Visa Applications / Donald Trump Renews $100K H‑1B Fee, Targets Layoffs

Washington, Sep 19: In a bid to tighten oversight of the H‑1B visa programme while reinforcing protections for American workers, President Donald Trump has renewed a $100,000 application fee and ordered federal agencies to scrutinize employers’ layoff practices more closely.

Agencies must now consider recent and planned layoffs when assessing applications under the skilled‑worker visa programme.

The order instructs the secretaries of state, labour, and homeland security to examine whether employers directly or indirectly carried out layoffs in the past year or plan future cuts affecting similarly situated US workers.

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This requirement applies to labour condition applications, petitions, visas, and entry into the United States. However, the order clarifies that applications will not be automatically rejected solely because layoffs were announced.

“I have determined that continued efforts must be made to protect and prioritize the American workforce,” Trump stated in the order.

A separate proclamation renewed the $100,000 fee first imposed on September 19, 2025. The White House fact sheet described the charge as applying to certain H‑1B applications but did not specify its duration or exemptions.

The order sets a 30‑day deadline for the labour secretary, through the Wage and Hour Division, to begin reviewing data from previously submitted labour condition applications. That review will determine whether further action against sponsoring employers is warranted.

Coordination across federal agencies will support these checks, with the departments of state, labour, and homeland security consulting commerce, education, and the Small Business Administration to supply wage, employment, academic, and industrial data.

The administration framed the measures as a response to alleged displacement of American workers and misuse of the programme.

The order claimed technology employers collectively sought hundreds of thousands of H‑1B visas while laying off between 800,000 and 1.3 million US employees from 2022 through 2026.

It also alleged misrepresentation of job duties, working conditions, or applicants’ qualifications. Neither the order nor the fact sheet included employer responses.

According to the White House, registrations from major outsourcing firms fell 92 per cent since the 2025 proclamation, while consular processing requests dropped nearly 97 per cent.

The measures follow a December 2025 Department of Homeland Security rule replacing random selection with a wage‑weighted system. Fiscal year 2027 marked its first use, with registrations declining by almost 40 per cent.

(IANS)