Relief for Indian Students as USCIS Clarifies Exemption from $100,000 H-1B Fee
USCIS exempts US-based H-1B applicants from fee.
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has finally cleared the air on the Trump administration’s polarizing $100,000 H-1B visa fee, bringing relief to thousands of international students and workers, particularly from India. Unveiled on September 19, 2025, the fee had employers, universities, and visa holders in a frenzy, as initial guidance left critical questions unanswered. On October 20, USCIS issued a decisive memo: if you’re already in the U.S. and switching visa status, you’re off the hook for the hefty charge.
For countless F-1 students grinding through master’s programs at top schools like Stanford or MIT, this is a game-changer. Previously, transitioning to an H-1B visa for that dream job at Google or Microsoft was a bureaucratic hurdle, but feasible. Trump’s proclamation changed the game, imposing a $100,000 “abuse deterrent” fee on new H-1B petitions, threatening to derail America’s tech talent pipeline. H-1B visas power roughly 85% of Silicon Valley’s foreign-born workforce, with Indians securing over 70% of approvals annually, according to USCIS data.
The USCIS guidance draws a sharp line: “change of status” applications—such as F-1 students or L-1 intracompany transferees moving to H-1B without leaving the U.S.—are exempt from the fee. Current H-1B holders seeking extensions while stateside also dodge the charge. The agency clarified: “The Proclamation applies to new H-1B petitions filed at or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025, on behalf of beneficiaries who are outside the United States and do not have a valid H-1B visa.” For those abroad, the fee applies to petitions involving consular processing, port-of-entry notifications, or pre-flight inspections. USCIS even launched an online portal to streamline payment of the $100,000 fee, a bitter pill for those caught in its net.
Also Read: US Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee, Citing Harm to Businesses
This exemption is a lifeline for over 200,000 Indian students on F-1 visas in U.S. graduate programs, per the Institute of International Education, and L-1 visa holders transferred from cities like Bangalore to U.S. offices of firms like Infosys or Tata Consultancy. “It’s a retention win,” says Priya Patel, an immigration attorney at Patel & Associates in San Francisco. “Without this clarity, we’d face a brain drain to India.” Current H-1B holders can also travel abroad and return without triggering the fee, ensuring flexibility for global professionals.
The Trump administration pitches the fee as a crackdown on “program abuse” by outsourcing firms accused of flooding the H-1B lottery to undercut American wages. No industries or roles have blanket exemptions, but employers can request case-by-case waivers for positions deemed critical to national interest where no U.S. worker is available—a high bar to clear. The proclamation’s chaotic debut sparked lawsuits from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and tech coalitions, who argue it threatens innovation in fields like AI and quantum computing. “This fee doesn’t fix abuse; it exports jobs,” a group of over 50 firms declared in a recent federal filing.
Also Read: Trump’s $100K H-1B Visa Fee Hits Indian IT Giants Hard
