The Trump administration is likely to expand the ambit of fees for large employers hiring H-1B and L-1 workers. Companies with more than 50 employees in the US, where over half the workforce holds H-1B or L-1 visas, may be required to pay the additional ‘9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee’ not only for new H-1B and L-1 petitions and change-of-employer filings, but also when seeking extensions of stay for existing employees.The regulatory agendas rolled out by the US Departments of Homeland Security (DHS), Department of Labor (DOL) and Department of State (DOS), in early July had indicated this plan of action. The final rule maybe announced in the coming weeks.At present, these employers pay an additional $4,000 for eligible H-1B petitions and $4,500 for eligible L-1 petitions only when sponsoring a worker for an initial period of stay or when the employee changes employers. Extending the fee to renewal petitions would increase costs for employers that rely heavily on H-1B and L-1 workers, such as large IT companies.According to a report released by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), a significant share of H-1B approvals relates to continuing employment rather than first-time entrants into the program. Of the total 4.06 lakh H-1B applications approved during the fiscal ended Sept 30, 2025, nearly 2.9 lakh (71%) were for continued employment.Nearly 2.2 lakh Indians were given H-1B extensions (beyond the initial tenure of a maximum of three years). This constituted nearly 78% of the total visa extensions during that year. Thus, the new fee imposition will have a huge impact on the Indian diaspora as continuing to keep them on the payroll will become more expensive.
| Top source countries for H-1B visas (extensions) | ||
| India | 2,26,359 | 77.6 |
| China | 31,581 | 10.8 |
| Philippines | 2,506 | 0.9 |
| Canada | 2,186 | 0.7 |
| South Korea | 1,913 | 0.7 |
| Mexico | 1,631 | 0.6 |
| Global total | 2,91,542 | |
According to a report by National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) during fiscal 2025, Amazon had the most approved H-1B applications for continuing employment, with 14,532, followed by TCS (5,293), Microsoft (4,863), Meta Platforms (4,740), Apple (4,610) and Google (4,509). However, the think-tank clarified that these numbers do not represent individual employees since an H-1B visa holder may be approved multiple times for continuing employment during the same year if they change locations.
