Judge Voids Trump $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee as Unlawful Tax

Employers seeking to hire foreign workers in specialized roles now face restored access to the H-1B program after a federal judge in Boston struck down a $100,000 application fee imposed last September. The ruling removes a barrier that had prompted some companies to pause hiring and withdraw offers while creating uncertainty for thousands of prospective visa holders in technology, healthcare, and education.

U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled that the fee functioned as a tax rather than a penalty and therefore required congressional authorization the Trump administration never obtained. Sorokin cited the Supreme Court’s February decision invalidating Trump’s reciprocal tariffs on similar constitutional grounds. The policy had raised fees from the prior range of $2,000 to $5,000 and applied only to new petitions; just 85 payments had been collected by mid-February.

Twenty states led by New York and California filed the Boston lawsuit in December. New York Attorney General Letitia James said the decision ended an illegal attempt to dismantle the program. California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the fee an attack on the ability to attract high-skilled talent. The American Medical Association described the outcome as a victory for patients in underserved areas. A White House statement maintained that the president possesses clear authority under the Immigration and Nationality Act to restrict entry detrimental to U.S. interests and announced plans to appeal.

The Department of Homeland Security called the ruling judicial activism. A separate federal judge in Washington, D.C., had previously upheld a nearly identical fee, leaving that case on appeal. Additional challenges remain pending in California from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, healthcare groups, and labor organizations. The administration had begun granting exemptions for doctors and medical residents after complaints from hospitals and had replaced the visa lottery with a weighted system favoring higher-paid positions.