GoKawiil$100,000 H-1B Fee Prompts US Tech Firms to Shift Hiring Overseas
New federal rules, including a proposed $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications introduced in September 2025, are adding to a string of immigration restrictions on skilled foreign workers. IEEE Spectrum found that U.S. tech companies are responding by expanding hiring and opening offices abroad rather than sponsoring visas domestically, though none of the 25 firms contacted would discuss the shift publicly.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
The H-1B program has long been a key pipeline for skilled talent and a path to permanent residency, and for-profit firms already face an annual cap of 85,000 visas. A steep new fee combined with tighter interview and travel rules effectively pushes companies to relocate engineering and research work outside the U.S., risking a long-term loss of talent and innovation capacity domestically.
- The Trump administration raised H-1B application fees from about $5,000 to a proposed $100,000.
- Major firms like Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Walmart have told visa holders to avoid international travel.
- Companies are quietly building overseas offices and hiring abroad instead of sponsoring U.S. visas, but declined to discuss it publicly.
Source: spectrum.ieee.org — Lucas Laursen, 2026-09-14
Published there as: “New $100K H-1B Visa Fee Pushes Tech Jobs Offshore”
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