Trump administration has announced a steep hike in H-1B visa fees, imposing an annual charge of USD 100,000.
US President Donald Trump defended the decision as part of his “Hire American” policy, stating that the measure would push companies to hire American workers.
“We need workers. We need great workers, and this pretty much ensures that,” Trump said during the signing ceremony.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick explained the intent behind the new policy, saying that it is designed to deter companies from hiring foreign workers.
“No more will big tech companies train foreign workers under cheap visas. If they want an H-1B worker, they will need to pay USD 100,000 a year—making it only viable for top-tier roles,” he said.
Impact On Indian IT Firms
The decision, expected to hit Indian IT professionals the hardest, marks a significant setback for both Indian talent in the United States and major tech companies that rely heavily on H-1B workers.
The fee increase for H-1B visas is expected to disproportionately affect Indian IT companies like Infosys, Wipro, and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which have long relied on these visas to bring in thousands of engineers for projects in the U.S. Because Indian nationals consistently receive the majority of H-1B visa approvals—73% in 2023 according to Pew Research, compared to 12% for China—this sharp hike could dramatically change the landscape for both Indian professionals and the IT firms that sponsor them.