A USD100,000 payment will now be required when applicants file their petitions for the H1-B non-immigrant visa under US President Donald Trump’s 19 September 2025 executive order. Indian applicants are the main cohort using the H1-B visa to work in the US.
The USD100,000 payment lasts 12 months starting from 21 September 2025 unless extended, will apply to new applicants and not current visa holders or renewals.
The Department of Homeland Security will block petitions without payment for workers outside the country for 12 months from 21 September 2025. However, exceptions will apply if the Secretary of Homeland Security decides that hiring certain workers or workers belonging to a specific sector is in the national interest and does not threaten US security or welfare.
Employers must keep proof of the USD100,000 payment, which the Secretary of the State Department will check during the visa process. Homeland Security and the State Department will work together to deny entry if the payment has not been made.
The Labour Department will revise the minimum wage levels for H-1B workers, and Homeland Security will prioritise the highest-paid and most skilled applicants consistent with prevailing rules.
The executive order does not remove existing legal powers, will be carried out in line with the law and available funding, and does not give anyone new legal rights.
The H-1B visa programme was originally intended to bring highly skilled temporary workers to the United States, but has received criticism for being manipulated by consultants and used to replace rather than supplement American workers.
The president’s executive order accused information technology firms of manipulating the H1-B system “significantly harming American workers in computer-related fields”. It said companies close their IT divisions, fire their American staff and outsource IT jobs to lower-paid foreign workers.
