The Trump administration is moving ahead with a fee of more than $100,000 on applicants for H-1B visas, which U.S. companies use to hire skilled foreign workers. The measure hits Silicon Valley's big technology firms as well as Korean companies.
The Department of Homeland Security published a proposed rule in the Federal Register imposing a fee of $103,265 (about 143 million won) on applicants for the H-1B skilled-worker visa, Reuters reported on the 24th. The cost is borne by the company employing the applicant. DHS plans to take public comments for 30 days before finalizing the rule late this year. The previous fee ranged from about $2,000 to $5,000, meaning the charge rises as much as 50-fold.
The fee previously applied mainly to workers applying from abroad, but the new measure extends it to applicants already inside the United States. The move seeks to make the charge permanent after a proclamation President Donald Trump announced in September last year expired. A federal court ruled in June that the fee amounted to an unlawful tax without congressional approval, but the administration pressed on.
H-1B visas are issued for professional positions in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, with the annual quota capped at 85,000 and allocated by lottery. Workers at hospitals and universities, along with those renewing visas, are under discussion for exemptions. DHS plans to collect $8.8 billion (about 12 trillion won) a year under the rule and use the money to fund immigration policy operations. The Wall Street Journal noted that the change would hurt startups as well as big technology firms that have hired engineers, researchers and chip design staff for artificial intelligence work.
Korean companies are also on alert over the H-1B fee. In fiscal 2024, India accounted for 71% of approved H-1B workers by country of origin, followed by China at 11.7%, with Korea fifth at 1%. Large Korean companies including Samsung Electronics, SK hynix and Hyundai Motor have relied heavily on the visa for engineers and research staff sent to their U.S. subsidiaries and plants. Some worry the change could delay the movement of technical workers on investment projects in the United States in areas such as semiconductors and batteries.
