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Trump to impose $100,000 fee per year for H-1B visas, in blow to tech

20 September 2025 09:04 (UTC +04:00)

The Trump administration said on Friday it would ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas, potentially dealing a big blow to the technology sector that relies heavily on skilled workers from India and China, APA reports, citing Reuters.

Since taking office in January, Trump has kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown, including moves to limit some forms of legal immigration. The step to reshape the H-1B visa program represents his administration's most high-profile effort yet to rework temporary employment visas.

"If you're going to train somebody, you're going to train one of the recent graduates from one of the great universities across our land. Train Americans. Stop bringing in people to take our jobs," U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said.

Trump's threat to crack down on H-1B visas has become a major flashpoint with the tech industry, which contributed millions of dollars to his presidential campaign.

Microsoft and JPMorgan, after the announcement of the new fees, advised employees holding H-1B visas to remain in the United States, according to internal emails reviewed by Reuters.