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As of October 2026, the public record documents the U.S. policy changes, India’s official response, and a steep government-reported drop in H-1B registrations by the largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms. It does not show that Indian technology companies shrugged off the changes. No named Indian company’s statement or strategy appears in the public sources cited here, so “shrug off” is a conclusion the evidence cannot yet support. The sections below separate what is established from what the headline assumes.
What changed in the U.S. H-1B rules
Four separate actions shape the current picture. They reach different people, so it helps to keep them apart.
| Action | Date and timing | What it does | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Proclamation restricting H-1B visa issuance and entry | September 2025; State Department guidance updated September 21, 2025 | Restricts visa issuance and entry for people seeking them on H-1B petitions filed after the proclamation’s effective time, unless the petition was accompanied or supplemented by a $100,000 payment. The guidance said no visas had been revoked under the proclamation. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) determines the listed exceptions. | U.S. Department of State |
| Weighted cap selection | Announced December 23, 2025; effective February 27, 2026 for the fiscal year (FY) 2027 registration season | Gives higher-skilled and higher-paid beneficiaries a greater probability of selection while keeping an opportunity for employers to secure H-1B workers at all wage levels. | DHS and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) |
| Continuation of the entry restriction | September 2026 proclamation; runs for 12 months from 12:01 a.m. EDT on September 21, 2026 | Continues the entry restriction, subject to exceptions and the $100,000 payment condition. Directs agencies to restrict decisions on certain petitions for H-1B workers outside the United States. | The White House |
| Program-integrity action | September 2026 | Directs interagency coordination. The administration presents it as a response to alleged fraud, wage suppression and displacement of U.S. workers. These are the administration’s stated allegations and rationale, not independently established findings. | The White House |
Does the $100,000 payment apply to existing H-1B holders?
The published material does not give a single yes-or-no answer. The State Department guidance ties the restriction to visa issuance and entry based on petitions filed after the effective time. The September 2026 continuation concerns entry and directs agencies toward certain petitions for workers outside the United States. Whether a particular worker is covered therefore depends on where the worker is and what kind of petition is involved. Check these points first:
- Is the worker outside the United States and needing a visa or entry to start or resume work?
- Is the petition a new cap-subject hire, or an extension, amendment or change of status for someone already in the country?
- When was the petition filed relative to the effective time of the restriction in force?
- Does the case fit one of the exceptions the proclamation allows DHS to determine?
The published descriptions do not say who bears the $100,000 payment when it applies. Confirm current text on the State Department and USCIS websites, and with an immigration attorney, before committing to a start date or a relocation.
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How weighted selection changes the odds
The annual statutory cap is 65,000 visas, plus 20,000 for eligible U.S. advanced-degree holders. Under the weighted process, higher-skilled and higher-paid beneficiaries receive a greater probability of selection. USCIS says the change still gives employers an opportunity to secure H-1B workers at every wage level. The agency’s spokesperson, Matthew Tragesser, described the rule this way: “The new weighted selection will better serve Congress’ intent for the H-1B program and strengthen America’s competitiveness by incentivizing American employers to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers.” That is the agency’s own account of its rule, not an independent evaluation.
Whether the change affects Indian IT firms depends on the wage mix of the petitions they file. The public sources do not break that mix out by company.
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What the Federal Register reports
A Federal Register notice dated September 23, 2026 (Volume 91, Issue 183) reports the figures below. These are government-published administrative figures. They describe the notice’s account of the changes and cover large IT staffing and outsourcing firms as a group.
| Measure | Earlier figure | Later figure | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Combined H-1B registrations, largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms | 24,946 | 2,055, described in the notice as a 92% decrease | Federal Register, 2026 |
| Consular-processing requests (applications for visa processing at U.S. consulates abroad) | Absolute counts not stated in the notice summary | Nearly 97% decline between the FY 2025 and FY 2027 cap seasons | Federal Register, 2026 |
| Selected registrants with at least a U.S. master’s degree | 45.1% (FY 2026) | 66.1% (FY 2027) | Federal Register, 2026 |
The notice summary does not state which registration seasons the 24,946 and 2,055 totals cover, so read that pair as the notice’s own before-and-after comparison. The same notice reports that job offers at the two highest wage levels made up about 46.3% of selections, while the lowest wage level made up 17.8% (Federal Register, 2026). For a worker, that means the salary level attached to a petition now bears on its selection odds.
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1Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches2Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems3Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteWhat the Indian government has said
India’s official spokesperson statement, dated September 20, 2025, framed skilled talent mobility as a shared benefit: “Skilled talent mobility and exchanges have contributed enormously to technology development, innovation, economic growth, competitiveness and wealth creation in both our countries.” That is the government’s position on the program in general. It is not evidence about how any company responded.
Does the evidence show Indian tech giants shrugged off the changes?
No. Three gaps keep the headline from being supported.
- No company-level statement. The public sources do not include a statement, filing or strategy from TCS, Infosys, Wipro, HCLTech or any other named Indian firm describing how it responded to the H-1B changes.
- The registration data covers a group, not a country or sector. The 92% drop describes the largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms combined. It cannot be used to infer any single firm’s exposure, and it does not describe every Indian company or the sector as a whole.
- Approval rankings show program users, not reactions. Associated Press reporting in December 2025, “Trump administration moves to overhaul H-1B visa system,” named Amazon as the top H-1B approval recipient in the year it referenced, followed by Tata Consultancy Services, Microsoft, Apple and Google. The list shows who uses the program. It says nothing about whether any of them were unaffected, and it includes U.S. companies.
How to measure a company’s exposure
To judge how a specific firm is affected, test it along five lines and look for company-level evidence on each:
- New cap-subject hires versus extensions and status changes.
- Workers already in the United States versus workers who must enter from abroad.
- Wage and skill level of the roles, given the weighted selection.
- Direct employment versus the IT staffing and outsourcing model.
- Publicly documented company response versus aggregate government data.
For company-level evidence, read annual reports and earnings call transcripts, and ask the company for comment directly. A sector-wide total cannot stand in for those disclosures.
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What this means for your money
If you are an H-1B worker or job-seeker
- Ask how an offer would be registered. Under weighted selection, the wage level on a petition affects its selection odds, so a salary discussion can also be a question about how the employer plans to file.
- Plan around the restriction window. The continuation runs for 12 months from 12:01 a.m. EDT on September 21, 2026, which means it would run to about September 21, 2027, unless it is extended, modified or challenged in court. Court challenges and agency guidance can change how the rules apply, so recheck the official text before relying on any timeline.
If you hold Indian IT stocks or funds
- The 92% drop is a government-reported figure for a group of firms, not a company earnings figure. It does not tell you how any one holding was affected.
- Apply the five-line test above to a specific company before drawing conclusions, and treat headline characterizations such as “shrug off” as claims to verify against company disclosures rather than as established outcomes.
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