By Naveen Athrappully
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is probing the abuse of the H-1B visa program in the state, beginning with an investigation into three companies in North Texas, the attorney general’s office said in a statement on Jan. 28.
Paxton issued Civil Investigative Demands (CIDs) to companies suspected of fraudulent activity. CIDs are government requests for information in noncriminal investigations. They are issued before any formal complaint or lawsuit is filed against the entities.
“Reports have indicated that the businesses under investigation have likely engaged in illegal activity to scam the H-1B visa program by setting up sham companies featuring websites advertising nonexistent products or services to Texas consumers in order to fraudulently sponsor H-1B visas,” the office said.
For instance, one business allegedly listed a single-family home as its office address and an empty, unfinished building as its worksite address on its website, according to the statement.
The office alleged that the companies sponsored numerous H-1B visa applications over the past years without providing evidence that they delivered any of the advertised services or products.
On Sept. 19, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation that restricted the hiring of foreign workers under the H-1B program.
Under the new rules, businesses must pay $100,000 for any new H-1B petition to bring a foreign worker to the United States.
In the proclamation, Trump wrote that the abuse of the H-1B program constituted a “national security threat by discouraging Americans from pursuing careers in science and technology, risking American leadership in these fields.”
In its statement, Paxton’s office said the attorney general has demanded that companies hand over documents identifying all employees working under them, communications related to operations, financial statements, and records detailing the specific services and products they offer. The businesses being investigated were not named in the press release.
“Any criminal who attempts to scam the H-1B visa program and use ‘ghost offices’ or other fraudulent ploys should be prepared to face the full force of the law,” Paxton said.
“Abuse and fraud within these programs strip jobs and opportunities away from Texans. I will use every tool available to uproot and hold accountable any individual or company engaged in these fraudulent schemes. My office will continue to thoroughly review the H-1B visa program and always work to put the interests of Americans first.”
The H-1B visa program helps employers hire nonimmigrant workers and access business skills and abilities they cannot otherwise obtain from the U.S. workforce.
The program enables the hiring of foreign professionals in specialized fields, including engineering, technology, and medicine. Supporters of the program say H-1B visas are crucial to fill roles for which qualified American workers cannot be found.
Critics allege that H-1B and similar work visa programs are often misused to replace American workers with lower-wage foreign labor. They argue that the program does not always attract the most skilled candidates as intended.
Tightening H-1B Approvals
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce filed a lawsuit in October 2025 challenging the Trump administration’s $100,000 fee for H-1B petitions.
“The new $100,000 visa fee will make it cost-prohibitive for U.S. employers, especially start-ups and small and midsize businesses, to utilize the H-1B program, which was created by Congress expressly to ensure that American businesses of all sizes can access the global talent they need to grow their operations here in the U.S.,” said Neil Bradley, executive vice president at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced more changes to the H-1B program in December.
Beginning on Feb. 26, the DHS will implement a “weighted selection process” instead of the current random lottery for approving visas, prioritizing higher-skilled and higher-paid foreign workers.
“The new weighted selection will better serve Congress’s intent for the H-1B program and strengthen America’s competitiveness by incentivizing American employers to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers,” said Matthew Tragesser, spokesperson for the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
“With these regulatory changes and others in the future, we will continue to update the H-1B program to help American businesses without allowing the abuse that was harming American workers.”
According to data from USCIS, during fiscal year 2025, which ran from Oct. 1, 2024, to Sept. 30, 2025, Amazon was the top beneficiary of H-1B employment approvals in the country, with 13,625 visa petitions approved by the government.
This was followed by Meta Platforms, Microsoft Corporation, and India-based Tata Consultancy Services, each with more than 6,000 approvals. Google and Apple received more than 5,000 approvals.
California had the highest number of H-1B approvals at 86,147. Texas ranked second with 41,571 beneficiaries.
