The latest on H-1B crackdown:
- President Trump’s proclamation imposing a $100,000 fee on all H-1B visa applications and renewals, set to become effective September 21, 2025.
- Immigration attorneys across the U.S. worked overnight to prepare multiple lawsuits challenging the order, calling the fee excessive, unlawful, and tantamount to a ban.
- Corporate legal teams scrambled to track H-1B employees and advised against international travel, fearing liability for the steep new reentry fee.
- With 72% of H-1Bs held by Indians, the order disproportionately affects Indian professionals and IT outsourcing firms that rely heavily on the program.
- Critics argue the proclamation bypasses Congress and established rulemaking procedures, making it vulnerable to challenge as arbitrary and beyond executive authority.
- DHS may waive the fee for individuals, companies, or industries deemed critical to U.S. interests, but the process remains unclear.
- Tech leaders warn the measure could cripple Silicon Valley’s talent pipeline, while policy experts say it risks a talent drain and undermines U.S. competitiveness in STEM fields.
It was a night of absolute mayhem for the H-1B visa community in the United States. Across the country, immigration attorneys from New York to California spent Friday burning the midnight oil, drafting lawsuits to challenge the executive order as early as Monday morning. Immigration lawyers’ mailing lists lit up overnight with urgent alerts, and corporate legal teams were scrambling to track their H-1B employees, making sure no one was traveling or exposed to the sudden $100,000 fee that corporations would have to pay for their re-entry into the U.S.
As news spread, attorneys quickly began scouting for plaintiffs to mount a legal challenge, while H-1B forums and social media groups buzzed with questions about the executive order’s murky clauses.
RELATED: Trump administration finally targets H-1B, set to impose $100,000 for coveted visas (September 19, 2025)
By attaching a $100,000 fee to both new and renewed H-1B visas, President Trump has delivered what critics describe as an unprecedented body blow to America’s immigration system.
Immigration attorney and founder of the Visa Code, Gnanamookhan Senthurjothi, says his phone hasn’t stopped ringing. His firm, like countless others, has been deluged with panicked calls from past and present visa holders desperate for direction. His counsel: “We strongly recommend that current H-1B visa holders avoid international travel outside the United States until further clarity is provided. If you are currently outside the U.S. on an H-1B visa, please make every effort to return before 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on September 20, 2025, to avoid possible entry restrictions under the new proclamation effective September 21, 2025.”
But as soon as attorneys began issuing advisories urging H-1B visa holders abroad to return before Sunday, Indian nationals quickly realized the near impossibility of doing so. With India 10 hours ahead of the U.S. and most direct flights from major Indian cities taking at least 14 hours, the timing made it unfeasible for many to get back in time.
Members of H-1B community groups, however, began circulating a quick jugaad. One message floating through desi networks read, “People who are coming before September 21st, as it is the nearest port of entry.” The note referred to Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport (AUH), where U.S.-bound travelers can complete American immigration and customs checks before boarding. This “preclearance” process applies to those already holding valid U.S. visas or eligible under the Visa Waiver Program.
Meanwhile, people in the H-1B compliance industry told The American Bazaar that on Friday, several passengers bound for India were asked to de-board their flights after employers advised against travel, fearing liability for the steep new reentry fee.
Sethurjothi also advises, “H-1B applicants outside the U.S. with scheduled visa interviews should proceed with their appointments as planned. There is no need to panic or cancel your visa interview at this time. H-1B visa holders outside the U.S. who are unable to re-enter should avoid traveling to the U.S. on B-1 visas unless there is a genuine and urgent reason for such travel.”
READ: Stephen Miller links H-1B to trade battle with India, escalating bilateral tensions (August 4, 2025)
Policy experts and people in immigration circles also point to uncertainties in the order. Immigration consultant Netra Chavan strongly feels that the rule will soon be put on hold once lawsuits are filed, but she highlights its slightly ambiguous nature.
She says, “While the H-1B proclamation introduces a $100,000 payment for certain visa petitions. Interestingly, the text doesn’t call it a ‘fee’; instead, it begins with a long-winded monologue on wages and prevailing wage levels. This has caused some confusion: Is this rule about improving wages for the worker or an employer cost? The answer appears to be that it’s an employer payment, not compensation to the employee. The proclamation ties it to H-1B petition approval but also discusses wage levels, which makes the language ambiguous.”
Sethurjothi agrees. “The White House is expected to issue FAQs soon to provide further insights and clarify ambiguities in the proclamation. A careful review of these FAQs will be essential to fully understand how the restrictions and exemptions will be implemented,” he says. Experts also point out that there is currently no clarity on how this fee is to be paid.
Why the $100,000 fee stands on unsteady legal ground
The sudden $100,000 H-1B fee appears to bypass established procedures entirely, unlike previous immigration fee adjustments that followed a defined legal and regulatory process.
Chavan raises a pertinent point, saying, “The Premium Processing fee increases (from $1,500 to $2,500 (in 2020) to $2,805 (in 2024)) followed a clear legal path: Congress authorized the changes through the USCIS Stabilization Act and gave DHS authority to make periodic adjustments for inflation by publishing rules in the Federal Register. By contrast, the proposed $100,000 H-1B fee is not tied to any statutory authority or any cost recovery and would come by presidential proclamation, making it far more vulnerable to legal challenge as arbitrary, excessive, and possibly beyond executive power. In reality, the ‘fee’ if it’s a fee (ambiguity stays) is unfair, excessive, and more like a ban than a real fee, which could make it unlawful.”
The Department of Homeland Security has indicated that the $100,000 H-1B fee may be waived in cases where employing foreign workers is deemed essential to the national interest and poses no risk to U.S. security or welfare. Does this clause offer a light at the end of the tunnel for visa holders?
Attorney Senthurjothi explains, “This exemption can apply to individuals, companies, or entire industries but require formal DHS determination. The process for applying for these exemptions is not yet announced but is expected to be like previous national interest exceptions issued during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
In order to preserve American workers, the $100,000 H-1B fee declaration encourages employers to hire U.S. citizens and talks about pay raises in STEM and technology-related sectors. Chavan says, “The approach may improve compliance with labor and national security regulations and increase entry-level employment prospects for U.S. graduates by improving regulatory monitoring and discouraging fraudulent operations.” But there remain significant cons to the order, as Chavan adds, “Employers may be reluctant to prolong or renew visas, which could lead to employment insecurity, and dependent children may ‘age out’ before their parents receive green cards. The charge may cause a talent drain that would reduce American competitiveness in STEM fields by encouraging skilled people to migrate to nations with less complicated immigration laws.”