00:00A major new H-1V visa shock is brewing in the United States.
00:05And Indian workers and students could be amongst the highest affected.
00:09The Trump administration has now proposed a $1,3265 H-1V fee,
00:17potentially applying a new application as well as renewals as well.
00:23The proposal comes after the court struck down Trump's earlier
00:26about $1 lakh levy as unlawful.
00:31So now they have gone a step further.
00:33It's actually increased.
00:34If cleared, the new rule could raise hiring costs for American companies,
00:40reshape recruitment in the tech sector
00:42and put fresh pressure on Indian IT professionals
00:45and students seeking to stay and work in the US.
00:50Here's a detailed report.
00:59In June, a federal judge struck down Donald Trump's $100,000 H-1V visa fee,
01:05calling it an unlawful tax that the US Congress had never authorized.
01:10Two months later, the Trump administration is back with an even bigger H-1V fee proposal,
01:16this time using the formal regulatory process
01:19rather than relying on the presidential proclamation that ran into trouble in court.
01:25The new proposal is far more draconian,
01:28starting with a higher $103,265 fee.
01:34The fees is to be paid for all H-1V visa applications
01:37and not just by those applying from overseas in the earlier routes.
01:42This means renewals for those already working in the US
01:45or studying in colleges will also be hit.
01:47The new rules are permanent, unlike the earlier,
01:50which were only in place for a year and would have phased out in September 2026.
01:55Importantly, the new levy follows an established federal process,
01:59unlike the older ruling, which was signed by Trump and successfully opposed in court.
02:06The new filing on Monday by the Department of Homeland Security will not kick in immediately.
02:11It remains open for 30 days' comments and may not come into effect soon
02:16because of the possibility of fresh court cases.
02:19But if finalized, the new proposal would place a significant new burden
02:24on the technology and finance sectors,
02:26which rely on the H-1V visa to hire top international graduates from US universities.
02:33For India, which supplies by far the largest share of H-1V professionals,
02:37the stakes are especially high.
02:40Data shows that 70% of H-1V visas in 2025 were allotted to Indians.
02:45And in 2026, Indian IT companies like TCS and Infosys
02:50remain among major users of the program,
02:52alongside American giants including Amazon, Apple and Microsoft.
02:56For India's IT service companies,
02:58the calculation could therefore shift towards hiring more Americans locally,
03:02moving more work offshore to India
03:05or reserving H-1Bs for only the highest-value specialist roads.
03:12Indian students in the United States will be at a disadvantage as well.
03:16Currently, students on Optional Practical Training, or OPT,
03:20in the US can apply for an H-1B visa without a cap or fees.
03:24Under the new proposal, this changes.
03:27Any H-1B petition would carry the six-figure additional fee,
03:30and it's the employer who files and pays the fee
03:33who may now look for cheaper local options.
03:37And Washington is making little attempt to hide the political objective.
03:41Vice President J.D. Vance sharing news of the rule on X
03:44made his intentions clear.
03:46Hire more Americans.
03:49The Trump administration gives another justification.
03:51It estimates that charging the fee could raise about $8.8 billion every year.
03:57Money, it says, would help pay for immigration processing and other costs.
04:01But H-1B is only one front in a much wider immigration crackdown.
04:07The Trump administration is also preparing
04:10what could become the largest mass visa revocation in American history,
04:14potentially cancelling the B-1 business and B-2 tourist visas
04:18of up to 200,000 foreigners who entered the United States
04:22as temporary visitors and subsequently applied for asylum.
04:26We are a report, Business Today TV.
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