The Chinese network.
September 22, 2025 at 05:35 America is
U.S. President Trump signed an administrative announcement for foreign professional work visas (H-1B) on September 19, 2025, announcing that starting from 0:01 Eastern Time on September 21, beneficiaries who apply for and intend to enter the country as H-1B status outside the United States are required to pay a one-time additional fee of US $100,000 before the visa or entry, otherwise the applicant will be refused a visa or prohibited from entering the country. After the news was announced, it immediately triggered a strong reaction and emergency response among the global science and technology circle, international students and cross-border tourists.
Policy key points and scope of application
The Trump announcement invokes Sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which give the administration the power to set conditions for foreigners to enter the country.
The announcement made "$100,000" a new entry condition to curb employers' "abuse" of H-1B quotas. Implementation requirements: The State Council verifies the payment voucher in the visa process, and the Department of Homeland Security and the Customs and Border Protection Bureau coordinate the implementation at the port of entry; At the same time, the announcement mentioned that exemptions can be granted to individual cases within the scope of "national interests", but the specific rules have not yet been clarified.
The White House press secretary then clarified to the outside, This fee is a one-time (per petition)Instead of annual levy, Does not apply to submitted or approved applications, nor does it apply retroactively to existing licensees.The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and the Department of Homeland Security have been instructed to adjust the implementation rules accordingly, but the details are still being worked out.
Chaos and immediate reaction.
After the announcement, some large tech companies, human resources departments and immigration lawyers have been warning employees overnight, advising H-1B holders abroad or planning to leave the country to return to the United States as soon as possible.
In San Francisco International Airport, there was a chaos of passengers with temporary visa changes, stay and return to the aircraft after the departure: Many H1B visa holders traveling to Indialy left the aircraft after learning that the H1B visa cost as much as $100,000, causing a flight delay of 3 hours.
The price of flight tickets rose in a short period of time (such as some U.S.-China flight tickets rose several times overnight) and it is said that the day flights from Shanghai to the United States rose from $4,000 to $13,000.
Several companies have advised overseas employees to return to the United States as soon as possible before the announcement comes into effect and to suspend unnecessary international travel.
Some companies have clearly stated that they will pay close attention to regulations and keep room for legal response. Immigration lawyers and the legal community generally expect that the new regulations will face legal challenges, and the focus of the debate includes whether the president can bypass Congress and set substantially high "costs" in the form of entry conditions.
Different voices: the White House, the Ministry of Commerce and the legal community
After the announcement, the Secretary of Commerce said at the press conference that this fee "will be levied every year" and proposed to force enterprises to give priority to hiring local American employees;
Subsequently, the White House and other officials made several clarifications on the wording, pointing out that the fee is one-time and mainly for new applications in future lottery cycles. People in the legal profession remind that if there is an inconsistency between the terms of administrative announcements and the implementation rules, it is likely to become the focus of judicial disputes.
Some immigration lawyers and representatives of small and medium-sized enterprises warned that the US $100,000 threshold would constitute a "fatal blow" to startups and small and medium-sized enterprises, seriously inhibiting their global recruitment capabilities;
In contrast, large tech companies may be able to bear the cost in the short term, but long-term talent flows and competitiveness are still affected.
Students influence differently.
According to government statistics, approximately 71 percent of H-1B visa beneficiaries in 2024 will come from India and 11.7 percent from China, so the direct impact of the new regulation mainly affects Indian and Chinese technical talent and related companies.
There are some Chinese students who are delighted that there are some, and there are also some who hold their attitude to change!
Louis, who worked on software in Silicon Valley, said he had decided not to go abroad for the next two years after the news came, to avoid visa risks. “As foreign immigrants, we have a limited understanding of policy, we must protect ourselves to the maximum and not risk.” At the same time, he also believed that large tech companies would lobby or even file lawsuits against the government if damaged.
Another Ms. Hou, who has only held H-1B in the United States for one year, said that most of her Chinese colleagues around her have decided not to leave the country during Trump's term of office. "Everyone is afraid that they will not be able to return to the United States due to policy stuck abroad." She herself is considering whether to cancel her travel plan at the end of the year and chooses to wait and see.
The man who had planned to travel to Europe next month was relatively optimistic, but he believed that as the White House has clarified that the current visa holders are not affected, there is no need to panic, "but I am prepared to cancel the trip at any time."
Mr. Chen, who works in the solar industry, revealed that 30 percent of the company’s employees are foreign nationals, about ten of whom are H-1B holders. The company has issued a notice that the measure is highly likely to be overturned by the court.
Several Chinese employees and students surveyed agreed that the $100,000 application fee is far higher than the green card, and it is almost impossible to be borne by individuals and rely only on companies.
However, the hardest hit by this policy change should be Indian students. Some netizens bluntly asked, how many Indians can afford this fee?
The Indian government and industry associations expressed serious concern about this, saying the new regulation would have "humanitarian" and economic impacts on the information technology services industry and families, and the highest level of India has then arranged relevant visits and consultations.
Industry insiders predict that if the new rules are enforced, companies may take a variety of responses: preferring to change identities in the United States, switching to other visa categories (such as O-1 and EB-1A), moving parts of the R&D Bureau overseas, or seeking remedies through legal means.