Will student visa holders have to pay $100,000 to get H1-B visa? White House reveals key detail

Published on: Sept 21, 2025 07:52 am IST

USCIS clarified Trump’s $100K visa fee only affects new applicants; current visa holders, including F-1 students, can travel, renew or apply for H-1B as normal.

Donald Trump’s recent proclamation mandating a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas starting in the upcoming lottery cycle has sparked mass anxiety. While the initial anxiety was thawed with the White House’s announcing Saturday that the new rules will not apply to existing visa holders, many questions still remain.

Representational image.(Unsplash)

After White House’s clarification on the new visa rule, foreign students in the US are staring at uncertainty. Students who are in the US with an F-1 OPT visa often apply for H-1B visas when they land a job after graduating.

A lot of confusion was sparked among them after Trump said on Friday that the new H-1B visa rules are set to kick in on Sunday, September 21, starting at 12 p.m. ET. But Trump’s proclamation on new H-1B visa rules has a crucial detail that could be a big respite for F-1 visa holders looking for an H-1B upgrade in the near future.

White House Reveals Key Details On Student Visas

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services released a memorandum on Saturday based on Trump’s proclamation, titled: “Restriction of Entry of Certain Non-Immigrant Workers”. It crucially stated, “the proclamation does not impact the ability of any current visa holder to travel to or from the United States.”

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also said at Saturday’s briefing that the new ruling applies only to fresh visa applicants. It indicates that those who are going for H-1B renewals or those holding any US visa, including the F-1 student visas, will not have to pay $100,000 fee.

Also read: Amid Elon Musk’s silence on Trump’s H1B fee hike, his old X post surfaces: ‘The reason I am…’

White House Offers Clarification Amid Rush

After Trump’s announcement created a massive rush for traveling H-1B visa holders to return to the United States, the White House on Monday said that Trump’s ruling will not affect the travel of existing H-1B visa holders. They will be able to enter and leave the United States as they normally would, the fact sheet stated. It also clarified that the new ruling would come inti effect in the lottery for the upcoming H-1B visa cycle.

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