Shutdown Pauses H‑1B and Green Card Processing

The U.S. government shutdown that began on October 1 has forced the Department of Labor to suspend processing of Labour Condition Applications (LCAs) and PERM certifications, blocking most new H‑1B petitions, employer transfers and employment‑based green card filings unless an LCA was certified before the funding lapse. USCIS, which operates on filing fees, may continue to adjudicate some already‑filed cases, but new filings that depend on DOL actions are stalled. The freeze is hitting the tech sector and startups particularly hard and is creating workforce uncertainty and risks that foreign employees—many of them Indian professionals—could fall out of status. The disruption compounds recent policy shifts, including the administration's proposed $100,000 H‑1B fee, plans to weight the lottery by wages, and bipartisan proposals to tighten H‑1B/L‑1 access. Consular and visa services are being maintained “as the situation permits,” but reduced staffing and patchy operations mean slower service for many applicants. Immigration‑dependent firms face immediate hiring and legal‑status bottlenecks until Congress restores appropriations.