White House vows appeal in H-1B fee case
Washington, June 9
The White House defended President Donald Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fee and vowed to appeal after a federal judge struck down the policy, ruling that the administration exceeded its authority and imposed an unlawful tax.
"President Trump has clear legal authority to restrict entry of any class of aliens he determines is not in America's best interests, and that is exactly what he did," White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers told IANS.
"The H-1B program has been abused for decades, and President Trump finally took action to fix it. A federal judge in Washington already upheld a nearly identical order, and the Administration is confident this order will be reversed on appeal," she said in response to a question.
The response came hours after US District Judge Leo T. Sorokin of Massachusetts invalidated the policy and vacated it nationwide.
In a sharply worded ruling, Sorokin concluded that the administration had imposed a tax without congressional authorisation.
"The Court finds that the Policy imposes a tax on H-1B petitions without the requisite delegation by Congress," the judge wrote. "There are no statutory powers authorizing Defendants to implement a $100,000 tax on H-1B petitions."
The court rejected the administration's argument that broad presidential powers under immigration law permitted the fee.
"While 'the Executive has broad discretion over the admission and exclusion of aliens...that discretion is not boundless,'" Sorokin wrote. He added that such authority "may not transgress constitutional limitations" or "the statutory authority conferred by Congress."
The ruling specifically challenged the legal foundation of the proclamation signed by Trump in September 2025, which required employers filing new H-1B petitions to pay an additional $100,000.
The judge further found that immigration statutes cited by the administration did not give the President authority to impose such a charge.
"These considerations preclude reading INA § 212(f) and 215(a) as delegating Congress's exclusive power to tax," Sorokin wrote.
The court also criticised the agencies that implemented the policy, finding they had bypassed required rulemaking procedures and failed to adequately justify the fee.
At the conclusion of the ruling, Sorokin declared that "The Policy implementing the Proclamation is declared unlawful and is VACATED in its entirety."
The White House did not indicate when it would file an appeal, but administration officials signalled they intend to continue defending the measure as part of Trump's broader effort to tighten oversight of the H-1B programme.
— IANS
Reader Comments
From a US perspective, I understand wanting to protect American jobs, but this fee seems excessive and arbitrary. The court's ruling makes sense - you can't just bypass Congress on tax matters. If they want to reform H-1B, they should do it properly through legislation.
My brother is waiting for his H-1B approval letter. This rollercoaster of policies is nerve-wracking for thousands of families back home. We plan everything - mortgages, children's education, even aging parents' care - around these visas. Please think about the human cost, not just politics. 🙏
I work with Indian H-1B holders at my company. They're some of the most skilled and dedicated people I've met. This fee would have devastated their families financially. Good on the judge for striking it down. If there are abuses, fix the rules, don't punish everyone with a punitive tax.
The irony is that US tech companies themselves are the biggest lobbyists against these restrictions. They need global talent. Meanwhile, Indian IT firms have to navigate this political minefield. Let's hope the appeal doesn't drag this uncertainty for years. Justice Soroquin's reasoning was solid - no tax without representation.
As an American engineer, I sympathize with wanting to protect local jobs, but this isn't the way. The real issue is that companies exploit the system - not the immigrants themselves. Maybe if US colleges produced more STEM graduates, we wouldn't need H-1B visas so badly. Just saying. 🤷