USCIS H-1B Site Visits 2026: What Compliance Officers Check and How Employers Should Prepare

USCIS site visits are increasing in 2026 — here is exactly what FDNS officers check, what your employer must have ready, and how this affects you as an H-1B worker.

If you are on H-1B right now, or your employer is currently sponsoring you, there is a real possibility that a USCIS officer will show up at your worksite this year — no appointment, no advance notice beyond a knock at the front desk. That is not a hypothetical. USCIS has expanded its Fraud Detection and National Security (FDNS) site visit program significantly, and the H-1B Modernization Rule that took effect in January 2025 explicitly codified the agency's authority to conduct these inspections and tie non-cooperation to petition revocation.

The good news is that a well-prepared employer with an accurate, documented petition has little to fear. The danger comes from gaps between what a petition says and what is actually happening on the ground — stale job descriptions, remote-work arrangements that were never disclosed, wages that drifted below the LCA prevailing wage level, or workers placed at client sites without proper amended petitions. Understanding what FDNS checks — and what your employer needs to have ready — is the most practical way to protect your status.

What FDNS is and why it conducts site visits

FDNS (Fraud Detection and National Security Directorate) is the USCIS division responsible for verifying the integrity of immigration benefit filings. For H-1B specifically, FDNS officers are tasked with confirming that approved petitions describe real employment relationships at real worksites with real specialty-occupation duties.

Site visits have three general triggers:

1. Administrative random selection. USCIS selects a percentage of approved H-1B petitions at random each year. Being selected does not indicate suspicion.
2. Targeted selection based on petition anomalies. Certain patterns attract additional scrutiny — IT staffing companies placing workers at third-party client sites, very small employers with large H-1B headcounts relative to their size, roles where the job title and wage level seem mismatched, or employers with prior FDNS findings.
3. Tips and referrals. USCIS and DOL have tip lines. Former employees, business competitors, or members of the public occasionally report suspected H-1B fraud, which can trigger a targeted visit.

Under the H-1B Modernization Rule, USCIS now has explicit regulatory authority — rather than just implied authority — to conduct site visits as part of the petition adjudication and post-approval compliance process. Refusing to cooperate with an FDNS visit is treated as grounds for denial or revocation.

What a site visit actually looks like

FDNS officers typically arrive unannounced or with minimal advance notice (sometimes a phone call an hour ahead). They present government credentials at the reception desk and request to speak with someone in HR or immigration compliance. The visit usually lasts one to three hours and covers several distinct verification areas.

The five things officers verify on-site

Officers may also request the public-access file, which every H-1B employer is legally required to maintain. The public-access file must include the LCA, a notice of filing, documentation of prevailing wage determination, a description of how wages were calculated, and the union status of the worksite. Inability to produce this file on request is itself a compliance violation.

Speaking with the H-1B worker directly

Officers routinely ask to speak one-on-one with the H-1B worker. This conversation is informal but consequential. Common questions include:

• What is your job title and who do you report to?
• Describe what you do on a typical day.
• Where do you work — is this your primary location?
• Are you working on-site for any clients?
• How long have you held this role?

As the H-1B worker, you are not obligated to answer questions about your immigration attorney or the petition strategy. Describe your actual duties honestly. If you work remotely or from a location other than what is listed in the petition, that is a problem your employer needs to address before a visit — not during one.

The public-access file: your employer's most important compliance document

Every H-1B employer is required by DOL regulations to maintain a public-access file for each H-1B worker. This is separate from the I-129 petition itself. The file must be available for inspection at the worksite or the employer's principal place of business within one business day of a request.

A compliant public-access file contains:

1. A copy of the certified LCA (ETA Form 9035E)
2. Documentation of the prevailing wage source (DOL OFLC Wage Center, private survey, etc.)
3. A description of how the offered wage was determined to meet or exceed the prevailing wage
4. Documentation of the notice of filing (posted at the worksite for 10 days during the LCA process)
5. A list of workers employed in the same occupational classification at the worksite (where a union exists)

The LCA must accurately reflect the worksite. If your employer moved offices, added a remote-work arrangement, or placed you at a client site, the LCA needs to be updated — which in some cases requires an amended H-1B petition. The H-1B Modernization Rule clarified when amendments are required for worksite changes. This is one of the most common gaps that FDNS finds during site visits.

When amended petitions are required — and why this matters for site visits

One of the most frequent findings in FDNS site visits is a mismatch between the worksite on the LCA and where the worker is actually located. This often happens because:

• The worker started working remotely after the pandemic and the employer never updated the petition
• The worker was placed at a client site (common in IT staffing/consulting arrangements) without a new LCA and amended petition
• The employer moved offices and the LCA still shows the old address

Under the 2015 Matter of Simeio Solutions decision (which remains controlling precedent) and as reinforced by the H-1B Modernization Rule, employers must file an amended H-1B petition whenever a worker's worksite changes to a location outside the original Metropolitan Statistical Area listed on the LCA — or when duties materially change. Failing to file an amendment doesn't just create a compliance problem; it creates a factual discrepancy that FDNS will find.

If you are an H-1B worker now working remotely from a different city than your original petition listed, or working at a client location, ask your employer's immigration counsel to verify that the petition was properly amended and the LCA is current for your actual worksite.

Step-by-step: what a compliant employer does before and during a visit

Before any visit (ongoing readiness)

1. Maintain a current public-access file for every H-1B worker, stored at the principal worksite or HR office.
2. Audit all LCAs annually to confirm the worksite, wage level, and occupational classification still match actual employment.
3. File amended petitions promptly when worksite or duty changes occur. Do not wait to batch amendments.
4. Train front-desk and HR staff on what to do when an FDNS officer arrives — verify credentials, contact immigration counsel immediately, cooperate professionally.
5. Confirm all H-1B workers are earning at or above their LCA prevailing wage — including after any salary restructuring, furloughs, or benefit changes.
6. Document the employment relationship — keep performance reviews, project assignments, org charts, and reporting structures updated.

During the visit

1. Greet the FDNS officer professionally and verify government credentials before providing any access.
2. Contact your immigration attorney or in-house counsel as soon as the officer arrives, if possible.
3. Provide the public-access file immediately — it must be available within one business day, but having it ready on the spot signals good-faith compliance.
4. Facilitate a brief meeting between the officer and the H-1B worker if requested. Do not coach the worker, but do make introductions.
5. Answer factual questions accurately. If you do not know an answer, say so and offer to follow up in writing.
6. Do not volunteer additional documents beyond what is requested. Follow your attorney's guidance on scope.

After the visit

1. Document everything — who was present, what was requested, what was provided.
2. Send any follow-up documents the officer requested in writing within the promised timeframe.
3. If discrepancies were identified during the visit, begin corrective action (amended petition, back pay if wages were short) promptly.
4. If USCIS follows up with an RFE or Notice of Intent to Revoke, treat it as urgent. Review our H-1B RFE response playbook for how to structure a strong response.

Third-party placement and IT staffing — the highest-risk category

If you are on H-1B sponsored by an IT staffing company or consulting firm and you work at a client location, your employer is in a category that FDNS scrutinizes heavily. The risks are specific:

• End-client letters. USCIS and FDNS expect evidence of a bona fide work assignment — often a letter from the end client confirming the worker's role, duties, and expected tenure. If your employer filed your petition without a concrete end-client assignment, that is a significant problem.
• Itinerant worker provisions. Workers who move from client site to client site have specific LCA requirements — the employer must post the LCA at each new worksite for 10 days or use the short-term placement provision (limited to 30 days at any one location, 60 days per year).
• Employer-employee relationship. USCIS applies the common-law control test. If the client controls your day-to-day tasks, hours, and assignments — rather than your sponsoring employer — the employment relationship may not satisfy H-1B requirements.

If you are in this situation, the safest path is to work with a sponsoring employer that has a robust compliance program, proper end-client letters, and a clear supervision structure. An employer who has been through FDNS visits before and knows the requirements is meaningfully less risky than one figuring it out during a visit.

Common mistakes that create real problems

• Not updating the LCA when a worker shifts to remote. A worker in California on an LCA that lists a Texas worksite is a compliance problem waiting to be discovered.
• Letting the public-access file go stale. If documents are more than a year out of date — particularly the wage determination — the file fails on its face.
• Placing workers at client sites without amended petitions. The employer may believe informal arrangements are fine; FDNS disagrees, and the regulatory text supports FDNS.
• Underpaying relative to the LCA wage level. Pay cuts, restructured compensation, or transition to lower base with higher equity can create a gap between actual pay and certified prevailing wage. That gap is a wage violation.
• Coaching H-1B workers with inaccurate scripts. If a worker describes duties that do not match actual work because they were told to, that is misrepresentation — and it can harm both the worker and the employer.
• Assuming a prior approval means the petition is permanently fine. While the H-1B Modernization Rule codifies deference to prior approvals for extensions, it does not immunize an employer from site-visit findings when facts have materially changed.
• Ignoring a site-visit follow-up request. If FDNS sends a letter requesting additional documentation after a visit, treating it like routine correspondence is a mistake. These letters often have short response windows and escalate quickly.

What site visit findings mean for the H-1B worker

If your employer's site visit results in a Notice of Intent to Revoke (NOIR), the clock starts moving quickly. The employer has a set period — typically 30 days — to respond. If the petition is ultimately revoked:

• Your H-1B status is terminated.
• You enter the 60-day grace period for H-1B terminations (established under the 2017 DHS grace period rule).
• During those 60 days, you can file an H-1B transfer to a new employer, change to another nonimmigrant status, or depart the US.

This is exactly why the H-1B transfer playbook is worth knowing before you need it. A revocation is not necessarily a crisis if you act in the 60-day window — but it requires immediate attention.

If you are in an H-1B transfer already in process, the 60-day grace period is your runway. Do not let it pass without action.

What this means if you are currently job searching

If you are job searching on OPT, STEM OPT, or early H-1B, the compliance track record of prospective employers matters more than it used to. Employers with prior FDNS adverse findings, high revocation rates, or patterns of amended petition failures will create ongoing compliance risk for you throughout your time with them.

Before accepting an offer, check the USCIS H-1B employer data (published annually and accessible via DOL disclosure data) to see approval, denial, withdrawal, and revocation counts. An employer with many withdrawals relative to approvals may have a pattern of petition problems. An employer with very high petition volumes but thin public information about who they place workers with warrants additional scrutiny.

For a deeper look at how to vet a new employer's H-1B track record, see our guides on how to find H-1B sponsor jobs and spotting red flags in sketchy H-1B sponsors.

Frequently asked questions

What is an FDNS H-1B site visit and why does it happen?

FDNS (Fraud Detection and National Security) is a USCIS division that conducts unannounced or short-notice site visits to verify that H-1B petitions accurately describe actual employment. Officers check that the worker is present at the stated worksite, performing the described duties, and earning the certified LCA wage. Visits are triggered by random selection, tips, or anomalies flagged in the petition.

Can an H-1B worker be present during a site visit and what should they say?

Yes, officers often speak directly with the H-1B worker. You should confirm your job title, describe your actual day-to-day duties in plain terms, and state your work location. Do not guess at legal details or discuss your salary range unless you know the exact figure on your LCA. If unsure about a question, it is acceptable to say you will need to check with HR.

Does a USCIS site visit mean my petition is under suspicion?

Not necessarily. USCIS conducts both targeted and random site visits. A random visit is not a sign that your case was flagged for fraud. That said, any visit is an opportunity for USCIS to find discrepancies, so your employer should treat every visit seriously and have all public-access file documents ready.

What happens if my employer fails a USCIS H-1B site visit?

If USCIS finds material misrepresentations — for example, a worker not present at the stated worksite, wages below the LCA level, or duties that do not match the specialty-occupation description — the agency can issue an intent to revoke the approved petition, refer the case to DOL Wage and Hour for a wage audit, or refer the employer to ICE for further investigation. This can ultimately result in petition revocation, which triggers a status problem for the worker.

How does the H-1B Modernization Rule affect USCIS site visits in 2026?

The H-1B Modernization Rule, effective January 17, 2025, formally codified USCIS authority to conduct site visits and clarified that an employer's failure to cooperate with a site visit can be treated as a basis for denying or revoking the petition. This raised the stakes compared to prior years when site visit authority was implied rather than explicit in the regulations.

If you are navigating H-1B compliance questions — whether as a worker worried about your employer's readiness or a candidate evaluating a new offer — F1Jobs works with H-1B candidates on this kind of due diligence every week. Reach out to talk through your situation.