U.S. companies awoke on June 18 to find the controversial $100,000 supplemental filing fee on new H-1B petitions abruptly reinstated—at least for now.
The fee, first imposed by presidential proclamation in 2025, had been struck down on June 12 by a federal district court in Massachusetts. Within hours, however, the Trump administration filed an appeal and asked the same court for an administrative stay while the First Circuit considers a full stay pending appeal. Judge Katherine A. Robertson granted that narrow request, meaning U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may once again collect the six-figure surcharge until the higher court rules.
For corporate mobility managers, the whiplash is severe. Large staffing firms and technology employers that filed cap-subject H-1B petitions after June 12 must now decide whether to re-submit filings with a second check or risk a rejection for non-payment. Attorneys report receiving do-not-mail alerts overnight from clients who are recalculating hiring budgets and cash-flow projections. Smaller companies that budget only once per year face an unplanned hit three weeks before the July 1 start of the FY 2027 cap filing season.
![Court Stay Puts $100,000 H-1B Filing Fee Back in Play, Creating New Budget Headaches for U.S. Employers]()
If you find yourself scrambling for support as these surprise fees resurface, VisaHQ can streamline the process. Their U.S. work-visa specialists provide up-to-date guidance on forms, costs, and timing, and their online portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) lets HR teams track filings and payment deadlines in one place—helping employers stay compliant even when the rules keep shifting.
Beyond immediate cost, the stay re-introduces strategic uncertainty. If the First Circuit denies a longer stay, the fee could disappear again just as receipts are processed, raising questions about refunds and the legal sufficiency of petitions filed under a moving target. Immigration counsel are urging employers to add explicit fee-contingency language to offer letters and assignment agreements signed this summer.
The episode also underscores the larger trend of litigation-driven volatility in business immigration policy. Since 2025, the H-1B program has weathered three separate court challenges to wage rules, lottery weighting and now supplemental fees. Each time, employers have had to pivot quickly, update internal guidance and communicate changes to foreign candidates.
Mobility leaders are advised to monitor the First Circuit docket; a ruling on the government’s full stay motion is expected within weeks and will determine whether the surcharge persists through peak filing season or vanishes again. With penalties for inadequate fee payment ranging from outright rejection to denial of status extension, experts recommend submitting duplicate $100,000 checks for time-sensitive filings until clarity emerges. Companies that postpone may lose valuable petition dates, potentially disrupting start-of-school onboarding for F-1 students transitioning to H-1B. In the words of one immigration counsel, “Budget for the worst, hope for the best, and watch your email hourly.”
The fee, first imposed by presidential proclamation in 2025, had been struck down on June 12 by a federal district court in Massachusetts. Within hours, however, the Trump administration filed an appeal and asked the same court for an administrative stay while the First Circuit considers a full stay pending appeal. Judge Katherine A. Robertson granted that narrow request, meaning U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may once again collect the six-figure surcharge until the higher court rules.
For corporate mobility managers, the whiplash is severe. Large staffing firms and technology employers that filed cap-subject H-1B petitions after June 12 must now decide whether to re-submit filings with a second check or risk a rejection for non-payment. Attorneys report receiving do-not-mail alerts overnight from clients who are recalculating hiring budgets and cash-flow projections. Smaller companies that budget only once per year face an unplanned hit three weeks before the July 1 start of the FY 2027 cap filing season.
If you find yourself scrambling for support as these surprise fees resurface, VisaHQ can streamline the process. Their U.S. work-visa specialists provide up-to-date guidance on forms, costs, and timing, and their online portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) lets HR teams track filings and payment deadlines in one place—helping employers stay compliant even when the rules keep shifting.
Beyond immediate cost, the stay re-introduces strategic uncertainty. If the First Circuit denies a longer stay, the fee could disappear again just as receipts are processed, raising questions about refunds and the legal sufficiency of petitions filed under a moving target. Immigration counsel are urging employers to add explicit fee-contingency language to offer letters and assignment agreements signed this summer.
The episode also underscores the larger trend of litigation-driven volatility in business immigration policy. Since 2025, the H-1B program has weathered three separate court challenges to wage rules, lottery weighting and now supplemental fees. Each time, employers have had to pivot quickly, update internal guidance and communicate changes to foreign candidates.
Mobility leaders are advised to monitor the First Circuit docket; a ruling on the government’s full stay motion is expected within weeks and will determine whether the surcharge persists through peak filing season or vanishes again. With penalties for inadequate fee payment ranging from outright rejection to denial of status extension, experts recommend submitting duplicate $100,000 checks for time-sensitive filings until clarity emerges. Companies that postpone may lose valuable petition dates, potentially disrupting start-of-school onboarding for F-1 students transitioning to H-1B. In the words of one immigration counsel, “Budget for the worst, hope for the best, and watch your email hourly.”
