Do I Need to Pay $100,000 fee to Renew My H-1B Visa? H1B, H1B Visa, H1B Fee, H1B $100,000 fee, H1B Renew, H-1B Visa fee

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Do I Need to Pay $100,000 fee to Renew My H-1B Visa?

Hi William,

I am on H1B Visa currently and will renew the H-1B soon. Do I need to pay $100,000 fee this time according to the new H-1B fee change?

Answer,

The president Donald Trump has signed an executive order adding a $100,000 fee for high-skilled workers to enter the country through the H-1B visa program. It's a steep and dramatic overhaul for a program that many large companies have used to hire thousands of software engineers and other highly-specialized workers.

President Donald Trump raised the annual fee on H-1B visa applicants from $215 to $100,000. During a signing at the Oval Office Friday, Trump argued that America needs “great workers” and that the newly imposed fee “pretty much ensures that that’s what’s going to happen.” Administration officials also claimed the hefty fee would incentivize companies to hire American workers.

The H-1B program is intended for highly-educated, high-skilled workers like software engineers or medical professionals. American companies seeking to hire a foreigner on an H-1B visa must first attest that they haven't been able to find American workers with similar skills and that the foreigner will earn a salary similar to what an American worker would earn.

Of the 85,000 H-1B visas granted annually, another 20,000 are reserved for people with advanced degrees from American higher education institutions. It is believe that Silicon Valley titans have took

The $100,000 visa fee, which takes effect on Septem 21,2025, will apply only to new H-1B applications, not renewals or current visa holders, according to the White House. The rule expires a year later, on September 21, 2026, unless it’s extended.

It is not just tech firms that use this program, although they dominate it. Government data show that other big sponsors of workers on H-1B visas include JPMorgan Chase, Walmart and staffing firms Tata and Cognizant, which place software engineers and other workers at other big companies.