Washington DC - President Donald Trump's administration on Monday moved to impose a more than $100,000 fee on employers hiring foreign workers through a highly-skilled visa program, after facing a legal setback in an earlier effort.
The $103,265 fee for H-1B visas would serve as a "revenue mechanism" to recoup the costs of administering the immigration system, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in its new proposed rule.
The Trump administration has argued that the visa program has been exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers – and in September 2025 issued a presidential proclamation imposing a $100,000 fee to combat what it called "systemic abuse."
But a federal judge in June blocked that order, siding with 20 Democratic-led states in a lawsuit that contended the fee constituted an unlawful tax that bypassed Congressional authority.
In the new proposal, the administration leans heavily on cost-based arguments, saying it needs to make up the costs of its agencies – including US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
However, DHS acknowledges it would have what it calls an "indirect" benefit, as they believe the fee will make US employers "less likely to hire an H-1B worker over a qualified and highly-skilled American."
DHS also said the fee "would be in addition to any other applicable fees or payments," including the presidential proclamation that is under legal review.
This means that, if the original $100,000 fee is allowed to go ahead, the new payment would be stacked on top.