As the US decision to impose a $100,000 fee on high-skilled visa applications takes effect, reports suggest that the new rule announced by President Donald Trump may not apply to all stakeholders. Doctors may be exempted from the new H-1B visa fee hike, which has rattled the tech companies and workers in the country. The move has sparked fears among Indians, who are recipients of about three-quarters of visa applications in the US every year.
According to Bloomberg, White House has said that the new $100,000 annual fee for H-1B visas will have “case-by-case exemptions if in the national interest.”
“The Proclamation allows for potential exemptions, which can include physicians and medical residents,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers told Bloomberg in a statement via email.
The development comes amid concerns that the unprecedented fee could severely impact high-skilled professionals in the US technology and medical industry.
After Trump announced imposing a $100,000 fee on the H-1B visas, the move was criticised by tech entrepreneurs in the US, including billionaire Elon Musk, who warned that the US does not have enough talent in the country to fill vacancies for important jobs in the tech sector. Major tech firms rely on Indian workers for such jobs.
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs said that the full implications of the US decision were being studied, warning of humanitarian consequences. “This measure is likely to have humanitarian consequences by way of the disruption caused to families. Government hopes that these disruptions can be addressed suitably by the US authorities,” the MEA said in a statement.
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The H-1B visas allow companies to sponsor workers from abroad with specialised skills, including scientists, engineers, and computer programmers, to work in the United States. The visa permits workers to be in the US for three years initially, although it can be extended to six.
About 85,000 individuals are awarded H-1B visas every year based on a lottery system, with Indians accounting for about three-quarters of the recipients.

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