What Trump's proposed H-1B visa renewal fee means for Indian professionals
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "What Trump's proposed H-1B visa renewal fee means for Indian professionals")
Photograph: (AFP)
The Trump administration's proposal to expand H-1B visa renewal fees could increase costs for US employers and have the biggest impact on Indian professionals, who account for most H-1B visa extensions.
Indian professionals working in the United States are likely to be among the most affected if the Donald Trump administration goes ahead with its proposal to increase the cost of H-1B visa renewals, as they account for the majority of extension approvals every year.
According to the Department of Homeland Security's regulatory agenda, a final rule is expected in July to extend the "9-11 Response and Biometric Entry Exit Fee" to H 1B and L 1 visa extension petitions.
The proposal would raise immigration related costs for US employers that depend on foreign skilled workers, including thousands of Indians.
Under the existing rules, employers with more than 50 employees, where over half hold H 1B or L 1 visas, pay an additional $4,000 for H 1B petitions and $4,500 for L 1 petitions only when filing an initial petition or when an employee changes employers.
"DHS is amending and clarifying the regulations to specify that the 9-11 Response Fees will apply to all H-1B and L-1 extension petitions," the proposed rule states.
Indian professionals could see the biggest impact
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Most H 1B visa holders seek an extension after completing their initial three-year stay, meaning the proposed rule could increase costs for companies employing large numbers of Indian professionals.
Data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services shows that 406,685 H 1B petitions were approved during fiscal year 2025. Of these, 291,542, or 71 per cent, were approved for continuing employment rather than first-time applicants.
Indian nationals accounted for 226,359 of those approvals, representing 77.6 per cent of all H 1B extensions. Chinese nationals were second with 31,581 approvals.
Big tech firms may also face higher costs
The proposal follows a US federal appeals court decision refusing to pause a lower court ruling that struck down the Trump administration's proposed $100,000 fee on new H 1B visa applications.
The changes would also affect multinational companies such as Google and Meta, which use L 1 visas to transfer executives, managers and employees with specialised knowledge to their US operations.
A report by the National Foundation for American Policy, cited by The Times of India, showed that several of the world's largest technology companies depend heavily on H 1B workers already employed in the United States.
During fiscal year 2025, Amazon received the highest number of approved H 1B petitions for continuing employment at 14,532. Tata Consultancy Services followed with 5,293 approvals, while Microsoft received 4,863. Meta Platforms recorded 4,740 approvals, Apple had 4,610, and Google received 4,509.
The think tank said these figures do not represent individual employees because an H 1B worker may receive more than one approval in a year due to job transfers or changes in work location.
