DHS Proposes $103,265 H-1B Visa Fee Expansion

WASHINGTON — The Department of Homeland Security posted a proposed rule in the Federal Register on Monday, August 24, 2026, to establish a permanent $103,265 fee for employers petitioning for H-1B foreign worker visas.

The measure seeks to extend a temporary fee structure enacted last year that dramatically raised costs for visa applicants in the technology, education, and research sectors.

The proposal faces active litigation after a federal judge ruled in June that the fee was an illegal tax on businesses, leading to an appeal by the federal government.

H-1B visas allow domestic companies to recruit foreign workers with specialized training, capping annual approvals at 65,000 standard visas alongside 20,000 reserved for applicants holding advanced degrees.

Before the administration's intervention, typical processing fees for the three- to six-year visas ranged between $2,000 and $5,000.

According to federal notices, revenue generated from the proposed $103,265 fee would be directed toward the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Labor, Department of State, and Department of Justice to offset administrative costs.

The fee would apply broadly to H-1B petitioners, though exemptions remain for foreign citizens already in the United States on student visas and for existing visa renewals.

Court filings show that roughly 70 employers had paid the previous $100,000 fee across 85 visa applications as of late February.

Data from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services indicates that employers registered for approximately 344,000 H-1B visas last year, representing a decline of more than 25 percent from 2024 and less than half of the 794,000 applications filed in 2023.

Supporters of the fee argue that the H-1B program is frequently exploited by businesses looking to displace American workers with lower-cost foreign labor.

Conversely, major business organizations, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, contend the visa program is vital for securing qualified talent unavailable in the domestic workforce.

Legal challenges mounted by business coalitions, labor unions, and state attorneys general assert that executive authority cannot impose unauthorized revenue mechanisms or override congressional immigration laws.

One economic study highlights that H-1B visa recipients arriving between 1990 and 2020 generated 30 to 50 percent of overall productivity growth in the U.S. economy while stimulating wage growth for native workers.

Separately, the Department of Homeland Security introduced earlier rules imposing fees up to $4,500 to extend stays or transfer international workers, alongside proposals to alter selection processes to favor higher-salaried positions.