President Donald J. Trump signed a sweeping Proclamation on Friday, imposing a $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa petitions. The move aims to curb abuses in the program, prevent the displacement of American workers, and strengthen national security.
The Proclamation restricts entry for nonimmigrant workers under the H-1B program unless their petition is accompanied by the payment. It directs the Secretary of Homeland Security to deny approvals for petitions filed from outside the United States that lack the required fee. However, exemptions may be allowed on a case-by-case basis if they serve the national interest.
Employers must also retain proof of payment, which the Secretary of State will verify during the application process. Both the Departments of State and Homeland Security have been instructed to enforce penalties and deny entry to applicants whose employers fail to comply. In addition, the Departments of Labor and Homeland Security will issue joint guidance covering verification, audits, enforcement, and penalties.
The order further directs the Secretary of Labor to revise prevailing wage levels for the H-1B program, while the Secretary of Homeland Security has been tasked with prioritizing high-skilled, high-paid applicants in upcoming rulemaking.
Curbing H-1B Abuses
The administration has repeatedly argued that the H-1B program has been misused by companies to cut costs at the expense of U.S. workers. The share of IT workers on H-1B visas has climbed from 32 percent in 2003 to more than 65 percent in recent years. Meanwhile, unemployment among recent computer science graduates has reached 6.1 percent, and computer engineering graduates face a higher 7.5 percent rate.
At the same time, major corporations continue to reduce their American workforce while securing thousands of H-1B approvals. For example, one company obtained 5,189 approvals in FY 2025 while laying off 16,000 employees. Another received nearly 1,700 visas yet cut 2,400 jobs in Oregon. Reports have even surfaced of U.S. employees being forced to train their foreign replacements under strict nondisclosure agreements.
Protecting the Future Workforce
President Trump emphasized that the Proclamation is intended to “restore fairness in the labor market” by discouraging the replacement of Americans with cheaper foreign labor. By raising costs for employers and prioritizing high-wage applications, the administration seeks to ensure that U.S. students remain motivated to pursue STEM careers while safeguarding the nation’s long-term economic security.
“This action is about putting American workers first and ensuring that our national security is never compromised,” Trump said while signing the order.
