The Trump Administration’s plan to charge $100,000 for new H-1B visa applications was challenged in a lawsuit filed by twenty US states, who said the policy was illegal and endangered vital public services.
The case focuses on a Department of Homeland Security regulation that significantly raises the cost for firms looking to acquire highly qualified foreign workers under the H-1B visa program, which is extensively utilized by public institutions, hospitals, and colleges.
The office spearheading the case, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, stated that the administration was not authorized to charge the fee.
“California, the fourth largest economy in the world, understands that when talented people from around the world join our workforce, it drives our state forward,” stated Bonta.
He said that President Trump’s unlawful $100,000 H-1B visa fee exacerbates labor shortages in important industries by placing needless and unlawful financial burdens on California state employers and other providers of essential services.
On September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a proclamation directing the payment. DHS implemented the policy for H-1B petitions submitted after September 21 and granted the Secretary of Homeland Security the authority to decide which applications are eligible for exemptions or are subject to the charge.
The states contend that by circumventing necessary regulation and going beyond congressional authority, the policy violates both the US Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act. They claim that payments associated with the H-1B program have traditionally been restricted to the expense of system administration.
Currently, the total regulatory and statutory fees paid by employers filing initial H-1B petitions range from $960 to $7,595.
Employers are required under federal law to attest that recruiting H-1B workers won’t negatively impact US workers’ pay or working conditions. The majority of private-sector H-1B visas are limited by Congress to 65,000 per year, with an extra 20,000 set aside for candidates with advanced degrees.
Schools, colleges, hospitals, and other government and nonprofit organizations are typically excluded from the cap.
The attorneys general claim that the additional charge will make staffing shortages worse, especially in the healthcare and education sectors.
Seventy-four percent of US school districts reported having trouble filling unfilled positions during the 2024–2025 academic year, particularly in special education, physical sciences, ESL or bilingual education, and foreign languages. Among those with H-1B visas, educators make up the third-largest occupational group.
The program is also very important to healthcare providers. In fiscal year 2024, over half of the nearly 17,000 H-1B visas granted for medical and health-related occupations went to doctors and surgeons. By 2036, there will be an 86,000 physician shortfall in the United States.
Attorneys general from Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin joined Bonta and Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell in filing the lawsuit.
For talented foreign workers, including many Indian experts working in technology, healthcare, and academic research, the H-1B program provides a crucial route. gave up the power that Congress had given them.
