Gov. Abbott directs Texas public universities and state agencies to stop sponsoring H-1B workers pending federal approval

January 29, 2026

Gov. Greg Abbott told state agencies on Tuesday to stop using H-1B visas to bring new workers into Texas public universities and other state entities. The governor asked that the pause remain in place until the next legislative session ends on May 31, 2027, contingent on federal or congressional approval of the change.

Abbott required each public university to submit a roster of employees currently on H-1B visas to the Texas Workforce Commission by March 27, 2026. He asked institutions to include each worker's country of origin and documentation showing efforts to hire qualified candidates from Texas for the same positions.

Abbott cited a September 2025 directive from the previous presidential administration that tightened H-1B rules and included a proposed employer fee of $100,000, saying the federal changes show the need to review state use of the visas. H-1B status covers non-immigrant specialty workers, jobs that typically require at least a bachelor’s degree.

Federal immigration rules place an annual cap of 65,000 new H-1B visas, with an additional 20,000 reserved for applicants who hold U.S. master’s degrees, and USCIS uses a lottery to choose which registrations move forward. Immigration attorney Jason Finkelman noted one important exception: universities do not fall under the cap or lottery, which allows them to sponsor an unlimited number of H-1B hires for academic posts.

H-1B hires are common in research and faculty roles, including long-term and tenure-track positions, university officials say. USCIS data show UT Austin sponsored 169 H-1B visas in 2025, and medical centers such as MD Anderson reported comparable totals.

Finkelman said the H-1B system is tightly regulated and operates under federal authority, so any substantive change to the visa category would require congressional action. Another immigration attorney, Ruby Powers, warned that restricting university access to H-1B workers could create lasting vacancies and jeopardize programs that rely on specialized foreign hires.

Texas Global, the office that helps UT Austin faculty with immigration matters, did not reply to a request for comment on the governor’s directive. State and university leaders now face a fast timeline to compile the requested visa inventories and explain local hiring efforts.