Judge Blocks Trump's $100K H-1B Visa Fee as Unlawful Tax

U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston struck down President Donald Trump’s $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applications, ruling it an unlawful tax that violated federal administrative law and the Constitution. The decision came in response to a lawsuit filed by 20 states led by California.

Sorokin found that the fee amounted to a tax rather than a regulatory restriction, which only Congress has the authority to impose according to the Constitution. He cited precedent from a Supreme Court case and wrote in his ruling that 'the Policy imposes a tax on H-1B petitions without the requisite delegation by Congress.' The states argued that using the H-1B program to fill vacancies for much-needed doctors and teachers was already difficult before the higher fee.

Most H-1B visa applications cost several thousand dollars before Trump’s proclamation, which set off a wave of panic among confused employers, students, and workers. The Trump administration argued that the fee constituted a lawful monetary penalty authorized under federal immigration law. However, Sorokin concluded that the fee was not a penalty but a tax that the president lacked any authorization from Congress to issue.

The Department of Homeland Security called Sorokin's decision 'blatant judicial activism' in a statement and defended the Trump administration's immigration reforms. The H-1B visa program allows U.S.-based companies to temporarily hire foreign workers in specialty occupations for up to six years, with Amazon alone having more than 10,000 visas approved in early 2025.

The ruling vacated all agency documents enforcing the new fee requirement. The Trump administration plans to appeal and has ordered enhanced vetting of H-1B applicants while proposing a new visa selection process favoring higher-skilled workers. As of February 15, only 85 payments of the $100K fee were received.