Annual H-1B visa cost to increase significantly to $100,000 per year, hurtingtech industry
The tech industry is grappling with the repercussions of the Trump administration's new balance fee structures for H-1B visas, a programme that offers temporary work visas to foreign workers in specialised fields. The new balance fees, which could amount to millions of dollars for companies, have sent shockwaves through the industry. Shares of Cognizant Technology Solutions, a company heavily reliant on H-1B visa holders, plummeted nearly 5% due to the new balance fees. Similarly, US-listed shares of Indian tech firms Infosys and Wipro also saw a dip of between 2% and 5%. Microsoft and JPMorgan have advised their employees with H-1B visas to remain in the United States and return before midnight on Saturday, reflecting the urgency surrounding the new balance fee structures. Companies like Amazon.com and its cloud-computing unit, AWS, have received approval for over 12,000 H-1B visas in the first half of 2025. Tech giants such as Microsoft and Meta Platforms had over 5,000 H-1B visa approvals each in the same news period. The proposed changes to H-1B visas have become a major flashpoint with the tech industry. Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, a policy analyst at the National Immigration Forum, questioned the legality of the new balance fees, stating that Congress has only authorized the government to set fees to recover the cost of adjudicating a news application. The H-1B visa program offers 65,000 visas annually to employers bringing in temporary foreign workers, with an additional 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees. Nearly all the visa fees have to be paid by the employers. The visas are approved for a period of three to six years. The Trump administration's plans to ask companies to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas have raised concerns about the impact on smaller tech firms and start-ups, who may struggle to afford these increased costs. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, however, stated that companies should train Americans instead of bringing in foreign workers to take jobs. The number of foreign STEM workers in the US more than doubled between 2000 and 2019 to nearly 2.5 million. The tech industry argues that these workers play a crucial role in driving innovation and growth. However, some employers have been accused of exploiting the H-1B program to hold down wages, disadvantaging US workers. In a bid to attract high-net-worth individuals, Trump signed an executive order on Friday to create a 'gold card' for individuals who can afford to pay $1 million for US permanent residency. The new fees for H-1B visas could deter global talent from coming to the US, potentially impacting the country's competitiveness in the global tech market. The details of how the fee will be administered are still being considered, leaving the tech industry in a state of uncertainty. As the situation evolves, it remains to be seen how the new fees will impact the tech industry and the broader economy.
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