President Trump signed a proclamation on Friday to raise the fee for H-1B visa applications to $100,000, setting up a new barrier for companies to hire foreign workers.
Trump signed the proclamation on Friday to add the payment on top of current visas under H-1B, which are typically paid by an employer.
“We need workers, we need great workers and this pretty much ensure that that’s going to happen,” Trump said.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that the new fee will prevent companies from training foreign workers and instead encourage them to hire Americans on a new front in the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration.
“Stop bringing in people to take our jobs, that’s our policy here,” Lutnick said. “All of the big companies are on board. We’ve spoken to them about the gold card and this.”
The policy could greatly deter foreign workers in the U.S. by charging an exorbitant amount to be legally allowed to work here.
The H-1B work visa is for employers looking to hire international talent for specialty jobs, particularly in the tech industry, who are lawfully admitted to the U.S. but are not lawful permanent residents. They are typically valid for three years, though they can be extended for up to six years.
Trump, in the proclamation, will also order Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer to launch a rulemaking process to revise the prevailing wage levels for the H1-B program, Bloomberg reported.
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