Trump extends $100,000 H-1B entry payment through 2027
President Trump on September 18, 2026, extended the $100,000 H-1B entry payment through September 21, 2027, though DHS is not collecting it after a Massachusetts court order.
President Donald Trump signed a proclamation Friday that extends the $100,000 H-1B entry payment through September 21, 2027. A federal court in Massachusetts has already vacated the guidance that implemented it. The Department of Homeland Security, in an alert on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, says it disagrees with that order, will comply while it considers next steps, and still plans to collect if the order is later lifted.
The original restriction took effect on September 21, 2025. On June 8, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts vacated the agency guidance that implemented the payment. On July 24, 2026, the First Circuit denied the government's motion to stay that judgment. Friday's proclamation takes effect at 12:01 a.m. EDT on Monday, September 21, 2026, and expires on September 21, 2027, unless it is extended again.
On December 23, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia upheld the $100,000 requirement in Chamber of Commerce v. DHS; the Chamber's appeal remains pending in the D.C. Circuit. Separately, DHS published a proposed rule on August 25, 2026, for a $103,265 fee on H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap, under different statutory authority. Comments close on September 24, 2026. That fee is not in effect.
By its text, Friday's proclamation covers H-1B specialty-occupation workers who are outside the United States, including those who enter or attempt to enter after the effective hour. It does not attach the payment to every H-1B petition.
The White House said the payment has been made for over 700 petitions since September 21, 2025, more than $70 million at the stated amount. USCIS has not said whether any of that money was refunded after the June vacatur, or how many of those payments came after the court ruled.
The secretary of homeland security may still exempt an individual, everyone working for a company, or an entire industry when the hire is judged in the national interest and does not threaten U.S. security or welfare. USCIS calls those exceptions extraordinarily rare. Neither the agency nor the White House has published how many, if any, have been granted.
Tata Consultancy Services chief executive K. Krithivasan said in October 2025 that the company would not hire new H-1B employees in the coming year and would hire more locally in the United States. That statement came after the original restriction took effect, and before Friday's renewal. Until a court restores collection, Friday's document does not change what employers pay.
Frequently asked
Is anyone paying the $100,000 right now?
No: a Massachusetts court vacated the guidance that implemented it, and DHS says it is complying while it weighs next steps.
Who does the payment apply to?
By the proclamation's text, H-1B specialty-occupation workers outside the United States who enter or attempt to enter after the effective hour, not every H-1B petition.
How much has been collected so far?
The White House says the payment has been made for over 700 petitions, though USCIS has not said whether any was refunded after the court ruling.
Can anyone be exempted?
The homeland security secretary can exempt an individual, a company's workers or a whole industry in the national interest, but USCIS calls those exceptions extraordinarily rare and has not said how many were granted.