Key Highlights:
- President Trump signed proclamation imposing $100,000 annual fee for H-1B visa applications, effective September 21, 2025
- New policy targets systemic abuse where IT companies hired foreign workers at 36% discount compared to American employees
- Commerce Secretary confirms major companies support changes, with fee structure expected to dramatically reduce H-1B usage from current 85,000 annual cap
Opening Text
The Trump administration has unleashed one of the most dramatic overhauls to America’s skilled immigration system, with President Donald Trump signing a proclamation on September 19, 2025, imposing a staggering $100,000 annual fee for H-1B visa applications. This seismic shift in H-1B visa policy represents far more than a simple fee increase, marking what officials describe as a comprehensive response to widespread program abuse that has undermined American workers in critical technology sectors.
The days of employers abusing H-1B Visas are over.
— U.S. Department of Labor (@USDOL) September 19, 2025
Introducing PROJECT FIREWALL—our plan to ensure high-skilled jobs go to AMERICANS FIRST 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/XPwBJSZfto
The H-1B visa proclamation takes effect at 12:01 AM EDT on September 21, 2025, creating an immediate barrier for companies seeking to sponsor foreign skilled workers. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick defended the dramatic H-1B visa fee increase, stating that employers must now determine whether foreign workers are worth the substantial annual payment or should instead focus on training American graduates.
Understanding the H-1B Visa Crisis Behind Trump’s Action
The presidential proclamation reveals alarming statistics about H-1B visa program exploitation that prompted this decisive action. According to official White House data, the share of IT workers in the H-1B program exploded from 32 percent in Fiscal Year 2003 to over 65 percent in recent years. This transformation occurred as information technology firms increasingly manipulated the H-1B system to replace American workers with lower-paid foreign alternatives.
Research cited in the proclamation demonstrates that H-1B-reliant IT outsourcing companies provide employers with a 36 percent discount for entry-level positions compared to traditional American workers. The H-1B visa abuse has coincided with rising unemployment among computer science graduates, with recent college graduates in computer science and engineering facing unemployment rates of 6.1 percent and 7.5 percent respectively, more than double the rates for biology and art history majors.
The proclamation identifies specific cases where major tech companies eliminated thousands of American jobs while simultaneously securing approval for thousands of H-1B workers. One software company approved for over 5,000 H-1B workers in FY 2025 announced layoffs totaling more than 15,000 employees around the same time. Another firm reduced its workforce by approximately 27,000 American workers since 2022 while being approved for over 25,000 H-1B workers since FY 2022.
H-1B visa application registrations showing 38.6% decline in FY 2025 after peak in FY 2023
Financial Impact and Industry Response to H-1B Visa Changes
The $100,000 H-1B visa fee represents a massive escalation from current costs, which total approximately $1,500 in various administrative charges. According to USCIS data, the median annual compensation for all approved H-1B beneficiaries in FY 2024 was $120,000. For many entry-level positions, the new H-1B visa fee approaches or exceeds the worker’s entire annual salary, effectively pricing out lower-wage applications.
Major technology companies immediately advised their H-1B visa holders to remain in the United States or return quickly before the September 21 deadline. Microsoft, Amazon, and other tech giants issued urgent guidance warning employees to avoid international travel until clear government guidance emerges. The Economic Times reported that American Depository Receipts of Indian IT companies Infosys and Wipro dropped nearly 4% on Friday in anticipation of the H-1B visa impact.
Nasscom, representing India’s $283 billion IT and business process outsourcing industry, warned that the H-1B visa fee increase could disrupt business continuity for onshore projects and create ripple effects throughout America’s innovation ecosystem. The industry association noted that Indian IT companies had already reduced H-1B filings by an average of 46% over five years, with top companies like TCS, Infosys, HCLTech, Wipro, Tech Mahindra, and LTIMindtree implementing increased local hiring strategies.
Amazon leads H-1B visa sponsorship with over 10,000 approvals, followed by Indian IT consulting firms
Legal Challenges and Implementation Timeline for H-1B Reforms
Legal experts predict significant challenges to the H-1B visa proclamation, with critics describing the fee increase as potentially unlawful. Doug Rand, a former senior USCIS official under the Biden administration, characterized the proposal as “ludicrously lawless,” calling it “fan service for immigration restrictionists” rather than legitimate policy. The one-day implementation deadline has created what Nasscom describes as “considerable uncertainty for businesses, professionals, and students across the world”.
The proclamation includes provisions for potential exceptions, allowing the Secretary of Homeland Security to waive the H-1B visa fee for individuals, companies, or entire industries when hiring is determined to be in the national interest. However, the Commerce Secretary indicated that the changes would likely result in far fewer H-1B visas than the current 85,000 annual cap because “it’s just not economic anymore” for most employers.
Current H-1B visa statistics show that applications for FY 2025 had already declined to around 479,953 eligible registrations, down 38.6% from the previous year’s 758,994. USCIS data indicates this decline resulted from successful efforts against applicants “gaming the system” through multiple dubious applications, with the beneficiary-centric selection process reducing attempts to gain unfair advantages.
Long-term Implications of H-1B Visa Policy Transformation
The H-1B visa proclamation establishes a 12-month restriction period, with officials required to submit recommendations on potential extensions within 30 days of the next H-1B lottery completion. The administration simultaneously announced complementary measures, including a $1 million “gold card” visa program for wealthy individuals seeking permanent residency pathways.
Studies referenced in the proclamation suggest that wages for American computer scientists would have been 2.6 to 5.1 percent higher, and employment would have been 6.1 to 10.8 percent higher in 2001 without the influx of foreign workers into computer science fields. The H-1B visa policy aims to address what officials describe as national security threats posed by discouraging Americans from pursuing science and technology careers.
The transformation affects approximately 400,000 approved H-1B applications annually, with 65% representing renewals and 35% new applications for initial employment. Amazon led H-1B approvals with over 10,000 visas in recent data, followed by Indian consulting firms TCS, Microsoft, Apple, and Google. The policy particularly impacts California, which hosts the highest concentration of H-1B workers in technology sectors.
Closing Assessment
Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee represents a calculated strategy to fundamentally reshape America’s skilled immigration landscape rather than merely restricting access. The policy directly confronts documented abuses where major corporations exploited foreign workers to undercut American wages by substantial margins, while simultaneously eliminating domestic technical positions. This H-1B visa transformation will likely reduce program utilization to a fraction of current levels, forcing employers to justify exceptional talent through significant financial commitment or pivot toward training American workers in critical technology fields.
