--- title: H-1B Visas Have Been Transformed. What You Need to Know description: H-1B visas will now cost $100,000 per year under new changes announced by the Trump Administration. Here's what you need to know. canonical: https://time.com/7319116/h1b-visa-news-trump-rules/ author: Richard Hall article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-09-20T16:11:35.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-30T13:34:51.144Z article:section: Politics og:title: H-1B Visas Have Been Transformed. What You Need to Know og:description: The Trump Administration said it would charge companies $100,000 per year for H-1B visas. Here's what you need to know. og:url: https://time.com/7319116/h1b-visa-news-trump-rules/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f1d27815a1ad4b1/6998c9eaf1b08217246f1b36/AP25262779921491.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3562 og:image:height: 2004 og:image:alt: H-1B Visa Trump Gold Card og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: H-1B Visas Have Been Transformed. What You Need to Know twitter:description: The Trump Administration said it would charge companies $100,000 per year for H-1B visas. Here's what you need to know. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt0f1d27815a1ad4b1/6998c9eaf1b08217246f1b36/AP25262779921491.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # H-1B Visas Have Been Transformed. Here's What You Need to Know About the Changes > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. 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Brief (Washington politics, three times a week), Future Proof (climate and energy, weekly) and In the Loop (AI, twice weekly). All are free at time.com/newsletters and together reach more than 1.1 million engaged readers. #### Which TIME newsletter should I subscribe to? It depends on what you follow. For a daily briefing, The Brief. For health, Health Matters. For Washington politics, D.C. Brief. For AI and technology, In the Loop. For climate and energy as a business story, Future Proof. For culture recommendations, Worth Your Time. For how TIME's journalism gets made, Inside TIME. Readers can select any combination at time.com/newsletters. #### Are TIME's newsletters free? Yes. All seven TIME newsletters are free to join at time.com/newsletters. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes TIME's newsletters? TIME journalists write them. Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. by [Richard Hall](https://time.com/author/richard-hall/) and [Rebecca Schneid](https://time.com/author/rebecca-schneid/) Sep 20, 2025 4:11 PM UTC  President Donald Trump holds up the signed Gold Card executive order as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick looks on in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, in Washington. President Donald Trump holds up the signed Gold Card executive order as Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick looks on in the Oval Office of the White House, Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, in Washington.Alex Brandon—AP Photo by [Richard Hall](https://time.com/author/richard-hall/) and [Rebecca Schneid](https://time.com/author/rebecca-schneid/) Sep 20, 2025 4:11 PM UTC The Trump Administration said Friday it would charge companies $100,000 per year for H-1B visas, a move that created uncertainty for current visa holders and will likely [hamper the ability of American tech companies](https://time.com/5634351/canada-high-skilled-labor-immigrants/) to hire skilled workers from around the world. The new policy comes amid an aggressive effort by the administration to crack down on both illegal and legal immigration to the United States. It was unveiled on the same day as President Donald Trump rolled out a “[gold card](https://time.com/7280115/trumps-gold-card-theory/)” that would grant U.S. residency for those willing to pay $1 million. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the measure was aimed at pressuring companies to train American workers for [high-skilled jobs covered by the visa](https://time.com/6284104/nursing-shortage-crisis-immigration-reform/), rather than bringing in talent from abroad. "If you're going to train somebody, you're going to train one of the recent graduates from one of the great universities across our land. Train Americans. Stop bringing in people to take our jobs," he said Friday. **Read more:** [_How ICE’s Raid on Korean Workers in Georgia Demonstrates Trump’s Clashing Priorities_](https://time.com/7315276/trump-immigration-raid-south-korea-workers-georgia-foreign-investment-analysis/) The Trump Administration clarified on Saturday that the fee only applies to new visas and not to current visa holders or to renewals, Reuters reported, citing a White House official. India, whose citizens make up some [71% of H-1B visa holders](https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/reports/ola%5Fsigned%5Fh1b%5Fcharacteristics%5Fcongressional%5Freport%5FFY24.pdf), said the abrupt policy change “is likely to have humanitarian consequences by way of the disruption caused for families.” “Skilled talent mobility and exchanges have contributed enormously to technology development, innovation, economic growth, competitiveness and wealth creation in the United States and India," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Saturday. It added that the Indian government "hopes that these disruptions can be addressed suitably by the U.S. authorities. The H-1B visa is a temporary, non-immigrant work visa that requires at least a bachelor's degree and allows U.S. employers to hire foreign workers in specialty occupations such as technology, engineering, education, healthcare and finance. It previously cost between $1,700 and $4,500 and initially lasts for three years, but can be extended for up to six. Supporters of the crackdown on the H-1B visas say the program takes away highly paid jobs from American workers. But experts warn the changes could deal a blow to the tech industry as it faces high costs to adapt to the new rules, and may deter global talent from coming to the United States. And some of President Trump’s key backers are opposed to the restrictions. Elon Musk, a former advisor to the president and former holder of the visa, previously advocated for the visa program. “The reason I’m in America along with so many critical people who built SpaceX, Tesla and hundreds of other companies that made America strong is because of H1B,” Musk said[ on X in December 2024.](https://x.com/elonmusk/status/1872860577057448306?ref%5Fsrc=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1872860577057448306%7Ctwgr%5E3e9c84177880694e1f594a5889c8968ffc6ee20d%7Ctwcon%5Es1%5F&ref%5Furl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.livemint.com%2Fnews%2Fworld%2Fh1b-makes-america-strong-when-tesla-ceo-elon-musk-advocated-for-the-visa-program-11758357019319.html) Trump’s Presidential Proclamation on Friday argued that the visa had been “deliberately exploited” by companies. "The large-scale replacement of American workers through systemic abuse of the program has undermined both our economic and national security," it continued. The announcement caused chaos and confusion for current H-1B visa holders. Several companies that utilize the visa rushed advice to their employees to stay in the U.S. or return here on Friday and Saturday. According to Reuters, companies including Microsoft, JP Morgan and Amazon sent memos to employees holding H-1B visas to remain in the United States, even if they had planned travel outside of the United States. The potential bill for those companies going forward could be in the billions of dollars. According to federal filings, Amazon employed nearly 15,000 workers utilizing H-1B visas in 2024. Lutnick said he had the support of American businesses for the move on Friday, saying: “Tech companies are on board, we’ve spoken to them." But the legality of the move has been questioned. Senior legal fellow at the American Immigration Council Aaron Reichlin-Melnick said on [BlueSky ](https://bsky.app/profile/reichlinmelnick.bsky.social)that Trump has “literally zero legal authority to impose a $100,000 fee on visas. None. Zip. Zilch.” “The only authority Congress has ever given the executive branch here is to charge fees to recover the cost of processing the application,” he continued. Douglas Russo, an immigration lawyer, wrote in a widely [shared LinkedIn post on Friday](https://www.linkedin.com/posts/douglas-m-russo%5Frestriction-on-entry-of-certain-nonimmigrant-activity-7374945317902778368-SCr7?utm%5Fmedium=ios%5Fapp&rcm=ACoAAAAKyEgBTLF2WcdVYV6cggV1brDmEVeK6Xw&utm%5Fsource=social%5Fshare%5Fsend&utm%5Fcampaign=copy%5Flink) that he expected “swift” litigation against the order, but says nothing is guaranteed. "I hate to say this, but if you are an H-1B worker outside the U.S. who already has an H-1B visa, the safest approach is re-entering before Sunday," he wrote. India is the top country for H-1B visas, according to [official data](https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/document/reports/ola%5Fsigned%5Fh1b%5Fcharacteristics%5Fcongressional%5Freport%5FFY24.pdf) from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, accounting for close to three-quarters of approved visa holders last year. China accounts for around 11% of H-1B visas, according to U.S. government data. Holders of H-1B visas are eventually eligible for green cards. There are currently around 700,000 people living in the United States on H-1B visas, according to a National Foundation of American Policy analysis of government data. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7319116/h1b-visa-news-trump-rules/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7319116/h1b-visa-news-trump-rules/"},"headline":"H-1B Visas Have Been Transformed. 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