President Donald Trump speaks on September 19, 2025, as he sits next to a “Trump Gold Card” sign in the oval office of the White House in Washington, DC, USA.
Kencedeno | Reuters
Major technology companies and foreign governments are rushing to respond after President Donald Trump announced plans to charge $100,000 on H-1B visas late Friday.
White House officials say the fee applies to new H-1B applicants, not renewals or current visa holders. It will first apply to future lottery cycles and not to 2025 lottery winners, the person said. The White House also revealed that the new $100,000 fee is not an annual fee, as several media outlets have previously reported.
The move could hit businesses, primarily the technology and financial sectors, which rely heavily on highly skilled immigrants, particularly from India and China.
The announcement sent shockwaves through some of the nation's largest technology and financial companies.
Amazon's The immigration team advised H-1B and H-4 visa holders to stay in the US and return people from abroad before 12:10am on September 21, according to an internal message viewed by CNBC.jpmorgan chase's The law firm has sent a note asking H-1B Visa owners to stay in the US and avoid international travel until further guidance, according to anyone familiar with the matter.Goldman Sachs According to an internal memo seen by Reuters, when traveling internationally based on guidance from immigration services company Fragomen, be careful to pay attention to employees who hold an H-1B visa.Microsoft It also advised H-1B visa holders to stay in the US and warn people abroad that they could endanger the immigration situation, according to an email seen by Reuters.
This fee represents the most aggressive move by the administration that does not limit legal immigration. Since taking office in January, Trump has been cracking down on both illegal and legal entry into the United States, but Friday's announcement marks the most important attempt to close employment visas.
Amazon has hired the most H-1B holders. This was over 14,000 at the end of June. Microsoft, Meta, Apple and Google each featured over 4,000 of the top 10 winners of 2025.
CNBC contacts all public companies on the Top 10 H-1B recipient list for comments. The White House did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.
“President Trump has committed to putting American workers first. This common sense action will do so by discouraging businesses from spamming their systems and preventing them from stealing wages,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers told CNBC. “It also gives certainty to American businesses that want to actually bring sophisticated workers to our great nations, but are being trampled on by system abuse.”
“Humanitarian consequences”
The announcement also disrupted the current situation overseas. There, foreign governments scrambled to assess the impact of the new rules on their countries.
India's Foreign Ministry said it is studying the restrictions on visas and their implications, highlighting that both Indian and US industries share an interest in maintaining competitiveness in innovation. He also highlighted the possibility of confusion for individual families.
“This measure is likely to have humanitarian consequences from the disruption caused by families. The government hopes that these disruptions can be properly addressed by US authorities,” India's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
South Korea's Foreign Ministry also said it is assessing the impact on Korean companies and skilled workers.
Below is a searchable list of the top 100 US companies that were H1-B recipients in 2025.
– CNBC's Annie Palmer contributed to this report.