The Trump administration’s abrupt announcement to charge a $100k annual fee for H-1B visa holders has raised concerns from technology companies immigration lawyers, as well as foreign workers.
Although an official from the U.S. official clarified on Saturday that the policy is applicable only to applicants who are new The initial confusion created anxiety as thousands of existing visa holders scrambled to get entry to the United States before the new rules go into in at 12:00 a.m. on the 21st of September.
The presidential proclamation, issued Friday, didn’t explicitly specify whether current visa holders will be exempt.This lack of clarity led to urgent warnings from corporations and lawyers in a similar fashion to the confusion experienced in the travel ban’s implementation.
Companies like Microsoft, JPMorgan, and Amazon immediately informed their H-1B workers to stay permanently in their home countries in the United States to avoid complications.Immigration lawyers also advised caution.
“Clients should act now: H-1B workers abroad must return to the U.S. before 12:01 a.m. on Sept. 21, when new $100,000 fee rules take effect,” stated Allen Orr Jr., former president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.
He advised foreigners to stay away from travel until the government issues official guidelines.
Despite assurances by an unnamed official of the administration that current visa holders aren’t charged the cost however, experts caution that legal action and other issues with the policy will likely.
Aaron Reichlin-Melnick is a senior associate at the American Immigration Council, said on X that “nothing official” has been made public to confirm the narrower interpretation. He urged immediate disclosure by Department of Homeland Security. Department of Homeland Security.
The policy was announced alongside the Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in the Oval Office in the Oval Office, The president Donald Trump argued the new fee is necessary to stop misuse of H-1B visa program.Trump argued that the policy will incentivize companies to hire American graduates over foreign-born workers.
“The whole idea is no more with these big tech companies training foreign workers,” Lutnick stated.“They must make payments to the state of $100,000 and after that they pay the worker.If you’re planning to train someone, then teach one of the recent graduates of one of our institutions.“
But critics argue that the policy is likely to harm both the U.S. economy by deterring foreign talent.Senate Majority Leader Mark Warner (D-Va.) cautioned that America might loss its competitive advantage if strict immigration policies deter skilled workers from pursuing higher education and work in the United States.“That’s long-term going to hurt our economy,” Warner stated to Bloomberg.
Implementation Uncertainty
Federal agencies are awaiting the formal guidelines on how they will deal with this new charge.Another U.S. official said State Department staff was directed to “adjudicate as normal” for the moment.
The decision cites the section 212(f) from the Immigration and Nationality Act, giving the president a broad power to deny entry to those who haven’t paid the fees.
Within one period of a month Trump ordered the department of State, Labor, and Homeland Security as well as the attorney general to consider whether to make the restrictions more expansive or extended.
At present, immigration attorneys, corporations with multinationals Visa holders and multinational corporations are in uncertainty, preparing for legal battles, while waiting for more precise directives from Washington.
In the next few days, we’re anticipated to determine if the administration’s narrow interpretation of the law is valid – or if a more expansive enforcement will cause further confusion regarding one of the frequently utilized immigration programs within the U.S.
