Trump’s US$100,000 H-1B visa fee draws legal challenge from US states

[NEW YORK] California and 19 other US states filed a lawsuit on Friday (Dec 12) seeking to block US President Donald Trump’s US$100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers.

The lawsuit in federal court in Boston is at least the third to challenge the fee announced by Trump in September, which dramatically raises the cost of obtaining H-1B visas. Currently, employers typically pay between US$2,000 and US$5,000 in fees.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office said in a release that Trump lacks the power to impose the fee and that it violates federal law, which allows immigration authorities to collect only fees necessary to cover the cost of administering visa programmes.

The H-1B programme allows US employers to hire foreign workers in speciality fields. The tech industry, with many companies headquartered in California, is particularly reliant on workers who receive the visas.

Bonta, a Democrat, said the US$100,000 fee would create unnecessary financial burdens for providers of vital services such as education and healthcare, exacerbating labour shortages and threatening to cut services.

The states joining California in the lawsuit include New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, New Jersey and Washington.

The White House, in response to other lawsuits, has said the new fee is a lawful exercise of Trump’s powers and will discourage employers from abusing the H-1B programme.

Critics of H-1B visas and other work visas say they are often used to replace American workers with foreign employees who will work for less. But business groups and major companies have maintained that workers on H-1B visas are a critical means to address a shortage of qualified American workers.

The US Chamber of Commerce, the country’s largest business lobby, and a coalition of unions, employers and religious groups have filed separate lawsuits challenging the fee. A judge in Washington, DC, is set to hold a hearing in the Chamber’s lawsuit next week.

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Trump’s order bars new H-1B recipients from entering the United States unless the employer sponsoring their visa has made the US$100,000 payment. The administration has said the order does not apply to existing H-1B holders or those who applied before Sep 21.

Trump in the order invoked his power under federal immigration law to restrict the entry of certain foreign nationals that would be detrimental to US interests.

Bonta’s office said on Friday the US$100,000 fee far exceeds the cost of processing H-1B petitions, rendering it unlawful. It added the US Constitution bars Trump from unilaterally imposing fees to generate revenue for the United States, a job that is reserved for Congress. REUTERS