Users on 4chan launched “Operation Clog the Toilet” to deliberately block India-US flight bookings amid panic over the $100,000 H-1B visa fee. A post on the online forum asked users to block Indians from returning to the US, by reserving seats without purchasing them fully. The attempt to book seats would contribute to a fare hike.
After the White House announced that the fee for H-1B visas was being raised to $100,000, flight prices soared.
Many tech companies, including Microsoft, had issued advisories to their employees to “remain in the U.S. for the foreseeable future. We know this may interrupt your travel plans. But the critical thing is to stay in the U.S. to avoid being denied reentry.” Those already overseas were encouraged “to do your best to return.”
4chan users are blocking India–US flights by holding tickets at checkout so Indian H1B holders can’t book before the deadline. 😯 https://t.co/b2tpNyhFB5 pic.twitter.com/ihtPnKXDpU
— Rohan Paul (@rohanpaul_ai) September 20, 2025
Several Indian workers had returned to India for Durga Puja, which starts next week. However, after the visa fee hike was announced, reports said that many chose to book immediate flight tickets back. In the scramble, flight prices skyrocketed.
The 4chan page comes amid the scare. Many pointed out the racist words and xenophobia against Indians in the post. Some internet users saw the attempt as patriotic. The instructions in the post ask users to initiate the checkout process, which usually holds the ticket for 15 minutes, and then leave the window open for that amount of time. This would create the illusion that the flight tickets are booked and would cause a fare hike.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that the the fee was not an annual fee and was a one-time payment that only applies to new visa petitions. So existing H-1B visa holders would not be affected even for renewals and leave and re-enter, as they normally would.
It is despite this clarification, however, that tech companies like Microsoft, Amazon, and JP Morgan asked their H-1B visa employees to remain in the country and those who were abroad to return immediately.
