US To Delete Old H-1B Visa Records — How It Affects Employers And Workers
As per the approved Record Control Schedule, any records older than five years from their final determination date will be erased.
The H-1B visa programme is undergoing an overhaul, with the Foreign Labor Access Gateway (FLAG) preparing to delete old applications from Mar. 20. Simultaneously, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is set to introduce a new system aimed at refining the application process.
Employers in the United States who rely on FLAG for managing visa and labour certification applications have been advised to secure copies of their records before Mar. 19, as the system prepares for large-scale data removal.
The H-1B visa remains one of the primary pathways for skilled foreign professionals seeking employment in the US. The new changes, reportedly introduced under US President Donald Trump’s administration, aim to improve transparency and efficiency in the application process.
What Is Being Deleted?
As per the approved Record Control Schedule, any records older than five years from their final determination date will be erased. This will affect a range of visa and labour certification applications, including:
Prevailing Wage Determinations (PWD)
Permanent Labour Certification Applications (PERM)
Temporary Labour Certification Applications (H-2A, H-2B, CW-1 visas)
Temporary Labour Condition Applications (H-1B, H-1B1, and E-3 visas)
For example, if an application had a final determination date of Mar. 22, 2020, it would be removed from the system on Mar. 22, 2025.
Why Is This Happening?
The deletions align with regulations established by the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), which dictates how government records are retained and disposed of.
While historically significant documents are transferred to the National Archives of the United States, temporary records, including visa applications, are scheduled for disposal once their designated retention period ends.
Impact On H-1B Applicants
According to reports, all temporary labour condition applications, including those for H-1B visas, will be removed from the FLAG system beginning on Mar. 20. USCIS will concurrently introduce a revamped application process designed to ensure greater fairness and equity among applicants.
Under the previous system, multiple employers could submit applications for a single candidate, increasing their chances of selection. The new model will eliminate this advantage by focusing on individual beneficiaries instead of the number of applications submitted on their behalf. This is intended to prevent large companies from monopolising selections through multiple filings.
The registration fee will also see a steep rise from $10 (around Rs 863) to $215 (around Rs 18,545) per application.
A procedural shift will require applicants to register online before their employers can submit full H-1B petitions. This is expected to expedite application reviews.
What Should Employers Do?
To avoid disruptions, employers can take the following steps:
Maintain internal archives to ensure important documents are backed up.
Seek legal guidance if previous case records are required for ongoing applications.
Check with NARA to determine whether any documents have been preserved.
If records are lost post-deletion, employers may need to reach out to USCIS, the Department of Labor (DOL) or legal experts to reconstruct case histories.
