavailable). Its separate warnings about potential exhaustion in other categories must not be described as confirmed exhaustion. USCIS chart selection and later notices require separate checks; October 1 does not guarantee approval. No October 2026 bulletin had been found in the sources checked on September 20, 2026, so the September figures above remain the latest reviewed.
Consular operations, fees and dated appointment guidance
Current status: Monitoring
Last verified: September 20, 2026.
Consular disruptions need a named post and dated notice. The official May 18 and July 15 notices below cover named posts and a regional realignment, not a worldwide pause. Separately, a September 8 government court filing reports a broader immigrant-visa appointment cancellation.
Who is affected?
Applicants using Juba, Kinshasa or Kampala, and applicants covered by the separate Africa regional-hub notice. Immigrant-visa applicants with appointments elsewhere may also be affected by the worldwide cancellations described below.
What is in effect now?
The May 18 notice covers all visa services at those three embassies. The July 15 Africa notice describes a separate regional realignment beginning August 1. Neither establishes a worldwide interview pause. In the CLINIC case, plaintiffs’ counsel summarizes the government’s September 8 status report as stating that State extended worldwide immigrant-visa appointment cancellations through September for public-charge training, with no fixed timeline for reconsidering cases denied solely under the vacated 75-country policy. A law firm summary dated August 27 reported the pause earlier. We did not find a State Department notice describing it.
Key dates and timeline
Local pause notice May 18; regional-hub update July 15; realignment August 1, 2026. Worldwide immigrant-visa appointment cancellations extended through September, per the government’s September 8 court filing.
What remains uncertain?
Current appointment availability, when worldwide immigrant-visa appointments resume after September, and any later post-specific resumption. Fee, bond and interview-waiver instructions also need their own dated sources; no new universal fee or waiver rule is asserted here.
Court developments
The following is a dated summary of the retrieved court document, not a representation that the entire current docket has been reviewed.
CLINIC: the 75-country immigrant-visa pause
Current status: Under appeal
Document verified: September 20, 2026.
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1:26-cv-00858, Judge Jeannette A. Vargas.
- Procedural posture documented
- The August 21 opinion resolves cross-motions for partial summary judgment in part; other claims remain. On August 31, 2026, the court granted in part plaintiffs’ emergency motion to enforce and ordered a sworn status report on compliance. According to plaintiffs’ counsel, the government’s September 8 report acknowledged that more than 43,000 immigrant visa applications were denied solely under the vacated policy, and the government filed a notice of appeal on September 10, 2026.
- Relevant order
- August 21, 2026 opinion and order, document 83.
- Effect specified by the order
- Vacatur of the 75-country issuance policy and refusals based solely on it, with further agency proceedings. State’s August 28 notice says that pause ended as of August 21.
- Next event specified by the order
- The appeal is pending, and the district court judgment remains in effect unless it is stayed. Plaintiffs have asked the court to require ongoing compliance reporting; check the docket for the ruling and any scheduling changes.
Medani v. Trump: DV-2026 processing and the related USCIS/State pauses
Current status: Monitoring
Document verified: September 20, 2026.
- Court
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, 5:26-cv-06332-EJD, Judge Edward J. Davila.
- Procedural posture documented
- An August 27, 2026 hearing preceded an August 28, 2026 order granting in part plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction and in part their motion for class certification; the case is not finally resolved.
- Relevant order
- August 28, 2026 order granting partial preliminary injunction and partial class certification.
- Effect specified by the order
- The order certified three subclasses of FY2026 Diversity Visa selectees and temporarily vacated three policies: the USCIS hold on pending DV adjustment-of-status applications; the State Department’s pause on DV issuance; and the 75-country pause as it affected DV applicants from listed nations. It directs USCIS and the State Department, to the extent practicable and in good faith, to take reasonable steps to resume ordinary adjudication for the remainder of the DV fiscal year. It does not require approval of any individual application and does not extend the FY2026 Diversity Visa deadline.
- Next event specified by the order
- A status conference is scheduled for September 21, 2026, at 12:30 PM via videoconference before Judge Edward J. Davila; the statutory FY2026 Diversity Visa deadline of September 30, 2026 is unaffected by this order. A separate case focused specifically on the 75-country freeze, Syed v. Trump, has a hearing scheduled for September 21, 2026.
Added September 29, 2026
These items were verified on September 29, 2026 and supplement the sections above. Each is limited to the scope of the cited document.
Immigrant visa and Diversity Visa pauses
A State Department cable dated September 10, 2026 tells posts that the immigrant visa and Diversity Visa pauses are no longer in effect after a court order. It says applicants may not be refused under section 221(g) for either pause and directs posts to plan to reconsider applications previously refused under them. The statutory September 30, 2026 Diversity Visa deadline is unaffected by the court orders.
USCIS weekend and holiday deadline rule
In a September 23, 2026 policy alert, USCIS said that from October 23, 2026 a deadline falling on a weekend or federal holiday moves to the next business day only when a statute, regulation or form instruction states the period in days. Deadlines tied to a birthday, age cutoff or arrival anniversary do not move, and the alert applies that distinction to the one-year asylum filing requirement.
Proposal to end the 60-day grace period
DHS published a proposed rule on September 11, 2026 that would eliminate the discretionary grace period of up to 60 days for E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 and TN workers and their dependents after employment ends, according to a law firm summary. Comments are open for 60 days. It is a proposal only, and the current grace period remains in place.
H-1B fee proposal comment period
The comment deadline for the proposed $103,265 H-1B fee, listed above as September 24, has passed. No final rule had been reported in the sources checked on September 29.
B-1/B-2 visa bond program made permanent
State published a final rule on August 3, 2026 making the visa bond program permanent. Its country list changes, and bonds of $10,000, $15,000 or $20,000 apply only to B-1/B-2 visas. A temporary rule separately lets selected posts offer a $750 expedited B-1/B-2 appointment through December 31, 2026, described in the Federal Register notice.
USCIS benefit holds
USCIS’s January 1, 2026 memorandum placing holds on benefit requests from certain countries is marked on its website as no longer in effect due to court orders. That document does not settle how any particular application is being processed.
The Visa Bulletin note above still applies: no October 2026 bulletin had been found in the sources checked.