ROOKE: Trump Administration Takes Big Bite Of Immigration Apple With $103,265 Fee

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published a proposed rule change to certain H-1B visa petitions that will reshape the country’s immigration program.

The U.S. H-1B visa program has been in the news recently due to several high-profile fraud cases being investigated by the Trump administration. Americans have noticed what seems to be an explosion of these visa holders living in the U.S. It went largely ignored for years, since most H-1B visa approvals occurred in the tech industry, based in California. However, it’s become increasingly common for universities, nonprofit organizations, and companies across sectors to hire low-cost foreign labor through this program.

The Trump administration has attempted to fix the problem, but failed initially. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation ordering a $100,000 fee be applied to all new H-1B applications in September 2025. This move was blocked by the courts, which argued that Trump was attempting to set a tax for this program. Congress is the only branch of government that can do that. Now the administration is taking another bite of the apple with a move that will make it much harder for the courts to deny.

The DHS’s proposed rule would require employers to pay an additional $103,265 at the time of filing their H-1B petition, subject to the annual numerical cap. This charge would sit on top of existing fees and is framed by the agency as a cost-recovery mechanism to help fund administrative duties related to immigration.

As of Aug. 25, the rule is in the proposal process, which requires a 30-day public comment period ending around Sept. 23, followed by an agency review. The whole process could take months.

U.S. employers hire foreign workers through the H-1B visa in specialty occupations that typically require at least a bachelor’s degree. Congress has set a yearly numerical limit, known as the “cap,” on new applications. In total, the U.S. approves 85,000 new foreign workers every year through this program. There are 65,000 regular slots, plus an additional 20,000 for applicants with a master’s degree or higher. (Sign up for Mary Rooke’s weekly newsletter here!)

Demand for the 85,000 slots routinely exceeds supply, so United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) runs a lottery each year to select applicants for approval. Once a worker is selected and approved that person is counted against the cap for that year.

If the new DHS rule goes into effect, the Trump administration would apply the $103,265 fee to applications subject to the H-1B cap, including regular private-sector companies that must go through the annual lottery. This would include big tech, finance, engineering, and other private businesses and industries.

The proposed rule does not include applicants from cap-exempt employers, which include universities, nonprofits, nonprofit research organizations, and governmental research organizations. Cap-exempt applicants would remain outside its scope unless they move from their current role into a position within the private sector.

It also won’t apply to the majority of the estimated 600,000 H-1B visa holders already living in the U.S., even if they originally entered under the cap lottery system. The reason is that the government counts a person against the cap when they first receive H-1B status. Most people who already have H-1B status and are working in the U.S. can renew their status or change jobs without competing for one of the limited 85,000 new slots each year. (ROOKE: White House Green-Lights Scam-Hunting Raiders Using Old Sailor Trick)

Still, the new fee would create a powerful financial deterrent for private-sector employers. Companies that rely on the annual lottery would face a six-figure surcharge for every worker they seek to bring in through the regular process. It would likely reduce fraud and abuse in the lottery system, as employers would be much less likely to sponsor a visa for a less qualified candidate if they were required to pay a hefty application fee. It would also create a bigger incentive for employers to look for American candidates during the hiring process.

Are you happy about this MAGA? Does this please you? This is going to price a lot of Microsoft Azure and Amazon AWS geniuses out of the market for American jobs, causing Microsoft and Amazon to have to hire Americans with student loan debt to work for them. Is this what you… https://t.co/qOWv9shQtr

This is still a far cry from ending the H-1B visa program altogether. But to do that would require an act of Congress, which isn’t likely to happen, no matter which party is in control. For now, it represents a significant acceleration in the Trump administration’s attempt to bring the program to heel.

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