Creating Unintended Consequences
You have probably heard that President Trump signed an executive order requiring that the H1-B visa must be accompanied by a $100,000 fee for certain H-1B visa applications filed on or after September 21, 2025. The fee is not applied to current H-1B holders, renewals, or certain other H-1B petitions, according to later guidance. There is some confusion about who pays this amount. It is not the foreigner wanting to come to the U.S. typically for work purposes. The fee is imposed on the prospective employer of that person.
In this blog, I will discuss the reasons behind imposing the fee, whether we should expect it to lead to a reduction in the number of new visa holders, and other consequences of the program. The implications are significant because in recent years, the number of foreigners who hold H1-B visas have been increasing, in part because the skills needed by U.S. employers that relate largely to Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) are not being met by the supply of qualified candidates in the U.S..
Provisions of the New Law
On September 19, 2025, President Trump signed a Proclamation, “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers,” that took an important, initial, and incremental step to reform the H-1B visa program to curb abuses and protect American workers. However, there are unintended consequences as explained below.
This Proclamation:
- Requires a $100,000 payment to accompany any new H-1B visa petitions submitted after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025. This includes the 2026 lottery, and any other H-1B petitions submitted after 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025.
- Authorizes the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State to coordinate to take all necessary and appropriate action to implement this Proclamation.
This Proclamation does not:
- Apply to any previously issued H-1B visas, or any petitions submitted prior to 12:01 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2025.
- Does not change any payments or fees required to be submitted in connection with any H-1B renewals. The fee is a one-time fee on submission of a new H-1B petition.
- Does not prevent any holder of a current H-1B visa from traveling in and out of the United States.
Further steps that will be taken to reform the H-1B program, as contemplated in the Proclamation, include:
- A rulemaking by the Department of Labor to revise and raise the prevailing wage levels in order to upskill the H-1B program and ensure that it is used to hire only the best of the best temporary foreign workers.
- A rulemaking by the Department of Homeland Security to prioritize high-skilled, high-paid aliens in the H-1B lottery over those at lower wage levels.
The Economic Innovation Group goes in great detail in explaining the program. Additional reforms are also under consideration and will be announced in the coming months.
Career Aspirations
Today’s kids are three times more likely to aspire toward a career as a YouTuber rather than an astronaut, according to a new study by Harris Poll/LEGO®.
Toy production firm Lego surveyed 3,000 children between the ages of eight and 12 from the U.S., the U.K. and China, as well as 326 parents who had children aged between five and 12.
Almost a third of the kids in the survey said they wanted to be a YouTuber when they grew up, while 11% said they wanted to be an astronaut.
However, the responses varied depending on where children were from. More than half of those in China said they wanted to be an astronaut, making it the most popular career aspiration.
In the U.S. and the U.K., that number fell to just over 10%, with vlogger (video blogger) or YouTuber ranked as the top aspiration in both countries.
Children’s top career aspirations in the US and UK
- Vlogger/YouTuber
- Teacher
- Professional athlete
- Musician
- Astronaut
Children’s top career aspirations in China
- Astronaut
- Teacher
- Musician
- Professional athlete
- Vlogger/YouTuber
The visa fee is likely to reduce the number of highly qualified graduates in STEM fields wanting to come to the U.S.. Will we be able to keep up with the Chinese and other countries where the “hard skills” are preferred over the “soft skills,” the latter of which is the choice of American college students.
Three in four children believed humans would eventually live in outer space or on another planet, according to the research, with 96% of Chinese children believing this to be true, compared to 63% in the U.K. and 68% in the United States.
When asked if they would like to go to space, 95% of Chinese kids said yes, while nearly 70% of U.S. children and 63% of British children said the same.
In 2017, a survey by Fatherly of 1,000 U.S. children under the age of 12 found that most children wanted to be a doctor when they grew up, followed by a vet, engineer, police officer, or teacher. We can see the shift in career choices has changed over time. The reason is, I believe, a decline in the work ethic by American kids who rather fill their time doing something on social media rather than studying demanding subject matter.
Walmart Closing the Door on Qualified Foreigners
On October 22, 2025, Walmart announced a pause in the hiring of candidates who require H-1B visas due to the new $100,000 fee imposed by the Trump administration. According to a spokesperson for the company, this decision primarily affects corporate roles and highlights the financial impact of higher fees on businesses.
President Trump seems to have forgotten that he has already put into place tariffs that could affect the same companies that are harmed by the exorbitant H1-B $100,000 visa fee. Let’s be real. Companies like Walmart are going to have to pass along at least some of these new fees to the customers. Have you been in a Walmart store lately? I have and the prices have gone up.
Criticisms of the $100,000 H1-B Visa Program
As part of ongoing efforts by the Trump administration to reform the immigration system and prioritize American workers, Trump announced the new H-1B fee as a way to still attract the best and brightest, while also making sure the system was not being abused to bring in cheap labor. I have no idea how Trump comes up with such a statement.
Critics said the steep fee increase would leave small- and medium-sized businesses reliant on foreign talent at a disadvantage. The conservative-leaning U.S. Chamber of Commerce announced last week that it was suing the Trump administration, alleging the president did not have legal authority to change the fee.
Unintended Consequences
Some countries are reportedly considering ways to attract skilled workers who may now be deterred from coming to the U.S. due to the new fee. For example, the United Kingdom is reportedly exploring options to abolish visa charges for top professionals to attract talent
While many countries impose fees on individuals with specific skills, including those in STEM who want to stay and work in a foreign country, these fees are part of the visa application and renewal process. In the U.S., there is a one-time fee for a new H-1B petition that can exceed $6,000 in addition to other government fees.
I’ve noticed that President Trump has a unique way of making decisions. Rather than carefully and fully thinking through the possible consequences of intended actions and decisions, gathering the relevant data, and then apply ethical reasoning to his decisions, Trump first acts, ignores the consequences until after the fact, and really never develops a thoughtful, reflective process of reasoning to support the actions he takes. We are worse off as a country for it.
Blog posted by Steven Mintz, PhD, Professor Emeritus from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, on October 22, 2025. To find out more about Steve’s activities, visit his website at: www.stevenmintzethics.com.