Employers who use the H-1B visa program to fill specialized roles face a new $103,265 application fee after the Trump administration unveiled a proposed rule targeting the program.

The Department of Homeland Security posted a proposed regulation Aug. 24 imposing the fee on most new H-1B petitions.

Publication of the proposal opened a 30-day public comment period before any final rule takes effect.

The proposal follows a June ruling by a federal judge that blocked the administration’s previous plan to impose a $100,000 fee on work visa applications.

The administration’s request to keep the fee in place while it appealed was denied by the First Circuit Court of Appeals last month.

The new fee applies to H-1B petitions subject to the program’s annual statutory cap, including those eligible for the advanced-degree exemption—a broader scope than the administration’s original approach.

Scope

DHS is now pursuing the same outcome through formal rulemaking—a process explicitly authorized under federal law, which officials believe puts the new fee on firmer legal footing.

According to the agency, revenue from the fee will fund the cost of administering the broader legal immigration system, including work carried out by DHS along with other federal agencies.

The new proposal is both broader and narrower than last year’s proclamation.

It applies to petitions for workers already inside the U.S., not just new hires entering from abroad—closing a gap employers used to plan around the...

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