A Presidential Proclamation signed on September 19, 2025 sets out to restrict the entry of H-1B specialty occupation workers unless employers pay a $100,000 fee per petition, with limited national-interest exemptions. Claiming widespread abuse of the H-1B program by IT outsourcing firms and other employers, the order argues that the program has displaced American workers, suppressed wages, harmed new U.S. graduates, and posed national security risks. It directs federal agencies to enforce the new payment requirement, prevent misuse of other visa categories, and begin rulemaking to raise prevailing wages and prioritize the admission of high-skilled, high-paid foreign workers.

On September 19, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled The Trump Gold Card which seeks to establish a "Gold Card" program allowing foreign nationals who make unrestricted gifts of $1 million (individuals) or $2 million (corporations) to the Commerce Department to qualify for expedited immigrant visas. The executive order implies that Gold Card recipients would take immigrant visa numbers either from the already-limited employment-based first preference (EB-1) or second preference (EB-2) pools.

The Department of State has updated its Global Visa Wait Times page, with a “last updated” date of 17-SEPTEMBER-2025.

The Department of State revised its nonimmigrant visa interview waiver policy to add H-2A visas to the list of categories that may be eligible for a waiver of the nonimmigrant visa interview if no more than 12 months have passed between the H-2A visa's expiration and an application for a new visa in the same category.

NAFSA, in coordination with several higher education associations, has prepared high-level guidance for higher education institutions on how to submit a comment letter regarding the proposal to end Duration of Status and what to include in that letter before the public comment deadline ends on September 29, 2025.

The Department of Labor (DOL) Office of Foreign Labor Certification (OFLC) announced that it has archived its searchable Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) database effective August 30, 2025. The archive is on the Internet Archive WayBack Machine.

In a September 6, 2025 news posting, the Department of State announced that effective immediately, "[a]pplicants for U.S. nonimmigrant visas (NIV) should schedule their visa interview appointments at the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in their country of nationality or residence." It is unclear whether this policy affects eligibility for third-country processing of renewal visa applications where the applicant is exempt from the in-person interview requirement. DOS says that "existing nonimmigrant visa appointments will generally not be cancelled."

On September 2, 2025 the State Department, in coordination with USCIS, announced that all Employment-Based Second Preference (EB-2) immigrant visas for fiscal year 2025 have been issued. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, EB-2 visas are capped at 28.6 percent of the worldwide employment-based limit, and with the annual quota reached, no further EB-2 visas may be issued until new numbers become available for fiscal year 2026 which begins on October 1, 2025.

The National Association of College and University Attorneys (NACUA) will offer a 2-hour webinar called "Immigration Update: Navigating Current and Emerging Developments in Higher Education" on September 23. Program, registration and registration fee information is available on the NACUA site. The webinar will be of interest to college and university counsel who advise on immigration and international issues, as well as campus administrators with responsibilities related to these areas.

The Spring 2025 Regulatory Agenda published on September 4, 2025 includes significant initiatives affecting international students, exchange visitors, and employment-based immigration. For F-1 students, DHS says that it is again working on practical training rulemaking with a goal of soon publishing a proposed rule, and has already proposed eliminating duration of status. For J-1 exchange visitors, DHS has likewise proposed eliminating duration of status and DOS plans to update J-1 regulations on extension, reinstatement, and correction of records to reflect SEVIS functionality. Employment-based initiatives on the agenda include reforming the H-1B classification, introducing a weighted selection system to favor higher wages in the H-1B cap lottery, and pursuing broader reforms in the employment-based first, second, and third preference categories.