Annual Visa Fee : Chamber of Commerce Sues Over Trump’s $1,00,000 H-1B Visa Fee, Know What Will Be Next

17th October 2025 at 5:56 PM

1 minute read

The lawsuit targets a presidential proclamation issued last month.

Washington : Corporate America, for long pally with Republican dispensations in Washington, is suing the Trump administration over the $100,000 annual fee for H1B visa, saying the astronomical hike in charges is misguided, unlawful, and detrimental to US businesses. The lawsuit targets a presidential proclamation issued last month, titled Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers, which fundamentally re-engineers the financial structure of the H-1B program.

Arguing that the new fee blatantly contravenes the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) which governs the H-1B program, the lawsuit contends that a $100,000 tab countermands Congress’s judgment that the program should provide a pathway for up to 85,000 people annually to contribute their talents to the United States. While the Chamber is dominated by corporate giants, Neil Bradley, its Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer stressed the disproportionate harm the fee will inflict on smaller enterprises.

The new $100,000 visa fee will make it cost-prohibitive for U.S. employers, especially start-ups and small and mid-sized businesses, to utilize the H-1B program, Bradley said in a statement. For many start-ups, a $100,000 fee per new employee represents an unsustainable burden that will force them to forgo H1Bs at a time when there is a shortage of qualified STEM graduates in America. The policy is rooted in the administration’s core argument — drummed by some MAGA activists — that some employers have exploited H-1B loopholes to suppress American wages, displace U.S. workers, and “spam the system” by filing high volumes of petitions for lower-skilled roles.

China and Germany among other nations have opened their doors to foreign talent, and many Indian professionals navigating the uncertain H1B scenario are looking to peel off to neighboring Canada or return home. The Chamber asserts that diminishing the U.S ability to attract and retain the “world’s best and brightest” threatens the competitiveness and expansion of American companies in the global marketplace.