Washington: A jolt hit thousands of Indian students and tech professionals last month. A new rule from Washington put a price tag of $100,000 on the American dream. Employers froze applications, students delayed plans and recruiters called lawyers in panic.
The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has now cleared the air. The agency confirmed that the new fee under Donald Trump’s September proclamation applies only to fresh H-1B petitions filed for people outside the country.
The agency’s late-night statement read, “The Proclamation applies to new H-1B petitions filed at or after 12:01 am eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025, on behalf of beneficiaries who are outside the United States and do not have a valid H-1B visa.”
The clarification narrows the scope of the order. The $100,000 fee (nearly Rs 89 lakh in Indian currency) targets only those without a valid visa who apply from abroad after September 21.
A second line in the statement added that the fee also covers petitions requesting consular notification, port-of-entry clearance or pre-flight inspection. In simple words, anyone seeking visa stamping at a US embassy or border checkpoint will fall under the rule.
But there is relief. The agency confirmed that those already inside the United States under another visa can shift to H-1B without paying the $100,000. This includes thousands of Indian students switching from F-1 student status to work visas.
The clarification calmed many employers who feared the rule could halt tech hiring or delay status changes for months. The order issued on September 19 had left many questions open, triggering confusion across campuses and corporate offices.
For Indian students, the timing mattered. They remain the largest group of international students in the United States. According to the 2024 report by ICE’s Student and Exchange Visitor Programme, Indians made up 27 percent of all foreign students (a rise of nearly 12 percent over the previous year).
The new interpretation also protects Indian professionals, who hold about 70 percent of all H-1B visas issued in 2024.
The USCIS has now confirmed that the fee will not apply to amendments, extensions or re-entries for existing H-1B holders. Those travelling abroad can return without paying again. Their approved petitions stay valid.
The agency said, “The Proclamation does not apply to any previously issued and currently valid H-1B visas or any petitions submitted prior to 12:01 am eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025.”
It further added, “The Proclamation also does not apply to a petition filed at or after 12:01 am eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025, that is requesting an amendment, change of status, or extension of stay for an alien inside the United States.”
Another line from the agency sealed the assurance, “Further, an alien beneficiary of such petition will not be considered subject to the payment if he or she subsequently departs the United States and applies for a visa based on the approved petition and/or seeks to reenter the United States on a current H-1B visa.”
The USCIS explained that any employer filing without proof of exemption will see the petition rejected. The payment must be made in advance through pay.gov, the official government portal for visa-related fees.
Rare exemptions will come directly from Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. These will apply in “extraordinarily rare circumstances”, such as when no American worker can fill the role or when the employment directly serves national interest.
The clarification arrived after the US Chamber of Commerce filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, calling the fee “unlawful and harmful to small and medium-sized businesses”.
For now, the message from Washington is clear. The $100,000 rule is real, but its reach is smaller than feared. For Indian students and techies, the path to the H-1B dream stays open, just narrower, pricier and watched more closely than ever.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: ZEE News
