Trump slaps $100,000 annual fee for H-1B visa

'ONLY FOR NEW H-1B APPLICANTS'

- PRESS TRUST OF INDIA

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON: In a sudden move that will hugely impact skilled.

Indian professionals in the US, President Donald Trump has ordered a steep hike in the annual H-1B non-immigrant visa fee to $100,000 (over Rs 88 lakh).

As the Presidential proclamation that takes effect at 12.01 am EDT on September 21 sparked panic and outcry, immigration attorneys and companies asked the H-1B visa holders or their family members currently outside America for work or vacation to return within the next 24 hours or risk being stranded and denied entry into the US.

There were reports of Indian professionals who were heading home for festivities disembarking from aircraft at the San Francisco International Airport after Trump's announcement to overhaul the H-1B visa programme for high-skilled foreign workers.

Trump on Friday signed the proclamation 'Restriction on entry of certain nonimmigrant workers, saying the abuse of the H-1B visa programme is a "national security threat", a decision that came as a rude shock to Indian and American technology companies and also caused uncertainty to foreign professionals, especially in the Information Technology (IT) sector.

Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). China is the next biggest group.

The Trump administration's action that will significantly affect Indian technology professionals who are hired by tech companies and others on H-1B visas comes at a time just as the India-US trade talks appeared to regain momentum. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal is expected to visit the US next week.

Currently, the H-1B visa fee that companies pay to sponsor H1-B applicants ranges from about $2,000 to $5,000, depending on employer size and other costs.