Tech giants warn H-1B employees to return to US before visa fee deadline
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New Delhi: Tech giants Meta and Amazon have instructed employees holding H-1B and H-4 visas to avoid international travel and, if already abroad, to return to the United States immediately as a new $100,000 visa fee rule comes into effect on September 21.
Companies and immigration lawyers warn that skilled foreign workers and their families may be stranded abroad if they do not re-enter the country before the fee rule is implemented. The order, signed by US President Donald Trump on Friday, imposes a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa petitions and related supplements.
Amazon has sent internal communications urging US-based employees to remain in the country until further notice, while advising those currently overseas to return by Saturday midnight. Similarly, Meta has instructed H-1B and H-4 visa holders to remain in the US for at least two weeks and suggested those abroad consider returning within 24 hours.
Microsoft has also issued internal guidance, advising staff to refrain from international travel “for the foreseeable future.”
The sudden fee increase has shaken the tech sector, which relies heavily on the H-1B programme to hire skilled foreign workers, many of whom are from India. Immigration experts have criticised the move, saying it effectively bars foreign professionals unless employers are willing to pay the steep fee.
Under the H-1B visa programme, US companies can employ foreign nationals in “speciality occupations,” particularly in technology and engineering fields. Trump’s proclamation represents the programme’s largest cost increase in history, raising concerns across Silicon Valley and beyond.
With the deadline less than a day away, companies and employees are racing against the clock to avoid disruptions that could leave thousands stranded and separated from their jobs and families.
With IANS inputs