The United States has issued a clarification to its new H-1B visa policy, saying that the new $100,000 fee for skilled workers will be levied per petition and will not apply to current visa holders.
The announcement on Saturday came a day after US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said it would be paid annually, and would apply to people seeking a new visa as well as renewals.
Lutnick’s comment prompted major tech firms, including Amazon, Microsoft, Meta and Alphabet, which is Google’s parent company, to warn employees with H1-B visas to stay in the country or return quickly.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, however, clarified that the fee will only apply to new visas and that the rule “does not impact the ability of any current visa holder to travel to/from the US”.
“This is NOT an annual fee. It’s a one-time fee that applies only to the petition,” she wrote.
“Those who already hold H-1B visas and are currently outside of the country right now will NOT be charged $100,000 to re-enter… This applies only to new visas, not renewals, and not current visa holders,” she added.
The executive order imposing the new fee was signed by President Donald Trump on Friday night and is scheduled to take effect at 12:01am on (04:01 GMT) Sunday.
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