Trump Extends $100,000 H1B Payment Rule for 12 Months Despite Court Block

The H-1B visa program, created by Congress in 1990, allows US employers to temporarily employ foreign professionals in specialty occupations. It is widely used by technology companies and has become an important channel for recruiting workers from India and China. According to data from US Citizenship and Immigration Services, 71% of approved H-1B petitions in fiscal 2024 involved beneficiaries born in India, compared with 11.7% born in China, as New Indian Express reported on September 19, 2026. The program is especially significant for the tech sector, which relies on H-1B workers for roles in software engineering, data science, and other specialized fields.

In September 2025, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation imposing a $100,000 payment requirement on certain new H-1B petitions. The policy aimed to reduce US employers' reliance on lower-paid foreign workers and to push companies to recruit only the most highly skilled and essential workers. Before this change, employers paid fees ranging from about $2,000 to $5,000, Reuters reported on September 19, 2026. The original order did not generally apply to foreign citizens already in the United States on student visas, who make up a significant share of new H-1B recipients, nor to standard renewals of existing H-1B visas.

The 2025 proclamation also set a 30-day deadline for the Secretary of Labor, acting through the Wage and Hour Division, to begin reviewing data from previously submitted labor condition applications. That review would determine whether further action against sponsoring employers is warranted. Business groups argue that H-1B visas help fill specialized roles, while critics contend that some employers use the program to suppress wages or displace American workers.

Almost immediately after the 2025 proclamation, the policy faced legal challenges. On December 12, 2025, twenty states filed a lawsuit in Massachusetts federal court. On June 8, 2026, a federal district court vacated the policies implementing the fee, ruling that the administration exceeded presidential authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act. On July 24, 2026, the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit denied the government's request to pause that ruling while the appeal proceeds. As a result, the $100,000 fee is currently unenforceable. The Department of Homeland Security has confirmed it is complying with the court order and is not currently collecting the fee, though the agency stated it strongly disagrees with the ruling and may resume collections if the order is lifted, Visasupdate reported on September 21, 2026.

Key Facts

On September 18, 2026, President Trump signed a proclamation extending the $100,000 payment requirement for certain H-1B petitions for 12 months. The extension begins at 12:01 a.m. EDT on September 21, 2026, and runs through September 21, 2027. The proclamation applies to certain H-1B workers outside the United States who must seek admission, while allowing the Department of Homeland Security to grant national-interest exceptions. The measure invokes Sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act as authority.

The White House argued that the extension protects economic and national security interests, improves labor market access for American workers and graduates, and ensures employers recruit only the most highly skilled and essential alien workers. Trump said the extension would continue to protect the economic and national security interests of the United States, improve labor market access for American workers and graduates, and ensure that employers recruit only the most highly skilled and essential alien workers when needed, The Hindu BusinessLine reported on September 19, 2026. The proclamation noted that the restrictions have proven highly effective but that the underlying conditions necessitating them persist.

The proclamation cited data showing the policy's impact. Dallas Express reported on September 19, 2026, that the largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms cut their combined H-1B registrations from 24,946 to 2,055 between the relevant cap seasons, a 92% decrease. There was also a nearly 97% decrease in consular-processing requests from the fiscal year 2025 to fiscal year 2027 cap seasons. Registrations for beneficiaries with at least a US master's degree increased from 45.1% of registrants for fiscal year 2026 to 66.1% for fiscal year 2027. Employers made the $100,000 payment for more than 700 petitions after the 2025 policy took effect.

A separate executive order and proclamation signed on the same day tightened scrutiny of H-1B applications. The order directs the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of Homeland Security to consider whether a sponsoring employer has recently conducted layoffs or plans future workforce reductions that would affect similarly situated US workers. It also designates systematic and organized abuse of the H-1B program as a national security threat, citing domestic law enforcement investigations of H-1B-reliant outsourcing firms for visa fraud, conspiracy to launder money, and other illicit activities. Within 30 days, the Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division must begin reviewing data from previously submitted labor condition applications, Clinch Law reported on September 19, 2026.

The administration has separately proposed regulations that would make the higher fee permanent and raise it to $103,265 for new cap-subject H-1B visas. The US Chamber of Commerce and the Association of American Universities are challenging the policy in a separate case. A federal judge in Washington, D.C., upheld the policy in that case in December 2025, and the appeal remains pending. The Chamber and the AAU argue that the executive branch exceeded its authority and bypassed statutory limits governing immigration fees.

Analysis

What this really means is that the extension is largely a placeholder while the courts decide the fate of the $100,000 fee. The proclamation is legally stranded: the Massachusetts vacatur remains in effect, the First Circuit has refused to stay it, and DHS is not collecting the payment. So the practical effect on employers today is limited. However, the extension signals the administration's determination to keep the policy alive and to pursue it through appeals and proposed rulemaking. It also keeps the issue in the public eye and maintains pressure on Congress to act.

The bigger legal question is whether the executive branch can impose such a fee at all. The Massachusetts judge found that the administration exceeded its authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act and separation of powers. The First Circuit's refusal to stay that ruling suggests the appeals court sees serious problems with the government's case. Meanwhile, the Chamber of Commerce and the Association of American Universities argue that the executive branch bypassed statutory limits governing immigration fees. A different federal judge in Washington, D.C., upheld the policy in December 2025, and that case is also on appeal.

For employers, the uncertainty is costly. Companies that rely on H-1B workers, especially technology firms, must plan for a policy that could snap back into effect if the courts lift the vacatur. The separate scrutiny order adds another layer of risk: employers must now consider how recent or planned layoffs could affect their ability to sponsor H-1B workers. Some major H-1B users, including Google parent Alphabet, have moved to increase operations in India as businesses adjust to the changing US immigration rules. This suggests the policy is influencing corporate behavior even without enforcement.

The data cited by the White House shows the policy is already reshaping the H-1B landscape. The 92% drop in registrations from large IT outsourcing firms, the rise in master's-degree beneficiaries from 45.1% to 66.1%, and the shift toward higher wage levels indicate that the threat of the fee, combined with the scrutiny order, has changed employer behavior. But critics argue that the fee is an unlawful tax and that the executive branch cannot impose it without congressional approval. The administration's proposed rule to make the fee permanent at $103,265 for new cap-subject petitions shows it is not backing down.

Why It Matters

The H-1B program is a critical pipeline for US technology companies and for Indian and Chinese professionals. With 71% of approved fiscal 2024 petitions going to beneficiaries born in India and 11.7% to those born in China, any change to the program has global implications. The extension, even if unenforceable, prolongs uncertainty for thousands of workers and employers, affecting hiring plans, relocation decisions, and the competitiveness of US firms in the global talent market.

The legal fight tests the limits of presidential power over immigration fees. If the administration ultimately prevails, the $100,000 payment could become permanent at $103,265 for new cap-subject H-1B visas, dramatically raising costs for employers. If it loses, the policy may be struck down entirely. Either way, the outcome will shape how the United States attracts skilled talent. The separate scrutiny order, which makes layoffs a factor in H-1B adjudications, could discourage companies from using the program while cutting US jobs, and it designates organized abuse as a national security threat, raising the stakes for outsourcing firms.

Next Up

The First Circuit is reviewing the government's appeal of the June 8 vacatur. The Chamber of Commerce and Association of American Universities case is also on appeal after a Washington, D.C., judge upheld the policy in December 2025. Meanwhile, the administration's proposed rule to make the fee permanent at $103,265 for new cap-subject H-1B visas is pending. DHS has said it may resume collecting the $100,000 payment if the court order is lifted.

The Labor Department's Wage and Hour Division has 30 days from the September 18 proclamation to begin reviewing labor condition application data, which could lead to further actions against sponsoring employers. The White House has made clear it intends to keep the pressure on, and the coming months will bring key court decisions and regulatory developments that will determine whether the $100,000 fee ever becomes a reality.