DHS proposes eliminating the 60-day grace period

I am a Singaporean U.S. immigration attorney based in Los Angeles specializing in H-1B1 visas for Singaporeans.  My California State Bar record can be found here and my law firm website can be found here.  Feel free to connect with me on Linkedin.

Unfortunately, the Department of Homeland Security is currently proposing to eliminate the up to 60-day grace period afforded to certain highly skilled workers, including H-1B1 workers (and their dependents), after cessation of employment, by proposing to delete the federal regulation 8 CFR § 214.1(l)(2). 

8 CFR 214.1(l)(2) currently provides: "An alien admitted or otherwise provided status in E-1, E-2, E-3, H-1B, H-1B1, L-1, O-1 or TN classification and his or her dependents shall not be considered to have failed to maintain nonimmigrant status solely on the basis of a cessation of the employment on which the alien's classification was based, for up to 60 consecutive days or until the end of the authorized validity period, whichever is shorter, once during each authorized validity period."  I have previously posted about how this works for H-1B1 workers here.

If the up to 60-day grace period above is eliminated as proposed, cessation of employment would mean the worker and his/her dependents would be considered immediately failing to maintain nonimmigrant status beginning the next day. In this event, the individual (and dependents) would generally have to depart the US when the employment ceases instead of having a 60-day grace period (or until the end of the authorized validity period, whichever is shorter) to find a new employer, file a change of status application, or simply just to have some extra time to make arrangements to depart.

Please note that this is only a proposal; as of now, the 60-day grace period and 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2) are still part of the federal regulations.  The process of changing the regulations will generally take a few months.

That said, for those of you who are currently employed on H-1B1 status and are thinking of terminating your employment or facing a potential layoff, it would be prudent for you to start thinking ahead:  For example, should the 60-day grace period is eliminated, depending on how understanding your employer is, see if you are able to make your official last day of work as late as it is possible for you to be able to depart the US by your last day.  Thereafter, if/when you have found a new employer, it should still be possible to apply for a new H-1B1 visa directly at the US Embassy in Singapore under the new employer through consular processing before you return to the US to work for the new employer.

Disclaimer: This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice

New "Harm or Mistreatment" Interview Questions to be Expected at Your H-1B1 Visa Interview

I am a Singaporean U.S. immigration attorney based in Los Angeles specializing in H-1B1 visas for Singaporeans.  My California State Bar record can be found here and my law firm website can be found here.  Feel free to connect with me on Linkedin.

The Washington Post and other media outlets reported that, per an April 28, 2026 cable, the Department of State will require consular officers to ask applicants 2 questions during the interview:

1) “Have you experienced harm or mistreatment in your country of nationality or last habitual residence?” and 

2) “Do you fear harm or mistreatment in returning to your country of nationality or permanent residence?”

Per the reports, applicants must verbally respond at the visa interview with “no” to both questions in order for the visa process to continue and for the visa to be issued. 

Therefore, you should expect to be asked the above 2 questions at your H-1B1 visa interviews at the US Embassy in Singapore.  

If you say "Yes" to either of the above 2 questions, or refuse to answer the questions, the visa will be refused. 

It appears this new measure is meant to discourage or deter visa applicants from seeking asylum subsequently.  For instance, applicants who receive a visa based on a negative response to the questions and later apply for asylum in the US may be challenged on the credibility of their asylum claim against their answers at the visa interview.  By subsequently applying for asylum, such applicants may be found to have misrepresented at the time of the visa application since later applying for asylum could be seen by the government as being inconsistent with answering "no" to both the above 2 questions.

Disclaimer:  This blog post is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.