White House says Trump’s H-1B visa changes will only affect new applicants

• A White House official said that the $100,000 H-1B visa fee only applies to new applicants.
• Amid uncertainty, tech companies have urged H-1B holders to return to the US.
• President Donald Trump says he was imposing the new fee to prevent abuse of the visa.

After Trump announced a new $100,000 fee for H-1B visas in an executive order on Friday, stakeholders scrambled to understand who exactly it impacts.

A White House official told Business Insider on Saturday that the fee will only apply to new applicants, not current lawful H-1B visa holders.

"This is a one-time fee that applies only to the petition," a White House official told Business Insider in an email. "It ONLY applies to new visas, not renewals or current visa holders. It will first apply in the next upcoming lottery cycle."

On Saturday afternoon, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted on X that the increased fee does not impact H-1B holders' eligibility to leave the country and re-enter.

"Those who already hold H-1B visas and are currently outside of the country right now will NOT be charged $100,000 to re-enter," Leavitt wrote. "H-1B visa holders can leave and re-enter the country to the same extent as they normally would; whatever ability they have to do that is not impacted by yesterday's proclamation."

On Saturday afternoon, USCIS issued a memo, which was posted on X, clarifying the new requirements for the H-1B visa process and reiterating the press secretary's statement that the new rules do not apply to current visa holders.

Trump's executive order does not include such explicit language. The statements that the fee will not apply to renewals also contradict what Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told reporters on Friday in the Oval Office.

"Renewals, first times, the company needs to decide," Lutnick said in response to a question about the fee's application. "Do they want — is the person valuable enough to have a $100,000 a year payment to the government or they should head home, and they should go hire an American."

Amid the uncertainty, Amazon and Microsoft have urged H-1B visa holders who are now abroad to return to the United States before Trump's order goes into effect on September 21.

"If you have H-1B or H-4 status and are outside the U.S.: Try to return before tomorrow's deadline if possible," Amazon said in a memo to staff on Friday. "We realize this is short notice but returning soon is advisable and you should make every effort possible to clear U.S. customs before 12:00 a.m. EDT (9:00 p.m. PDT) on Sunday, September 21, 2025."

Microsoft sent a similar notice to its employees.

Trump and Lutnick said the executive order was needed to prevent abuse of the H-1B visa program. Tech companies have historically used H-1B visas to hire skilled foreign workers.

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