USD 100,000 H-1B visa fee only for new petitions, existing holders not affected: Trump admin
New York/Washington (PTI): The Donald Trump administration has clarified that the new USD 100,000 fee for H-1B visas does not apply to current visa holders and is a one-time payment only for new petitions.
The clarification is a cause of huge relief for thousands of panic-stricken professionals working in the US, including those from India, who are concerned about being impacted by the new rule.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) said in a statement on Saturday that President Trump’s new H-1B visa requirement applies only to new, prospective petitions that have not yet been filed.
H-1B petitions submitted before the effective proclamation date of September 21 are not affected. Those visa holders currently outside the US also do not need to pay the fee for reentering the country.
White House Spokesperson Taylor Rogers told PTI that "President Trump promised to put American workers first, and this commonsense action does just that by discouraging companies from spamming the system and driving down wages."
"It also gives certainty to American businesses that actually want to bring high-skilled workers to our great country but have been trampled on by abuses of the system," she said.
A White House official told PTI that the USD 100,000 fee is a one-time charge that applies only to the petition. "It only applies to new visas, not renewals or current visa holders. It will first apply in the upcoming lottery cycle. It does not apply to 2025 lottery winners."
In a memorandum, USCIS Director Joseph Edlow wrote that the proclamation -- 'Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers' -- issued by Trump on Friday only applies prospectively to petitions that have not yet been filed.
The proclamation does not apply to individuals who "are the beneficiaries of petitions that were filed prior to the effective date of the proclamation, are the beneficiaries of currently approved petitions, or are in possession of validly issued H-1B non-immigrant visas".
"All officers of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services shall ensure that their decisions are consistent with this guidance. The proclamation does not impact the ability of any current visa holder to travel to or from the United States," the memo said.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also said on X that "to be clear", the USD 100,000 is not an annual but a one-time fee that applies only to the petition.
"Those who already hold H-1B visas and are currently outside of the country right now will not be charged USD 100,000 to re-enter. H-1B visa holders can leave and re-enter the country to the same extent as they normally would; whatever ability they have to do that is not impacted by yesterday’s proclamation," she said.
Leavitt added that the proclamation applies only to new visas, not renewals, and not current visa holders and will first apply in the next upcoming lottery cycle.
The clarification sent a huge wave of relief among Indian professionals on H-1B visas in the US, who had been gripped with panic, fear and concern after Trump signed the proclamation.
When asked if the hiked fee would apply to the H-1B visa holders already in the country, for renewals or for those applying for the first time, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick had said, "Renewals, first times, the company needs to decide. Is that person valuable enough to have a USD 100,000 a year payment to the government? Or they should head home, and they should go hire an American."
"It can be a total of six years, so $100,000 a year. So either the person is very valuable to the company and America, or they're going to depart, and the company is going to hire an American.
"That’s the point of immigration -- hire Americans and make sure the people coming in are the top people. Stop the nonsense of letting people just come into this country on these visas that were given away for free. The President is crystal clear. Valuable people only for America. Stop the nonsense," Lutnick had said.
Widespread panic, confusion and concern had gripped Indians in the US on H-1B visas in the hours after Trump’s order to impose the fee, with many cancelling travel plans at the last minute while waiting to board flights to the homeland and several others already in India scrambling to return.
Immigration attorneys and companies sounded the alarm for H-1B visa holders or their family members currently outside the US for work or vacation, asking them to return to the US before the proclamation kicked in on September 21.
"H-1B visa holders who are out of the US on business or vacation will get stranded unless they get in before midnight September 21. H-1Bs still in India may have already missed the deadline, as there is no way a direct flight from India will get in time," eminent New York-based immigration attorney Cyrus Mehta had said in a post on X.
The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
Under a Congressional-mandated cap, the United States can issue a maximum of 65,000 H-1B visas every year and another 20,000 to those who have obtained master's and higher degrees from the US. The current H1B visa fee ranges from about USD 2,000 to USD 5,000, depending on employer size and other costs.
The initial registration period for the 2027 fiscal year H-1B cap is expected to open around March next year. Last year, there was a USD 215 H-1B registration fee for each registration submitted on behalf of each beneficiary.
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SC to hear on May 4 PIL seeking stringent guidelines for issuing Aadhaar to adolescents, adults
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a plea seeking a direction to the Unique Identification Authority of India to issue new Aadhaar cards only to citizens up to the age of six years, and frame stringent guidelines for its issuance to adolescents and adults to stop infiltrators from masquerading as Indian citizens.
As per the apex court's causelist of May 4, the plea would come up for hearing before a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi.
The Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay has also sought a direction to the authorities to install display boards at common service centres stating that the 12-digit unique identification number is only a "proof of identity" and not a proof of citizenship, address or date of birth.
Besides all the states and Union Territories, the plea has made the UIDAI -- which is the authority that issues Aadhaar -- and the Union ministries of home, law and justice, and electronics and information technology as parties.
The plea, filed through advocate Ashwani Dubey, said Aadhaar, originally intended as a proof of identity, has increasingly become a "foundational document" enabling individuals to obtain other identification documents, such as ration cards, domicile certificates and voter identity cards.
"The UIDAI has issued 144 crore Aadhaar and 99 percent Indians have been enrolled. Therefore, the petitioner is filing this writ petition as a PIL under Article 32, seeking a direction to UIDAI to issue new Aadhaar to children only and frame new stringent guidelines for adolescents and adults, so as to stop infiltrators from getting it and masquerading as Indian citizens," the plea said.
It said the need to file the plea arose when the petitioner came to know the manner in which infiltrators are able to procure Aadhaar through a verification process that is weak and can be easily manipulated.
"Foreigners apply for Aadhaar under the 'foreign' category. But infiltrators apply for Aadhaar under the 'Indian citizen' category and get it easily made. Thereafter, they obtain a ration card, birth and domicile certificate, driving licence, et cetera, essentially becoming indistinguishable from Indian citizens…," it said.
Besides seeking other directions, the plea has raised legal questions, including whether the Aadhaar Act 2016 has become "temporally unreasonable" for failing to keep up with the legislative intent of distinguishing foreigners from Indian citizens.
It said the alleged misuse of Aadhaar undermines targeted welfare delivery and leads to diversion of public resources.
