WASHINGTON: The United States clarified has that the new $100,000 fee for H-1B skilled worker visas will apply only to new petitions and not to existing visa holders or renewals.
The clarification, issued on Saturday, came in response to earlier comments by US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, who had stated that the fee would be applied annually and cover both new visa applicants and renewals.
“This is NOT an annual fee. It’s a one-time fee that applies only to the petition,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X on Saturday.
“Those who already hold H-1B visas and are currently outside of the country right now will NOT be charged $100,000 to re-enter… This applies only to new visas, not renewals, and not current visa holders,” she added.
H-1B visas allow companies to sponsor foreign workers with specialised skills – such as scientists, engineers, and computer programmers – to work in the US, initially for three years, but extendable to six.
Following the announcement of the new $100,000 H-1B visa fee on Friday, companies including Microsoft, JPMorgan, and Amazon reportedly advised their H-1B visa-holding employees to remain in the United States.
The White House defended the policy, stating the fee aims to level the playing field for American workers, who it claims are often replaced by lower-paid foreign labor.
The proclamation, signed by former President Donald Trump on Friday, could significantly impact the global operations of Indian technology services firms, which regularly send skilled professionals to the US, according to Nasscom, India’s IT industry body.
The White House said Trump’s move was designed to address threats to US national security.
“President Trump is imposing higher costs on companies seeking to use the H-1B program in order to address the abuse of the program, stop the undercutting of wages, and protect our national security,” it said.
