The Trump administration’s attempt to reinstate a proposed $100,000 fee on H-1B visa petitions has been rejected by a federal appeals court, marking a significant legal defeat.
The Trump administration has faced a significant legal setback as a federal appeals court has declined to reinstate a proposed $100,000 fee on new H-1B visa petitions. This decision undermines one of the administration’s key efforts to reshape the high-skilled immigration system.
The Boston-based 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the administration’s request to pause a lower court ruling issued on June 8. This ruling emerged from a lawsuit filed by 20 states led by Democratic attorneys general, which determined that the proposed fee constituted an unlawful tax that Congress had not authorized.
U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin, who presided over the case, concluded that the administration had exceeded its legal authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act. In his ruling, Judge Sorokin stated, “The Court finds that the Policy imposes a tax on H-1B petitions without the requisite delegation by Congress.”
The proposed fee increase was part of the Trump administration’s broader initiative to discourage employers from hiring foreign workers instead of American citizens. Prior to this proposed change, employers sponsoring H-1B workers typically paid government filing fees ranging from $2,000 to $5,000, depending on the specific type of petition and other factors.
In defense of the policy, President Donald Trump argued that the H-1B visa program had been “deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor.”
Although the proposed $100,000 fee was intended for new H-1B petitions, it would not have affected foreign nationals already residing in the United States on student visas, a demographic that receives a significant portion of new H-1B visas each year, according to Reuters.
Announced in September 2025, the policy led to a sharp decline in demand for new H-1B petitions. Reports indicated that by mid-February, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services had received only a limited number of payments under the proposed fee structure.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell expressed her approval of the appeals court’s decision, emphasizing that it protects employers who rely on highly skilled international workers to address workforce shortages.
“Today’s victory protects the integrity of the H-1B visa program as a tool to address severe labor shortages in vital industries like education, healthcare, and medical research,” Campbell stated. She further noted that the ruling would assist Massachusetts in filling critical positions and enable colleges and universities across the state to recruit top faculty members and researchers.
This ruling represents a significant moment in the ongoing debate over immigration policy and its impact on the U.S. labor market, particularly in sectors that depend heavily on skilled foreign workers.
According to Reuters, the legal battle surrounding the H-1B visa fee is part of a larger discussion about the future of immigration in the United States and the balance between protecting American jobs and attracting global talent.