Author: Ashleigh Wright

On October 21, 2025, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released new guidance on the $100,000 H-1B fee established by the Presidential Proclamation of September 19, 2025.

Think of this fee as a tariff on the “importation” of foreign labor. Employers filing an H-1B petition on or after September 21, 2025, for a worker currently outside the United States must pay an additional $100,000 through pay.gov.

USCIS confirmed that this fee does not apply to H-1B petitions for employees already in the United States when their employer is seeking to change or extend their status. Crucially, even if that employee later travels abroad and applies for an H-1B visa at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate, the fee will still not be triggered.

In short, the fee applies only when an employer uses an H-1B petition to bring a foreign national into the United States. Employers extending the stay of current H-1B workers, as well as those sponsoring F-1 students, H-4 EAD holders, or other nonimmigrants for a change of status to H-1B, are exempt. These filings are considered internal changes of status rather than new entries.

However, H-1B portability cases may be affected. Workers moving to a new employer have a 60-day grace period after becoming unemployed to secure new employment, change status, or depart the U.S. If that window closes and the worker falls out of status, they would need a visa application abroad, triggering the $100,000 fee. To reduce risk, employers hiring H-1B workers should verify that candidates are still within their 60-day grace period and ideally have been unemployed no longer than 45 days, allowing sufficient time to prepare and file the petition before the grace period ends.

Lastly, H-1B workers who are extending their stay or nonimmigrants changing status to H-1B should avoid international travel while their petition is pending. Departing the U.S. could lead USCIS to deem the change or extension request abandoned, forcing consular processing and activating the $100,000 fee.

Source: Belina Calderon-Nernberg

On September 19, 2025, the President issued a Proclamation, Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers, an important initial step to reform the H-1B nonimmigrant visa program. Under the Proclamation, new H-1B petitions filed at or after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025 must be accompanied by an additional $100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility.

In accordance with section 1(c) of the Proclamation, for H-1B petitions subject to the Proclamation, petitioners must submit a copy of the proof of the payment from pay.gov or evidence of an exception from the fee from the Secretary of Homeland Security at the time of filing the H-1B petition. Petitions subject to the $100,000 payment that are filed without evidence of payment or the grant of an exception will be denied.

For additional information on the requirements of the Proclamation and how to pay the $100,000 payment, see the H-1B Specialty Occupation Webpage.

Source: Presidential Proclamation on Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers | USCIS

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has received enough petitions to meet the congressionally established H-2B cap for the first half of fiscal year 2026. Sept. 12 was the final receipt date for new cap-subject H-2B worker petitions requesting an employment start date before April 1, 2026. We will reject new cap-subject H-2B petitions we receive after Sept. 12, that request an employment start date before April 1, 2026.

Anyone (including U.S. workers and H-2B workers) can send us tips, alleged violations, and other relevant information about potential fraud or abuse using our online tip form.

For more information, visit the Cap Count for H-2B Nonimmigrants page.

Source: USCIS Reaches H-2B Cap for First Half of Fiscal Year 2026 | USCIS

H1B FAQ

On Friday, Sept. 19, 2025, President Donald J. Trump signed a Proclamation, “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” that took an important, initial, and incremental step to reform the H-1B visa program to curb abuses and protect American workers.

This Proclamation:

• Requires a $100,000 payment to accompany any new H-1B visa petitions submitted after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025. This includes the 2026 lottery, and any other H-1B petitions submitted after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025.
• Authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State to coordinate to take all necessary and appropriate action to implement this Proclamation.
  • U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has so far taken such action by issuing guidance regarding the Proclamation, available here (PDF, 177.48 KB).
  • U.S. Customs and Border Protection has also issued guidance, available here.
  • The Department of State has posted guidance to all consular offices, consistent with the guidance from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and U.S. Customs and Border Protection guidance. 

This Proclamation does not:

• Apply to any previously issued H-1B visas, or any petitions submitted prior to 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025.
• Does not change any payments or fees required to be submitted in connection with any H-1B renewals. The fee is a one-time fee on submission of a new H-1B petition.
• Does not prevent any holder of a current H-1B visa from traveling in and out of the United States.

Further steps that will be taken to reform the H-1B program, as contemplated in the Proclamation, include:

• A rulemaking by the Department of Labor to revise and raise the prevailing wage levels in order to upskill the H-1B program and ensure that it is used to hire only the best of the best temporary foreign workers.
• A rulemaking by the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize high-skilled, high-paid aliens in the H-1B lottery over those at lower wage levels.

Additional reforms are also under consideration and will be announced in the coming months.

Source: H-1B FAQ | USCIS

Policy Update on CSPA Age Calculation

We are updating the Policy Manual to clarify that a visa becomes available for the purposes of Child Status Protection Act age calculation based on the Final Action Dates chart of the Department of State Visa Bulletin. The new guidance applies to requests filed on or after August 15, 2025. We will apply the Feb. 14, 2023, policy of CSPA age calculation to adjustment of status applications pending with USCIS before August 15, 2025, as these aliens may have relied on that policy when they filed.    

This policy update ensures both USCIS and the Department of State use the Final Action Dates chart in the Visa Bulletin to determine when a visa becomes available for the purposes of CSPA age calculation. This establishes a consistent CSPA age calculation for aliens who apply for adjustment of status and immigrant visas. The Feb. 14, 2023, policy resulted in inconsistent treatment of aliens who applied for adjustment of status in the United States versus aliens outside the United States who applied for an immigrant visa with the Department of State. 

Generally, an unmarried alien child must be under age 21 to obtain lawful permanent resident status in the United States based on their parent’s approved petition for a family-sponsored, employment-based, or diversity visa. If they turn 21 and age out during the immigration process, they generally are no longer eligible to immigrate based on their parent’s petition. Congress enacted the CSPA to protect certain alien children from losing their eligibility for lawful permanent resident status based on an approved visa petition. The CSPA provides a method to calculate the alien’s age that considers when an immigrant visa number “becomes available.”  

If an alien is applying for adjustment of status under a family-sponsored, employment-based preference, or diversity visa, they must seek to acquire lawful permanent residence within one year of when a visa becomes available to benefit from the CSPA age calculation. This update also clarifies that we consider an alien to have satisfied the “sought to acquire” requirement if they demonstrate extraordinary circumstances for failing to seek lawful permanent resident status within one year of when a visa becomes available. If an alien demonstrates extraordinary circumstances for not applying for adjustment of status during the period of the Feb. 14, 2023, policy before August 15,2025, we will calculate CSPA age under the Feb. 14, 2023, policy

Source: USCIS Updates Policy on CSPA Age Calculation | USCIS

New form allows payment of filing fees, services via secure direct debit payments

WASHINGTON – U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services has implemented a new way to pay fees using electronic debit from a U.S. bank account. Effective immediately, individuals can make transactions directly to USCIS by completing and signing Form G-1650, Authorization for ACH Transactions, and filing it with their applications, petitions, or requests.

The move aligns with Executive Order 14247, Modernizing Payments to and from America’s Bank Account, and is aimed at reducing the time and manpower required to process checks and money orders, as well as reducing the risks of fraud, lost payments, and theft.

“We have a responsibility to the American people to operate as efficiently and securely as possible,” said USCIS Spokesman Matthew J. Tragesser. “Over 90% of our payments come from checks and money orders, causing processing delays and increasing the risk of fraud and lost payments. America deserves better, and we intend to deliver.”

This new ACH debit payment option is in addition to the existing option of paying by credit card using Form G-1450, giving individuals multiple options to pay required fees.

USCIS will continue to accept paper check and money order payments in addition to credit and debit payments until Oct. 28, 2025. After Oct. 28, USCIS will accept only ACH debit transactions using Form G-1650 or credit card payments using Form G-1450.

USCIS has also issued updated guidance in the Policy Manual (PDF, 495.95 KB) to include ACH debit transactions using Form G-1650 as an acceptable form of payment.

Applicants and petitioners should ensure their accounts have sufficient funds to cover all filing fees. USCIS may reject any application, petition, or request if the transaction is denied. If you do not have a U.S. bank account you cannot use Form G-1650, but you may submit Form G-1450, Authorization for Credit Card Transactions, and use prepaid credit cards to pay filing fees.

Source: USCIS to Modernize Fee Payments with Electronic Funds | USCIS