Judge blocks Trump’s $100,000 H-1B visa fee

A federal judge on Monday vacated President Donald Trump’s $100,000 fee for employers’ H-1B visa applications for highly skilled foreign workers.

The policy implementing the high fee on the visas for workers in a specialty occupation violated the federal Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution, Judge Leo Sorokin declared in the ruling in U.S. District Court in Boston.

The Trump administration plans to appeal the decision.

“Every day, thousands of people with H-1B visas serve New Yorkers as doctors, teachers, and other skilled workers,” said New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose state is one of 20 states that sued to block the fee.

It should be noted that the H-1B visa program was started by Congress in 1990. Under this program, US-based companies give temporary employment to foreign experts in various fields in the United States, which can last for up to six years.

Under the program, employers pay between $1,700 and $4,500 in fees, but President Trump increased it to $100,000.