Judge blocks Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee

A federal court in Massachusetts struck down President Donald Trump's $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applicants, finding it violates the Administrative Procedure Act. US District Judge Leo Sorokin called the fee "unlawful" and said it functions as a tax that would require congressional approval.

Sorokin wrote the fee, put in place by executive order last year, "exceeds the scope of the President's discretionary authority" under US immigration law. Legal challenges have been underway since the order was signed in September. The order had already shifted application patterns: H-1B filings from major tech firms such as Google and Microsoft fell at the end of last year, while AI companies including OpenAI and Nvidia increased their filings, federal data show.

Before the change, the fee had been as much as $5,000 per visa. The administration also adjusted other parts of the immigration process, giving high-paid applicants multiple lottery entries to improve their chances compared with lower-paid applicants.

United States, Massachusetts

trump, h-1b, visa fee, leo sorokin, executive order, apa, h-1b lottery, openai, nvidia, google