H1B 60-Day Grace Period: DHS Proposes Elimination Rule

H1B 60-Day Grace Period: DHS Proposes Elimination Rule

The Department of Homeland Security has sent a proposed rule to the White House that would eliminate the 60-day grace period H1B workers currently get after losing their job, a change that would force immediate departure or status changes instead of giving laid-off workers time to find new sponsorship.

What Happened

On August 6, 2026, DHS submitted a proposed rule titled "Eliminating the Discretionary 60-Day Grace Period" (RIN 1615-AD22) to the White House Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review. Immigration reporter Andrew Kreighbaum first flagged the filing, noting it had cleared initial review and was headed toward public release.

The rule's actual text is not yet public. It still has to clear OIRA review before DHS can publish it in the Federal Register, where it would then go through a public comment period, typically 30 to 60 days, before any final version takes effect. That process usually takes several months or longer. For now, the current 60-day grace period remains fully in effect and nothing changes for workers or employers today.

What the Grace Period Currently Does

Since 2017, DHS regulations under 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2) have given H1B workers and several other nonimmigrant categories, including H1B1, L-1, O-1, TN, E-1, E-2, and E-3 visa holders and their dependents, up to 60 consecutive days (or until their authorized stay expires, whichever is shorter) to find a new employer sponsor, change status, or leave the country after their employment ends. Before that 2017 rule, a terminated H1B worker fell out of status the moment their job ended, with no cushion at all.

Use the H1B Grace Period Calculator to see exactly when your own 60-day window would end under the rule as it stands today, and the full grace period rules guide for how to use that window if you're laid off right now.

If DHS finalizes this proposal, that cushion disappears. Workers laid off or terminated would lose lawful status immediately, with no built-in window to line up new sponsorship or file a change of status. Dependents on H4 and similar statuses would be affected too, since their status is tied to the principal visa holder.

Why It Matters Now

This proposal does not stand alone. It follows other recent DHS actions aimed at tightening the H1B program, including a steep new fee tied to H1B and L-1 extensions and proposed higher costs for new H1B hires. Taken together, these moves point toward a consistent regulatory direction: raising the cost and shrinking the safety margin for employers and workers who rely on the H1B program.

Immigration attorneys are already advising employers with large H1B, L-1, or TN populations to start reviewing layoff and offboarding procedures now, well before any rule takes effect, given how quickly the compliance timeline could compress once a final rule is published.

What Is Not Yet Known

The scope of the final rule, whether it includes any transition provisions for workers already mid-grace-period, and any effective date are all still undetermined. DHS has discretion under existing regulation to shorten or eliminate the grace period, which is the legal basis for this proposal, but the specifics will not be clear until OIRA completes its review and DHS publishes the actual rule text.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is the H1B 60-day grace period still in effect right now?

Yes. As of this writing, nothing has changed. The proposed rule has only been sent to OIRA for review, it has not been published in the Federal Register and has not gone through public comment. The current 60-day grace period under 8 CFR 214.1(l)(2) remains fully in effect for anyone who loses their job today.

How long until this rule could take effect?

There's no confirmed timeline yet. After OIRA review, DHS would need to publish the rule in the Federal Register and run a public comment period, typically 30 to 60 days, before finalizing it. That full process usually takes several months or longer from here.

Who would be affected if the rule is finalized?

H1B, H1B1, L-1, O-1, TN, E-1, E-2, and E-3 visa holders, along with their dependents (H4 and similar), would all lose the current 60-day cushion after job loss. Workers would need to depart, change status, or secure new sponsorship immediately instead of within a 60-day window.

What should H1B workers do right now?

Nothing changes today, so there's no immediate action required by this proposal alone. That said, given DHS's recent pattern of tightening H1B rules, workers on H1B status may want to talk to their immigration attorney about contingency planning, and keep an eye on this story as OIRA review progresses.

This is a developing story. Current H1B grace period protections remain in effect and no rule has been finalized as of this writing. We'll update this page as DHS publishes more information.