Amid persisting legal issues regarding the H-1B visa petition fee approval, US President Donald Trump has extended the $100,000 fee for US employers wishing to temporarily hire foreign workers. The White House on Friday extended the fee for another year, citing that the H-1B payment requirement and weighted selection of candidates have reduced dependency on foreign workers.
The H-1B visa category allows employers to hire skilled professionals from foreign countries to temporarily work in the US. The initial duration of an H-1B visa is three years but may be extended up to six years. The fee does not apply to visa extensions.
According to data shared by the White House, H-1B registrations from large IT companies and outsourcing firms have reduced by 92 per cent. Indirectly supporting the criticism that companies hire foreign workers for cheap labour, the Trump administration said that after introducing the new system, applications shifted to workers with advanced degrees and higher-paying job offers.
The fee was extended despite a federal judge in Massachusetts striking down the government’s order in June, ruling that the administration overstepped its authority. As a result, employers currently filing petitions only pay the standard fees, which range from about $2,000 to $5,000 depending on company size.
Following this, the Department of Homeland Security has initiated a formal rulemaking process, aiming to increase the H-1B fee to roughly $103,000. On top of the fee, the White House also issued an order directing government officials to inspect H-1B employers for any “recent or planned layoffs” of US workers before approving any H-1B applications. They have also been asked to investigate data on the pay, industrial conditions and employment specialisation of the companies.
In September 2025, the US government increased the fee to $100,000 from the previous fee of $2,000 to $5,000 for new H-1B visa petitions, drawing massive backlash from the US Chamber of Commerce.
US companies that regularly sponsored H-1B workers include Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, Google, Cognizant Technology Solutions, JPMorgan Chase and Walmart.
According to the American immigration council, over 70 per cent of H-1B visa holders are Indian citizens. The imposed fee has greatly affected hiring for US businesses with Indian ties.
For Indian IT firms, the median H-1B annual salary ranges between $80,000 and $120,000. The new fee either equals or exceeds the salary, almost doubling the compensation. Even though it considerably affects the company’s operational costs, high EBITDA margins for Indian IT firms like Wipro, Infosys and TCS are expected to cushion the costs from the policy shock.
However, the number of H-1B visa approvals has considerably reduced for these companies. Wipro witnessed a massive 62 per cent year-on-year crash in H-1B approvals in FY 2026. TCS approvals dropped by 53 per cent, falling to just 2,885. During the latest fiscal year, TCS utilised only about 500 new H-1B visas for employees travelling to the US, down from over 5,500 active visa holders in 2025.
