The 2017 United States federal hiring freeze was instituted by the Presidential Memorandum signed by President Donald Trump on January 23, 2017.

Trump and Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney ordered the hiring freeze lifted on April 12, 2017.

[1] The order instituted a 90-day hiring freeze for United States federal employees, after which it was to be replaced by a long-term workforce reduction plan to be developed by the Office of Personnel Management.

[3] The hiring freeze does not affect military personnel and those deemed essential for security, but the details of implementation rules have been clarified over time with multiple sets of guidance listing exceptions.

In this guidance, the freeze does not apply to agencies under the following circumstances: Further, OMB guidance declared that "The head of any agency may exempt any positions that it deems necessary to: Meet national security (including foreign relations) responsibilities, or Meet public safety responsibilities (including essential activities to the extent that they protect life and property).

Harry Stein, director of fiscal policy at the Center for American Progress, criticized the freeze, predicting that it "will have profound negative consequences throughout the country.

[19][20] At a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on February 15, 2017, Comptroller General of the United States Gene L. Dodaro, the head of the Government Accountability Office, said: "We've looked at hiring freezes in the past by prior administrations and they haven't proven to be effective in reducing costs and they cause some problems if they're in effect for a long period of time.

"[21] Dodaro noted that the hiring freeze posed a risk to the government, particularly in areas with a "skill gaps" such as cybersecurity and acquisition workforce.

[23] VoteVets slammed the inclusion of the VA, saying "If his executive order leads to preventable deaths, that will be on Donald Trump’s hands, and we will hold him personally accountable.

In late February 2017, the commander of the U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden, in Germany informed Army parents that all part-day childcare programs at the garrison would end on March 1 as a "result of staff shortages due to the Federal Hiring Freeze" that prevented childcare services "from replacing staff who depart for any reason.

[27] Subsequently, waivers were granted for Fort Knox and Garrison Wiesbaden, but the freeze still interrupted service and disrupted hiring at those sites and elsewhere.