Today, a federal district court has vacated the Trump administration’s controversial policy imposing a $100,000 fee on new H‑1B visa petitions, delivering the possibility of significant relief to U.S. employers that rely on high‑skilled foreign talent. 

Background 

In September 2025, the Trump administration introduced a presidential proclamation imposing a dramatic increase in the cost of new H‑1B petitions with a $100,000 fee per petition. The measure was intended to restrict use of the congressionally-created H‑1B program, with the administration asserting that the program had been used to displace U.S. workers and posed economic and national security concerns. While the administration backed off from requiring the $100,000 fee for all H-1B petitions, notably excluding H-1B Change of Status, H-1B Extensions of Status, and H-1B Change of Employer petitions from the fee, until this ruling, the fee has been in place for all H-1B Consular Notify petitions, i.e. H-1B filings for individuals not currently already in legal immigration status in the U.S. 

Court Decision  

On June 8, 2026, Judge Leo Sorokin of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts vacated the policy in its entirety, which will apply to all petitions affected by the policy.  The court found that the $100,000 fee constitutes a tax, not a permissible administrative fee, and that Congress did not delegate authority to the executive branch to impose such a tax.  

While the ruling is effective immediately, the administration may challenge it on appeal or attempt to implement alternative restrictions through new regulation or legislation. It is also unclear how the decision impacts petitions where the $100,000 has already been paid. 

Foster LLP is closely monitoring developments and will provide additional updates as USCIS announces implementation guidance or further litigation affects the ruling.  

Individuals who may have been impacted by these policies should continue to monitor case updates and reach out to a Foster LLP attorney to discuss any case-specific questions. Foster LLP will also continue to track and provide updates about any developments via Immigration Updates©, articles, and blogs on our website at www.fosterglobal.com.