Trump extends $100,000 H-1B fee for another year

US President Donald Trump has extended the measure imposing a $100,000 payment on H-1B visa petitions by another year, keeping it in place till September 21, 2027, the White House said, as legal challenges continue in US courts. The order was first issued in September 2025. USCIS data for FY2024 show 71% of approved H-1B petitions were for India-born beneficiaries against about 12% for China. The payment has been made for over 700 petitions. DHS has separately proposed a $103,265 fee.

Written by AI from Hindustan Times — India · not yet reviewed by an editor · Published 19 Sept 2026, 4:58 pm IST

Source

Hindustan Times — India · read the original report ↗

#h-1b visa#trump#immigration#indian professionals#us policy

Desk check · compared with the source

What the desk checked (5)

Trump extended the $100,000 H-1B payment requirement till September 21, 2027. — Attributed to the White House in the source; date appears in source text.
71% of approved H-1B petitions in FY2024 were for beneficiaries born in India, against about 12% for China. — Attributed to USCIS FY2024 data as cited in the source.
Largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms cut combined H-1B registrations from 24,946 to 2,055, a 92% decline. — Attributed to the proclamation; figures appear in source.
The $100,000 payment has been made for more than 700 petitions since September 21, 2025. — Attributed to the administration; no independent verification possible.
DHS has separately proposed a $103,265 H-1B fee under a different legal authority. — Stated in source as separate from the $100,000 payment; attributed to DHS proposal.

Written by AI from Hindustan Times — India · not yet reviewed by an editor · How we use AI · Report an error

Analysts’ view opinion

AI Strategic Affairs Analyst

This is not merely a visa-fee story — it is an attempt to redefine economic and technological security by regulating the flow of skilled human capital. With 71% of approved petitions going to India-born beneficiaries, the burden of this measure falls most heavily on India, which is why it could become a strategic pressure point in the bilateral relationship. At the same time, the reported 92% collapse in registrations by the largest IT staffing firms and the rising share of higher wage levels suggest the behavioural shift the administration sought is already under way.

Framing immigration restriction in terms of wage protection and domestic STEM employment ties visa policy to the broader logic of economic and technological competition.
Extending the measure to September 2027 signals durability rather than a temporary shock, forcing employers to plan around it as a structural reality.
For India the strategic implication is that skilled-worker mobility may increasingly sit alongside defence and technology cooperation on the bilateral agenda.
A 92% fall in registrations and a nearly 97% drop in consular-processing requests point to possible talent diversion towards other destinations or offshore delivery centres, which could indirectly benefit competitors.
With litigation continuing and DHS separately proposing a $103,265 fee under different legal authority, the administration appears to be pursuing multiple parallel routes so the policy goal survives even an adverse court outcome.

What to watch — Watch the mandated review after the next H-1B lottery, the outcome of the court challenges, the fate of the DHS fee proposal — and whether India formally raises the issue on the bilateral agenda.

The story establishes the extension and the cited data, but does not establish any official Indian government response, the likely judicial outcome, or where displaced talent is actually going.

Deep dive

Research brief · 8 facts · 5 dates · exam-ready

The brief

Context

The H-1B visa lets US employers hire skilled foreign workers, including technology professionals, for multi-year stints in the United States. In September 2025, President Donald Trump issued a proclamation imposing a $100,000 payment on H-1B petitions, which the administration said was aimed at abuses by IT staffing and outsourcing firms. That order was due to expire this month, but the White House says Trump has extended it by another year, to September 21, 2027, even as legal challenges continue in US courts. Indians are the most affected group, accounting for 71% of approved H-1B petitions in FY2024.

Key facts

Trump has extended the $100,000 payment on H-1B petitions for another year, keeping it in force till September 21, 2027.
The executive order behind the fee was first issued in September 2025 and was due to expire this month.
USCIS data for FY2024: 71% of approved H-1B petitions were for beneficiaries born in India, against about 12% for China.
The administration says the $100,000 payment has been made for more than 700 petitions since the restriction took effect on September 21, 2025.
A DHS rule introduced a weighted selection system favouring higher-skilled, higher-paid applicants; it was used for the FY2027 H-1B cap season.
The proclamation says the largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms cut combined H-1B registrations from 24,946 to 2,055, a 92% decline.
Consular-processing requests fell nearly 97% between the FY2025 and FY2027 cap seasons.
Share of registrants with at least a US master's degree rose from 45.1% in FY2026 to 66.1% in FY2027; two highest wage levels made up about 46.3% of selections, the lowest wage level 17.8%.

Timeline

September 2025Trump issues the original proclamation imposing a $100,000 payment on H-1B petitions, citing abuses by IT staffing and outsourcing companies.
September 21, 2025The $100,000 payment restriction comes into effect; over 700 petitions have since made the payment.
FY2027 cap seasonDHS weighted selection system, prioritising higher-skilled and higher-paid applicants, is used for the H-1B lottery.
September 18 (proclamation)Extension proclamation requires a review of the restriction after the next H-1B lottery and a recommendation on further extension.
Till September 21, 2027The extended $100,000 payment measure remains in place, with legal challenges continuing in US courts.

Who has a stake

Indian professionals and H-1B applicants — Largest share of approved beneficiaries (71% in FY2024); those needing to enter the US face the continued $100,000 payment.
US employers, especially tech firms — Must bear the $100,000 payment per affected petition and adapt to the weighted selection system.
IT staffing and outsourcing companies — Named in the proclamation as the target; their combined registrations fell from 24,946 to 2,055.
The Trump administration / White House — Defends the measure as curbing wage suppression and protecting US workers and STEM graduates.
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) — Introduced the weighted selection rule and has proposed a separate $103,265 H-1B fee.
USCIS — Administers H-1B petitions and provides the approval data by country of birth.
US courts — Hearing ongoing legal challenges to the $100,000 payment measure.

Why it matters

India supplies the overwhelming majority of H-1B beneficiaries, so a $100,000 charge per petition, extended to September 2027, directly affects Indian technology talent mobility and the business models of IT staffing and outsourcing firms. The sharp declines cited by the White House suggest the restriction, along with the weighted lottery, is already reshaping who gets US skilled-work visas in favour of higher-paid, higher-degree applicants.

UPSC angle

Prelims pointers

H-1B: US visa for employers to hire skilled foreign workers, widely used in the technology sector.
$100,000 payment on H-1B petitions first imposed by proclamation in September 2025; effective September 21, 2025; now extended to September 21, 2027.
USCIS FY2024 data: India 71% of approved H-1B petitions; China about 12%.
DHS weighted selection system prioritises higher-skilled and higher-paid applicants; first used in FY2027 cap season.
Largest IT staffing/outsourcing firms' H-1B registrations fell 92%, from 24,946 to 2,055.
DHS has separately proposed a $103,265 H-1B fee under a different legal authority.

Mains framing

The extension of the $100,000 H-1B payment to September 21, 2027 illustrates how immigration policy is being used as a labour-market instrument in the United States, with direct spillovers for India. The administration's stated cause is misuse of the programme by IT staffing and outsourcing firms that allegedly placed H-1B workers in lower-paid roles and later moved jobs overseas, contributing to wage suppression and weaker prospects for US workers and recent STEM graduates. Combined with a DHS weighted selection system favouring higher-skilled and higher-paid applicants, the effects are visible in the data cited: a 92% fall in registrations by the largest IT staffing and outsourcing companies (24,946 to 2,055), a nearly 97% drop in consular-processing requests between FY2025 and FY2027, and a rise in registrants holding at least a US master's degree from 45.1% to 66.1%. For India, which accounted for 71% of approved petitions in FY2024, the implications run from individual career mobility to the cost structure of the services export industry. The proclamation itself builds in a review after the next lottery, and legal challenges remain pending in US courts, so the way forward lies in litigation outcomes, that mandated review, and diplomatic and industry engagement, alongside adaptation by firms towards higher-wage, higher-skill filings. A separate DHS proposal for a $103,265 fee adds further uncertainty.

Key terms

H-1B visa: US visa allowing employers to hire skilled foreign workers, including tech professionals, for several years.
USCIS: US Citizenship and Immigration Services; the agency whose FY2024 data shows India at 71% of approved H-1B petitions.
DHS: Department of Homeland Security; introduced the weighted H-1B selection rule and proposed a separate $103,265 fee.
Weighted selection system: DHS rule giving priority in the H-1B lottery to higher-skilled and higher-paid applicants; used in the FY2027 cap season.
Presidential proclamation: The executive instrument through which the $100,000 H-1B payment was imposed in September 2025 and later extended.
Cap season: The annual H-1B registration and selection cycle for capped visa numbers, referenced here for FY2025, FY2026 and FY2027.

Practice questions

Discuss the implications of the extended $100,000 H-1B payment for India's skilled workforce and IT services exports.
How do wage-based and skill-weighted visa selection mechanisms alter the composition of migrant labour flows? Examine with reference to the US H-1B programme.
Executive action on immigration is increasingly shaping India-US economic ties. Critically analyse in the light of the $100,000 H-1B payment and the separate proposed $103,265 fee.

Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.

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