Synopsis

The Trump administration is moving closer to unveiling new H-1B petition fee rules after a DHS proposal cleared White House review. The details are yet to be made public, with the move coming amid wider changes to the visa programme, Bloomberg Law reported.

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A US government proposal governing fees for certain H-1B petitions has cleared White House review, bringing it closer to public release as the Trump administration pushes ahead with changes to the work visa programme widely used by technology companies, Bloomberg Law reported.



The Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs cleared the Department of Homeland Security proposal, identified as RIN 1615-AD20 and titled “Fee for Certain H-1B Petitions.”



Also Read| H-1B visa extensions could soon come with a hefty new price tag under new Trump plan

The proposal has not yet been published, meaning its exact provisions, including whether it changes the amount or scope of existing H-1B fees, are not yet public.

The $100,000 H-1B fee

The rulemaking follows a major H-1B fee policy announced by President Donald Trump in September 2025.



Trump issued a proclamation requiring a $100,000 payment for certain new H-1B petitions involving workers outside the United States. The payment was imposed on top of the regular government fees employers already pay when sponsoring an H-1B worker.



The measure took effect on September 21, 2025 and was initially imposed for 12 months.



The policy generally targeted new H-1B workers coming from outside the US. It did not apply to H-1B visas issued before the proclamation took effect and generally did not cover renewals, extensions or qualifying changes to H-1B status for people already in the US.



The proclamation also allowed the Homeland Security secretary to grant exceptions for individuals, companies or industries when hiring the workers was considered to be in the national interest.



The administration said the measure was intended to curb what it described as abuse of the H-1B programme and protect US workers.



It is not yet clear how the newly cleared DHS proposal relates to that $100,000 payment or whether the agency plans to change how the fee is imposed. Those details should become clearer when DHS publishes the proposed rule.



Also Read|US may end H-1B job-loss grace period for foreign workers; Indians could face impact

EB-5 fee changes also move forward

DHS is separately advancing changes to fees for the EB-5 immigrant investor programme, Bloomberg reported.



The agency sent a final regulation, identified as RIN 1615-AC93, to the White House for review.



A proposal published in October sought to reduce fees for the I-526 petition, which immigrant investors use as part of the process of seeking permanent residence through the EB-5 programme.



The proposal would also codify provisions of the EB-5 Reform and Integrity Act of 2022, according to the Bloomberg report.

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