Understanding the Trump Proclamation requiring $100k for H-1B Entry

PLEASE REVIEW OUR UPDATED ARTICLE, DATED OCTOBER 20, 2025, FOR THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION ON THIS ISSUE.

On Friday September 19, 2025, President Trump issued a proclamation restricting the entry of H-1B visa holders into the United States without payment of a $100,000 fee.

As of this writing, details on what the Presidential Proclamation means and to whom it applies are scant.

Here is what we know:

• The proclamation takes effect tomorrow, Sunday, September 21, 2025, 12:01 a.m. EDT
• The proclamation requires H-1B visa holders who are outside the United States to pay a $100,000 fee prior to entry.
• The proclamation does not appear to apply to H-1B workers already in the United States in H-1B status, but it could impact these workers if they depart the United States and seek to re-enter the United States on their H-1B visa.
• The proclamation does not appear to apply to pending H-1B Cap Petitions, H-1B Extension Petitions, H-1B Transfer Petitions or H-1B Change of Status Petitions for workers who are currently in the United States.

Recommendations:

• H-1B visa holders (and their H-4 Dependents) who are currently outside the United States should return to the United States immediately.
• H-1B visa holders (and their H-4 Dependents) who are in the United States currently and have international travel plans should cancel / postpone any international travel plans until we have further clarification on the scope of the proclamation.

This Presidential Proclamation does not address the complexities of the H-1B program, the differences between H-1B employees in the United States who are seeking extensions of status, transfers between employers, or changes of status from within the United States; foreign national workers who are currently abroad holding valid, unexpired visa stamps in their passports, and foreign national workers with H-1B petition approvals who are applying for their first H-1B visas at a U.S. embassy abroad.

The proclamation does not provide information on how to pay the $100,000 fee.

The proclamation does not clarify whether it applies to H-1B Cap Exempt Petitioners or H-1B1 visas.

As of this writing, the White House press secretary is tweeting unofficial clarifications on the scope of the proclamation. However, until official written guidance from the Department of Homeland Security is published, H-1B visa holders should not travel internationally, and those currently abroad should plan to return to the United States today.

We are still seeking clarification on the scope and impact of this proclamation and will provide updates as they become available. PLEASE REVIEW OUR UPDATED ARTICLE, DATED OCTOBER 20, 2025 FOR THE MOST CURRENT INFORMATION ON THIS RAPIDLY EVOLVING ISSUE.

For more questions on the H-1B Worker Program, differences between a nonimmigrant status and a nonimmigrant visa, or other immigration matters, please contact Kolko & Casey, P.C.