The $100,000 H-1B fee is mandated by Presidential Proclamation dated September 19, 2025.
Original Story: The government issued an unprecedented executive order that imposes a $100,000 fee on people entering the United States under the H-1B program. The order goes into effect at midnight on September 21, and anyone entering after that time will be subject to the new rules.
The timing is astounding. H-1B applicants for this year are scheduled to start work on October 1. Those outside of the U.S. can normally enter up to 10 days before October 1, which means September 22. The new rule would block these applicants from entering. This timing appears to be intentional. Just as concerning is that people who are currently in H-1B status but are outside the country would also be subject to the $100,000 fee if they try to return after September 21.
Clarification: On October 21, 2025, US Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”) released clarification regarding the $100,000 H-1B fee. Employers seeking to employ an H-1 worker who is abroad using an H-1B petition filed after September 21, 2025 must pay an additional $100,000 fee via the US Treasury’s website.
The fee does not apply to H-1B petitions for employees who are present in the US and whose employers request to change their status to H-1B or extend their H-1B status. More importantly, USCIS clarified that the fee does not apply to an H-1B change of status or extension of status petition even if the H-1B worker subsequently departs the United States and seeks an H-1B visa from a US Embassy or Consulate abroad.
H-1B workers transferring from one employer to another may trigger the fee. Unemployed H-1B workers have a 60-day grace period to either find another job, find another nonimmigrant status, or depart the United States. H-1 workers that are unemployed for more than 60 days will likely be determined to be out of status and be required to seek a visa abroad. This determination will trigger the $100,000 fee. To avoid this fee, employers looking to onboard an H-1 worker should ensure that their prospective employee is either currently employed at their petitioning employer or has been unemployed for less than 45 days. While H-1B workers have a 60-day grace period, H-1B petitions take some time to prepare. The 45-day cutoff gives the employer time to prepare and file the petition within the 60 day grace period.
July 24, 2026 Update: On June 8, 2026, Judge Sorokin of the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled that the Trump Administration’s $100,000 H-1B fee was unlawful.
The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to put on hold a lower court judge's June 8 ruling in a lawsuit filed by 20 Democratic state attorneys general, striking down the fee on the basis that it constituted an unlawful tax Congress never authorized and leaving the lower court's decision against the fee in place while litigation continues.
