Trump’s $100K H‑1B Visa Fee: Impacts, Risks, and Adaptations for Startups and VCs

A Shocking Fee and Immediate Fallout

Late Friday, President Donald Trump signed a proclamation imposing a staggering $100,000 fee on H‑1B visa petitions, catching companies and foreign workers completely off guard. The H‑1B program – which offers 85,000 new visas annually for highly skilled foreign workers – had previously required only a few thousand dollars in filing costs. The sudden 50-fold increase triggered panic across the tech sector. Firms like Amazon, Microsoft, and JPMorgan frantically warned employees abroad to return to the U.S. immediately, fearing the new fee would make re-entry prohibitively expensive. In one dramatic instance, H‑1B workers on a flight out of San Francisco demanded to disembark, delaying the plane for hours, after news spread that leaving the country might incur a $100K cost to come back.

Confusion reigned for 24 hours. Initial reports implied the fee would be charged per year of the visa, compounding fears of astronomical costs. By Saturday, the White House scrambled to clarify: the $100,000 levy is a one-time charge applying only to new H‑1B petitions (not to renewals or current visa holders). Officials also insisted it “will NOT be charged $100K to re-enter” for H‑1B holders currently abroad. This partial walk-back offered some relief, but the damage was done – businesses and workers were left shaken and unsettled.

Economic Impact on Early-Stage Startups

Companies most dependent on H-1B visas (by number of recent approvals). Major tech employers like Amazon and Microsoft each secure thousands of H-1B visas, far outpacing any startup.