The $100,000 H-1B fee is blocked. On July 24, 2026, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit denied the government’s motion to stay a district court ruling that had already wiped the payment requirement off the books. The practical effect is immediate: U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is barred from assessing or collecting the $100,000 charge on H-1B petitions going forward. For employers who quietly shelved international hiring last fall, and for workers whose petitions have been frozen abroad, this is the most consequential H-1B development in ten months.
The headlines say “H-1B fee struck down” and stop there. Two corrections matter more than the headline itself. First, this is not the end of the case. The government’s appeal on the merits is still pending, and an appellate court that refuses to pause an order today can still decide the underlying legal question later. No one knows how that appeal ends, and anyone who tells you they do is guessing. Second, the payment never reached nearly as many people as the panic suggested. Much of the fear that spread through H-1B workplaces in late 2025 attached to categories the proclamation never covered at all.
In this article you will learn what the courts actually held and why the reasoning matters, which employers and workers the ruling helps right now, and what to do – and what not to assume – while the appeal remains pending.
What the Court Actually Decided About the $100,000 H-1B Fee
Two courts have now weighed in, and reading their rulings narrowly is what keeps a filing safe. The district court did not hold that the President lacks authority over immigration. It held that this particular payment was the wrong instrument, imposed by the wrong branch of government.
How the $100,000 Payment Started
On September 19, 2025, the President issued a proclamation titled Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers, effective at 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on September 21, 2025. It directed that certain new H-1B petitions be accompanied by a $100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility. The claimed legal authority was the President’s power to suspend or restrict the entry of noncitizens under section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. USCIS implemented the directive through public guidance, routed the payment through pay.gov, and warned that covered petitions filed without proof of payment – or without a rarely granted national-interest exception from the Secretary of Homeland Security – would be denied. Those terms are still described on the agency’s presidential proclamation alert page.
The Operative Holding: a Tax, Not a Fee
On June 8, 2026, Judge Leo Sorokin of the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts vacated the payment requirement in California v. Trump. The reasoning is the part worth understanding. The court concluded that the $100,000 charge was, in substance, a tax – and under Article I of the Constitution, the power to lay and collect taxes belongs to Congress, not to the President acting alone. It could not be justified as a penalty, the court reasoned, because hiring an H-1B worker remains entirely lawful; and it did not function as a valid fee either. The court further held that the agency actions implementing the payment violated the Administrative Procedure Act, which directs reviewing courts to set aside agency action that exceeds statutory authority or is otherwise not in accordance with law.
What followed was six weeks of whiplash. On June 12, 2026, the district court declined to grant a full stay but issued an administrative stay pending appellate review – so USCIS kept collecting. Then, on July 24, 2026, the First Circuit denied the government’s motion for a stay pending appeal, finding that the administration had not shown it was likely to succeed on the merits. With that denial, the vacatur takes effect and the collection stops. The merits appeal continues on its own schedule.
Who Is Most Affected Right Now
Employers Filing New Petitions for Workers Abroad
The clearest beneficiaries are employers sponsoring candidates who are outside the United States and do not hold a valid H-1B visa – precisely the group the payment targeted. For many mid-sized companies, a $100,000 line item per hire was not a hurdle but a full stop: roles went unfilled, cap-selected candidates were told to wait, and some offers were withdrawn. With the charge blocked, the cost analysis returns to ordinary filing fees and legal costs. What has not returned is certainty, which is why the timing of a filing now deserves as much thought as its contents.
Workers Waiting Abroad for a Consular Interview
Beneficiaries stuck outside the country have spent months in a holding pattern created less by processing times than by an employer’s unwillingness to absorb a six-figure charge. The ruling removes that obstacle. It does not create a new visa category, shorten a queue, or guarantee any outcome at a consulate – every H-1B petition still rises or falls on the eligibility requirements USCIS applies to specialty occupation positions.
Employers Who Already Paid the $100,000
This is the hardest question, and honesty serves employers better than optimism: there is no published government guidance on refunds for employers who already paid. Not a slow process – no announced process at all as of this writing, and anyone promising a refund timeline is speculating. What employers can do today is preserve the record: pay.gov confirmations, filing receipts, the petition as filed, and every piece of correspondence with USCIS about the payment. If a refund or credit mechanism is announced later, employers with clean documentation will be positioned to use it.
Who Was Never Subject to the $100,000 H-1B Fee
Under the USCIS guidance issued in October 2025, the payment applied only to petitions filed on or after the effective date on behalf of beneficiaries who were outside the United States and did not hold a valid H-1B visa. The agency’s H-1B FAQ spelled out several categories that were never covered – and thousands of workers worried anyway.
Extensions, Amendments, and Change of Employer
Petitions seeking an extension of stay, an amendment to an existing petition, or a change of employer for a worker already in the United States were outside the scope of the payment. A worker whose H-1B was expiring did not owe $100,000 to keep working, and a company recruiting an H-1B employee away from another employer did not owe it either.
Change of Status Inside the United States
A change of status filed for someone already in the United States – the F-1 student moving into H-1B status being the classic example – was not covered, provided the change of status was actually granted. One narrow caveat matters: USCIS guidance explained that if such a request was filed and the person turned out to be ineligible for the change or extension, or departed the country before adjudication, the payment could still attach. That is exactly the kind of detail that separates a clean filing from an expensive surprise.
Workers Who Already Hold a Valid H-1B Visa
A currently valid H-1B visa was never affected, and the guidance was explicit that approval through one of the exempt routes did not later create liability simply because the worker traveled abroad and returned. Petitions filed before 12:01 a.m. eastern on September 21, 2025 were likewise untouched.
The Real Risk: Treating a Court Win as a Permanent Rule
The greatest danger right now is not the fee. It is the assumption that this fight is finished. A stay denial is a decision about what happens while a case is on appeal – it is not a final judgment on the law. The merits appeal is pending, and further review is always possible. Employers who read this week’s news as “the rule is gone forever” may file on a relaxed timeline, skip documentation, or ignore the possibility that filing instructions shift again. More than ever, working with an experienced immigration attorney who handles family-based visas, humanitarian visas, and removal defense cases is essential to navigate this challenging and ever-changing immigration process.
Why Strategy Matters More Than Ever
In a stable legal environment, sequencing is a convenience. In this one, it is the case. Whether a worker is inside or outside the United States on the day a petition is filed, whether a petition requests consular notification, whether a change of status is granted or denied – each of these facts determined exposure under the proclamation, and each will matter again if the landscape shifts. Documenting them contemporaneously protects an employer against a rule change it cannot control.
How to Protect Your H-1B Case Right Now
Confirm Where the Beneficiary Is and What They Hold
Before anything is filed, pin down two facts in writing: the beneficiary’s physical location and whether they hold a valid H-1B visa. Those answers drove every coverage question under the proclamation, and they are the ones most often assumed rather than verified – particularly for candidates who travel for work.
Keep Proof of Everything You Filed and Paid
Save receipts, notices, payment confirmations, and the complete petition as filed. Employers who paid the $100,000 should treat that documentation as a permanent record, not a closed file. Workers should keep copies of their own petitions and approval notices rather than relying on an employer’s file they cannot access after a job change.
Verify Current USCIS Filing Instructions Before You File
Court rulings and agency web pages do not update in lockstep. As of this writing, the USCIS pages describing the $100,000 payment had not yet been revised to reflect the appellate ruling, and updated filing instructions were expected. Check the agency’s current alerts and form instructions before submitting anything, and do not rely on a screenshot, a forum post, or a news article as your filing standard.
Practical Next Steps for Employers and H-1B Workers
If one of these profiles describes your situation, the ruling changes your next decision:
- You are an employer with a cap-selected candidate abroad whose petition you postponed because of the payment
- You are an H-1B worker waiting outside the United States for an employer to move forward with a petition
- You already paid the $100,000 and want to preserve any future claim to a refund
- You are an F-1 student or other nonimmigrant seeking a change of status to H-1B from inside the United States
- You have an H-1B extension, amendment, or change-of-employer filing planned in the coming months
- You are weighing whether to file now or wait for the appeal to be resolved
None of these situations resolves itself on a news cycle. The right first step is to schedule a case consultation with immigration attorneys who can confirm where your filing sits under the current rules and map the safest sequence before anything is submitted. This article is general information about a developing case, not legal advice about any particular filing, and every case is different.
How Francis Law Center Can Help
At Francis Law Center, immigration law is all we do. Our experienced legal team is dedicated to helping individuals and families across the United States understand their rights and options under U.S. immigration law. Whether you need help with applying for asylum, exploring relief from deportation, or navigating any other complex immigration matter, we are here to guide you every step of the way.
Hablamos español. Our Spanish-speaking team is available to assist clients who feel more comfortable communicating in Spanish. We believe language should never be a barrier when it comes to protecting your future.
For more updates, legal tips, and immigration resources, we invite you to explore our website or connect with us for a personalized consultation. We serve clients in all 50 states and are ready to help you move forward with confidence.
Contact Francis Law Center today to speak with an attorney and find the best path forward for your situation. Call 877-430-4201 or schedule your consultation online.
