The Trump administration accused Microsoft of abusing the H-1B visa program and said it is cutting off the company's access to it. Microsoft responded that 80% of its roughly 6,000 H-1B applications last fiscal year were to extend or change status for existing employees rather than hire new workers, and that new-employee filings equaled just 1% of its U.S. workforce. The company said all H-1B employees are paid comparably to other staff in similar roles.
theverge.com
· 2026-10-08
Technology industry associations are pressing the Trump administration to withdraw a proposed Department of Homeland Security rule that would impose a $103,265 fee on H-1B visa applications. The proposal has revived long-running tensions between the administration and tech companies over the future of skilled-worker immigration policy.
wsj.com
· 2026-09-24
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.
spectrum.ieee.org
· 2026-09-14
The Department of Homeland Security announced a new fee of over $103,000 for H-1B visas, a slight increase from a similar $100,000 fee a federal judge struck down in June after more than 70 employers had already paid it. The same day, the State Department revealed plans to revoke visas for up to 200,000 asylum seekers, described as potentially the largest mass visa revocation in US history. DHS has also signaled it may impose a comparable $100,000 fee on the Optional Practical Training program, which allows international students to work in the US after graduation.
theverge.com
· 2026-08-25
The Department of Homeland Security has proposed a rule that would permanently establish a $103,265 fee on certain new H-1B visas, replacing the temporary fee Trump imposed last year that is set to expire in September. Previously such visas cost between $2,000 and $5,000, and the new fee would not apply to renewals or to foreign students already in the U.S. transitioning to H-1B status. The proposal comes even as courts are still weighing legal challenges, including a June ruling that found the original fee illegal.
news.slashdot.org
· 2026-08-24
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