News Flash
WASHINGTON, Sept 20, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - US President Donald Trump on Friday
ordered an annual $100,000 fee be added to H-1B skilled worker visas,
creating potentially major repercussions for the tech industry where such
permits are prolific.
The new measure, which could likely face legal challenges, was announced
alongside the introduction of a $1 million "gold card" residency program that
Trump had previewed months earlier.
"The main thing is, we're going to have great people coming in, and they're
going to be paying," Trump told reporters as he signed the orders in the Oval
Office.
H-1B visas allow companies to sponsor foreign workers with specialized skills
--- such as scientists, engineers, and computer programmers -- to work in the
United States, initially for three years, but extendable to six years.
The United States awards 85,000 H-1B visas per year on a lottery system, with
India accounting for around three-quarters of the recipients.
Large technology firms rely on Indian workers who either relocate to the
United States or come and go between the two countries.
Tech entrepreneurs -- including Trump's former ally Elon Musk -- have warned
against targeting H-1B visas, saying that the United States does not have
enough homegrown talent to fill important tech sector job vacancies.
"All the big companies are on board," said Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick,
who joined Trump in the Oval Office.
Trump has had the H-1B program in his sights since his first term in office,
but faced court challenges to his earlier approach, which targeted the types
of jobs that qualify. The current iteration has become the latest move in the
major immigration crackdown of his second term.
According to Trump's order, the fee will be required for those seeking to
enter the country beginning Sunday, with the Homeland Security secretary able
to exempt individuals, entire companies, or entire industries.
The order expires in a year, though Trump can extend it.
The number of H-1B visa applications has risen sharply in recent years, with
a peak in approvals in 2022 under Democratic president Joe Biden.
In contrast, the peak in rejections was recorded in 2018, during Trump's
first term in the White House.
The United States approved approximately 400,000 H-1B visas in 2024, two-
thirds of which were renewals.
Trump also signed an order creating a new expedited pathway to US residency
for people who pay $1 million, or for corporate sponsors to pay $2 million.
"I think it's going to be tremendously successful," Trump added.
South Korea's foreign ministry said in a statement on Saturday that officials
would "comprehensively assess the impact of these measures on the advancement
of (South Korean) companies and professional talents into the US market and
engage in necessary communication with the US."
Hundreds of South Koreans were detained during a US immigration raid on a
Hyundai-LG battery factory site in the state of Georgia earlier this month.
