(Bloomberg) — A federal court struck down the Trump administration’s attempt to put a $100,000 fee on visas for some highly-skilled foreign workers in June. Now the administration is trying again — this time through a regulatory process that proposes a broader levy to help finance its wide-ranging immigration crackdown.
Companies would pay roughly $103,000 for each candidate they sponsor for a visa under the H-1B program for foreign-born professionals, according to the regulatory proposal announced Monday. Unlike the earlier initiative, it would apply to almost anyone getting a new visa, not just those who are outside the country.
Opponents say the fee is so onerous it would effectively shut down most of the pipeline for such workers, many of whom are well-paid professionals in information technology, medicine or finance. The H-1B visa program has been the primary entry point into the labor market for hundreds of thousands of US university graduates and other foreigners who bring skills that are in high demand, but in recent years became a prime target for critics of loose immigration policy who say H-1Bs undercut American workers.
Analysts warn that if one of the primary paths for working in the US goes away, America will lose out on some of the world’s most talented people, who now have more options in Canada and Europe, as well as developing countries where many of the H-1B applications come from, like India and China.
“They want to stop US employers from using H-1B. It’s really simple,” said Charles Kuck, an Atlanta attorney and past president of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. “India’s gonna love this. China’s gonna love this. Europe is gonna love this.”
Trump Devises New $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee After Defeat in Court
