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When does this $100,000 H1B fee come into effect?
The proclamation was signed on September 19th, 2025, and it came into effect immediately — specifically from September 21st, 2025. That is not a future date to prepare for. It is already active. If you are an H1B holder and you were outside the United States as of September 21st, 2025, this rule applies to you.
Who is directly impacted by this rule?
The single deciding factor is whether you are inside or outside the United States. Let me break it down into the two groups I have been seeing.
Group 1 — People who are affected right now
There are four main situations where you are directly in the line of fire:
1. Your H1B petition has been approved, but your visa has not yet been stamped and you are currently outside the US.
2. Your visa has been stamped, but you have not yet traveled back to the US — and you cannot enter before September 21st, 2025.
3. You came back to India (or another country) specifically for H1B visa renewal through consular processing, and you are still waiting there.
4. Your H1B visa is valid, but you are currently outside the US for any reason — family visit, vacation, anything — and you cannot re-enter before September 21st, 2025.
This is why many companies have already started sending urgent emails to employees, asking them to return to the US before the deadline.
Group 2 — People who are not impacted as of now
If you are already inside the United States, you are not impacted by this proclamation at the moment. This includes H1B workers currently employed in the US, people on a student visa whose H1B has been approved and who are working inside the US, and people who have filed for an H1B extension or changed employers — as long as they are physically in the US.
However — and this is important — when these workers eventually exit the US and need to re-enter, it is very likely they will be required to pay this fee at that point. That is still something to watch.
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Book a Mock InterviewWho actually pays the $100,000 — you or your employer?
This is one of the most common questions I have been getting. The answer is clear: the employer pays this fee, not the individual worker. You are not personally on the hook for $100,000.
The fee structure gives employers two options: pay $300,000 upfront covering three years, or pay $100,000 annually over three years. The proclamation itself has a stated timeline of one year, so what happens beyond that period is still to be determined.
One critical thing to understand: this $100,000 fee does not replace any of the existing H1B fees. It is completely on top of everything else — the lottery registration fee, the petition filing fee, processing fees, and the consular visa fee you pay when you apply for your visa stamp. It is entirely additive.
Does this affect L1, B1, or other visa categories?
As of now, this proclamation applies only to H1B visas. If you are on an L1, L2, B1, B2, or any other visa category, you are not impacted by this specific rule. The proclamation does not extend to other categories at this stage.
Are there any exemptions to the $100,000 fee?
Yes — the proclamation does include a national interest exemption section. It broadly defines certain categories of workers and companies that may qualify to have this fee waived. The categories listed are:
- Healthcare professionals
- Defense and security sectors
- Critical technology sectors, including semiconductors, AI, and cybersecurity
- Certain universities and research institutions
I want to be honest with you here: these categories are defined broadly in the proclamation. Whether your specific role or your company actually qualifies under any of these headings is something that will need to be determined case by case. Do not assume you are exempt without verifying.
Is this actually going to happen — or will it be blocked?
The proclamation has been signed and is already in effect. But that does not mean it will survive unchallenged. This is not a minor visa tweak — a $100,000 annual fee is a fundamental blow to the entire H1B category, and 2025 has already been an extraordinary year for US visa changes.
What I expect to see — and what we are already beginning to see — is significant pushback. This includes diplomatic pressure from affected countries, lawsuits filed against the proclamation, and strong opposition from US companies that rely heavily on H1B workers. Whether any of this leads to the proclamation being blocked, modified, or upheld in its current form is something we are watching very closely.
I will keep updating you here as things develop. In the meantime, if you are an H1B holder or you know someone who is, the most urgent question right now is: are you currently outside the US — and if so, can you get back in before September 21st?
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