The H-1B visa has long been one of the most discussed immigration programmes in the United States. It allows American companies to employ foreign professionals in specialised fields such as information technology, engineering, finance, and research. For many Indian workers, it has been the main route to build careers in the US and contribute to its economy. Over the years, the visa has been both praised as a bridge for bringing talent and criticised as a threat to American workers.
The new move by President Donald Trump to impose a $100,000 fee on H-1B applications has changed the discussion around the programme, sparking anxiety in India, concerns among global technology firms, and debates inside the US. This sweeping decision, which comes into effect on 21 September 2025, has been presented as a measure to stop misuse of the programme, but it is already raising fears of disruption in the technology industry and uncertainty among skilled workers across the world.
Until now, the cost of filing an H-1B visa petition was relatively low. Companies usually paid between $2,000 and $5,000 depending on their size and other administrative factors. The visas are valid for three years and can be renewed for another three. These costs were manageable for both multinational corporations and smaller firms seeking talent abroad. Trump’s executive order has raised the cost overnight to $100,000, an increase that is extraordinary compared to the previous structure. For Indian companies and professionals, the timing is especially painful because India accounts for more than seventy per cent of all approved H-1B applications, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services data.
Between October 2022 and September 2023 alone, nearly four lakh visas were issued, and Indian nationals received the largest share. Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys, HCL, and Wipro together obtained approvals for about twenty thousand employees under the programme, showing how central it is to India’s IT sector. This sudden rise in fees has therefore been seen as a direct hit to Indian talent and Indian firms.
The announcement initially created panic. Major companies, including Amazon, told employees holding H-1B visas to remain inside the US if they were already there. Those abroad were advised to return before the order’s deadline to avoid being stranded. Business Insider reported on an internal Amazon advisory warning staff to avoid travel until further guidance. This created confusion among workers and their families, many of whom feared they might be denied re-entry or asked to pay the massive new fee to return. The White House was later forced to clarify that the $100,000 payment would not apply to existing visa holders or renewals but only to new applications in the February 2026 lottery.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt and spokesperson Abigail Jackson both emphasised that current H-1B holders could travel as before and that the charge was a one-time fee, not an annual payment. These clarifications provided some relief but did not reduce the broader concern about the cost and its impact on new applications.
Industry reaction in India was swift and sharp. Nasscom, the leading trade body for the IT industry, warned that the decision would disrupt businesses, students, and professionals. It argued that Indian firms already pay prevailing wages, invest in local hiring, and have been reducing dependence on visas by recruiting more talent from American universities.
Nasscom highlighted the lack of transition time as a serious problem, as projects and delivery schedules were already planned based on existing visa expectations. Mohandas Pai, former executive of Infosys, said the measure would make fresh applications almost impossible. He predicted a rise in offshoring as companies would choose to send more work back to India rather than pay the new fee. In his view, the measure would not only discourage new applicants but also increase costs for American clients and delay projects.
The stock market also reacted. Shares of Infosys and Wipro, listed in the US, fell immediately after the order. Infosys saw its ADR drop by four per cent, while Wipro slipped by two per cent. Investors appeared worried about the effect on the companies’ US business, which depends heavily on skilled Indian professionals. Analysts expect that firms will now increase their focus on local recruitment in the US and push more delivery to offshore centres in India. In the short term, this may protect contracts, but in the longer term it could affect the competitiveness of the US technology ecosystem itself.
The Trump administration defended the order by arguing that the H-1B system has been misused. The proclamation stated that the programme was intended to bring in highly skilled workers to supplement American labour but had been exploited to replace American workers with lower-paid foreigners. It claimed that this had undermined both economic and national security. The White House pointed to data showing that the share of IT workers in the H-1B programme has grown sharply, from about 32 per cent in 2003 to more than 65 per cent in recent years. It argued that outsourcing companies were the biggest beneficiaries, often offering salaries lower than American firms would pay.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick went further, saying companies now had to decide whether a worker was valuable enough to justify a $100,000 payment to the government, or else hire an American instead. He said this new approach would ensure that only the “top, top people” were brought into the US, while also raising more than $100 billion for the treasury.
Critics, however, believe the order will damage American competitiveness. Immigration attorney Tahmina Watson called it a “nail in the coffin” for many small businesses and start-ups who rely on H-1B workers because they cannot find local talent. She argued that almost everyone would be priced out, especially smaller companies. Jorge Lopez, chair of a major immigration practice group, said the measure would put brakes on the tech sector and other industries that depend on global skills.
He warned that some companies might shift operations outside the US, though that would not be easy to do quickly. Nasscom, too, stressed that the US needs high-skill talent to stay competitive in fields such as artificial intelligence, and that restricting access to this pool of professionals would harm innovation.
The debate is not new. Trump has long had mixed positions on the H-1B programme. While campaigning in the past, he even promised to make it easier for talented graduates to get green cards. But during his first term, he signed an order that increased scrutiny of H-1B applications, leading to rejection rates as high as 24 per cent in 2018, compared to far lower rates under Obama and Biden. His latest move goes further than before by making entry into the programme financially impossible for most.
By contrast, the administration has also introduced a new “gold card” scheme, where wealthy individuals or corporations can pay at least $1 million to fast-track visas and green cards. Critics see this as creating one system for the rich and another for skilled professionals who may not have such wealth but are crucial for technology and innovation.
For India, the consequences are serious. Around seventy per cent of H-1B visas go to Indian nationals, and many of these are young professionals in IT services. Families are also affected, as uncertainty around jobs leads to disruptions in education and living arrangements. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal warned of humanitarian consequences for families, not just economic costs. Many professionals fear that their dreams of working in the US are slipping away, and companies fear losing contracts or being forced to change their delivery models.
