A new Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulation (RIN 1615-AD22) proposes eliminating the 60-day grace period for nonimmigrant visa holders, including H-1B, L-1, and O-1 workers, following employment termination.
The proposed rule, currently under review at the federal Office of Management and Budget (OMB), would remove the crucial 60-day window that allows laid-off foreign workers to secure new employment, transfer visa status, or adjust their nonimmigrant classification while remaining lawfully in the U.S.
A Direct Contradiction to Community Needs and Past Commission Recommendations
Ajay Bhutoria is a former Advisor to the Presidential Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPI). In March 2023, while serving on the White House AANHPI Commission, Bhutoria formally presented and secured commission approval for a major policy recommendation urging the DHS and USCIS to extend the grace period from 60 days to 180 days. That recommendation highlighted the reality of corporate hiring practices, where technical interview rounds and visa transfer paperwork often take months to complete, well beyond 60 days.
Scrapping the existing 60-day grace period entirely will directly harm legal immigrants who have contributed significantly to the United States’ technological and economic leadership in his statement.
“I strongly condemn and slam this proposed DHS policy. Eliminating the 60-day grace period is inhumane and unworkable. When a worker faces a sudden termination, 60 days was already dangerously short. Stripping away this protection entirely leaves thousands of law-abiding individuals with zero time to wrap up their lives.
People will not even have time to sell their homes, manage their leases, or transition their children out of schools. Families will be uprooted overnight, thrown into chaos through no fault of their own after dedicating years of hard work and tax contributions to this country.
When I served on the Presidential AANHPI Commission, I specifically authored and pushed a recommendation to extend the grace period to 180 days precisely because the hiring process for specialized technology and engineering roles involves four to five rounds of interviews, background checks, and extensive USCIS paperwork that cannot be squeezed into a rigid window, let alone done overnight.
This proposal strikes at the heart of the South Asian immigrant community and skilled workforce. I urge DHS and the administration to withdraw this proposal immediately and instead adopt a compassionate, pragmatic 180-day grace period that respects human dignity and protects America’s competitive edge.”
Key Context & Impact on the Community
- Immediate Risk of Deportation Status: Without a grace period, termination of employment would immediately put a worker and their dependent spouse and children out of legal status, forcing immediate departure or risk receiving a Notice to Appear (NTA).
- Impact on South Asian Families: Hundreds of thousands of South Asian tech, healthcare, and engineering professionals hold H-1B status. Eliminating the grace period creates extreme psychological distress, financial ruin, and school disruptions for children raised in the U.S.
- Loss of Top Talent: Depriving workers of time to transition forces top global talent out of the country, benefiting competing economic nations while depriving U.S. companies of critical expertise.
I urge South Asian community organizations, business leaders, and advocacy groups to prepare for public comments once the rule is officially published in the Federal Register to ensure the administration hears the full impact of this proposal.
