Amid H-1B visa fee news, Trump’s old promise to give green cards to college graduates goes viral

Amid the storm over US President Donald Trump’s new H-1B visa fee, an old video of him promising automatic green cards to foreign graduates is going viral.

White House clarified that the new visa fee applies only to new applicants.(Bloomberg)

On Saturday, Trump signed a proclamation imposing a $100,000 annual fee on new H-1B visas. The measure, which takes effect from today (September 21), has sparked global anxiety, especially in the tech sector, where companies heavily rely on H-1B professionals. Amid the uproar, the White House clarified that the new rule applies only to new applicants, not renewals or current visa holders. But the policy has already triggered urgent advisories from top US tech firms. Microsoft urged employees travelling abroad to return before the fee deadline, while Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and JPMorgan issued similar guidance.

Now, against this backdrop, a June 2024 interview of Trump has resurfaced online, in which he tol a group of tech investors that he wanted to help foreign students stay in the US.

“What I want to do, and what I will do, is — you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” Trump said.

If implemented, such a plan could give millions of foreign students a direct path to permanent residency. But Trump has not repeated the idea publicly since then. For now, the $100,000 visa fee remains the more immediate reality for many.

What is H-1B visa fee rule?

Donald Trump’s surprise H-1B visa fee hike of $100,000 (approximately ₹90 lakh) on Saturday triggered a wave of panic. Many companies, including Microsoft, JPMorgan, and Amazon, advised employees holding H-1B visas to remain in the US. They also asked H-1B holders who were currently outside the country to re-enter the US by September 21.

However, the White House later clarified that the new $100,000 visa fee applies only to new applicants, not current H-1B holders. “This is NOT an annual fee. It’s a one-time fee that applies only to the petition,” White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said in a post on X on Saturday.

Leavitt also said that current H-1B visa holders who are currently outside of the country right now will not be charged $100,000 to re-enter the United States.

When does the H-1B visa rule kick in?

The H-1B visa rule will come into effect from 12:01 a.m. Eastern Time (ET) and is scheduled to expire after a year. However, it could also be extended if the Trump administration determines it is in the US interest to retain the fee.