Big tech cuts send urgent visa queries
Another round of tech layoffs — Meta weighing ~20% cuts and Dell reporting a 10% workforce drop — is triggering a wave of questions from H‑1B, L‑1, and other visa holders about status preservation and employer transfers reported noted. Firms should expect increased demand for rapid‑response immigration work.
Meta disclosed a planned $115–$135 billion AI capital expenditure for 2026, a figure company filings and analysts flagged as a primary driver of cost-cutting moves. (cnbc.com) Dell’s 2026 annual filing shows about 97,000 employees as of Jan. 31, 2026 (down from roughly 108,000 the prior year) and $569 million recorded for severance in fiscal 2026. (money.usnews.com) USCIS guidance notes nonimmigrant workers may use an up-to-60‑day discretionary grace period after termination to seek new employer-sponsored status or change status. (uscis.gov) Federal portability rules under AC21 and DOL guidance allow an H‑1B beneficiary to begin working for a new sponsor once a non‑frivolous Form I‑129 is filed and USCIS issues a receipt, provided the worker was in valid H‑1B status at filing. (dol.gov) Immigration practitioners have reported increased Requests for Evidence and Notices of Intent to Deny tied to B‑1/B‑2 change‑of‑status filings by recently laid‑off H‑1Bs, with a Houston firm describing such examples in a Feb. 23, 2026 post. (goelite.com) U.S. lawmakers have pressed major firms for H‑1B hiring and wage data amid recent tech cuts, while the administration has proposed a $100,000‑per‑visa surcharge for new H‑1B petitions that would apply prospectively. (thehill.com) HR compliance guidance stresses that USCIS generally treats an employee as “out of status” as of their last day of physical employment, making precise employer end‑date notices and rapid immigration response protocols essential after mass layoffs. (waylit.com) Record USCIS backlogs—estimated at more than 11.3 million pending cases in 2025—mean job loss during long‑running employment‑based processes can jeopardize pending adjustment filings and accelerate demand for immediate immigration interventions. (visaverge.com)
