Who this affects:

• Employers hiring a worker from abroad
• F-1 students changing to H-1B
• Cap-subject nonprofits and small businesses
• Workers already in H-1B status

Verified October 26, 2026. This changes often — check the USCIS H-1B page before filing.

Is the $100,000 H-1B Fee in Effect Right Now?

No. As of October 26, 2026, USCIS is not collecting the $100,000 payment, because two federal court orders block the agency policies that put it into practice.

On July 28, 2026, USCIS said it would comply with the court order and not collect the payment on H-1B cases. It also said that if the order is lifted, DHS still plans to collect.

In practice, employers filing for a worker abroad have not had to attach proof of a $100,000 pay.gov payment since USCIS updated its guidance in late July 2026.

“Blocked, not repealed” means three things are true at once:

• The proclamation still exists. Proclamation 10973 (September 19, 2025) was extended by Proclamation 11069 (September 18, 2026) through September 21, 2027.
• The courts set aside the implementing policies — the USCIS, DHS and State Department guidance used to collect the payment — not the proclamations themselves.
• The rulings are on appeal. A third court, in Washington, D.C., upheld the payment in December 2025, and that decision is also on appeal.

So the payment could return if a higher court rules for the government or pauses the orders. The next section dates every step.

The H-1B Fee Court Timeline

Two courts have blocked the $100,000 payment, one court upheld it, and all three cases are on appeal.

1. Sept 19, 2025 · President

   Proclamation 10973 restricts entry of certain new H-1B workers unless the petition comes with a $100,000 payment.

   Status after: payment due from Sept 21

2. Sept 21, 2025 · USCIS, State Department

   Payment required for covered petitions filed at or after 12:01 a.m. Eastern.

   Status after: IN EFFECT

3. Oct 20, 2025 · USCIS

   Guidance: covers new petitions for workers outside the U.S. without a valid H-1B visa, not changes of status, extensions or amendments granted inside the U.S.

   Status after: IN EFFECT (narrowed)

4. Dec 23, 2025 · District Court, D.C.

   Chamber of Commerce v. DHS upheld the payment. Plaintiffs appealed to the D.C. Circuit on Dec 29.

   Status after: IN EFFECT; appeal pending

5. June 8, 2026 · District Court, Massachusetts

   State of California v. Mullin held the payment an unlawful tax and vacated the implementing policy.

   Status after: BLOCKED

6. June 2026 · Same court

   The court briefly stayed its own ruling while the government sought a First Circuit stay.

   Status after: collected again on consular cases

7. July 24, 2026 · First Circuit

   Denied the government’s stay request. Merits not decided.

   Status after: BLOCKED

8. July 28, 2026 · USCIS

   Will comply and not collect; DHS still plans to collect if the order is lifted.

   Status after: BLOCKED

9. Aug 25, 2026 · DHS

   Proposed a separate $103,265 fee on cap-subject petitions.

   Status after: PROPOSED

10. Sept 9, 2026 · DHS (CBP rule)

    $4,000 Public Law 114-113 fee now applies to covered employers’ extensions.

    Status after: IN EFFECT

11. Sept 18, 2026 · President

    Proclamation 11069 extends the restriction through Sept 21, 2027.

    Status after: extended on paper; still BLOCKED

12. Sept 24, 2026 · DHS

    Comment period on the $103,265 proposal closed.

    Status after: PROPOSED; no final rule

13. Sept 30, 2026 · District Court, N.D. California

    Global Nurse Force v. Trump: vacated the implementing policies under both proclamations until notice-and-comment rulemaking is done.

    Status after: BLOCKED (second order)

14. Oct 9, 2026 · Ninth Circuit

    Government appealed and asked for a stay.

    Status after: BLOCKED; stay request pending

15. Oct 16, 2026 · First Circuit

    Merits briefing was expected to conclude.

    Status after: BLOCKED; awaiting decision

What each ruling did — and didn’t — decide

• Massachusetts (June 8): a final judgment on the merits in that court. It treated the payment as a tax only Congress can impose and vacated the implementing policy nationwide.
• First Circuit (July 24): only refused to pause that judgment during the appeal. The appeal itself is undecided.
• California (Sept 30): a preliminary ruling focused on procedure — the agencies skipped notice-and-comment rulemaking. It reached the 2026 extension too, but did not strike down either proclamation.
• D.C. (Dec 23, 2025): reached the opposite conclusion, finding the payment lawful. We found no reported D.C. Circuit decision as of October 26, 2026.

As of October 26, 2026, we found no reported ruling on the Ninth Circuit stay request and no reported Supreme Court action on the payment.

Who the $100,000 H-1B Payment Applied To

The payment applied mainly to new petitions for workers outside the U.S. — not to F-1 students or H-1B workers whose change of status or extension was approved inside the country.

Under USCIS’s October 20, 2025 guidance, the payment applied to:

• New H-1B petitions filed on or after September 21, 2025 for a worker outside the U.S. who did not hold a valid H-1B visa.
• Petitions asking for consular notification, port-of-entry notification or pre-flight inspection.
• Petitions for a worker inside the U.S. when USCIS denied the change of status or extension and approved the petition for consular processing instead.

It did not apply to:

• Petitions filed before September 21, 2025.
• Changes of status (for example, F-1 to H-1B), extensions and amendments that USCIS granted inside the U.S.
• Change-of-employer petitions granted inside the U.S.
• Workers already holding a valid H-1B visa, including when they later traveled and re-entered on an approved petition.

One point surprises many readers: cap-exempt employers were not carved out. A university hiring a researcher from abroad faced the same payment. A national-interest exception existed, but it was described as available only in rare cases.

The Proposed $103,265 H-1B Fee

DHS has proposed a separate $103,265 fee on every cap-subject H-1B petition — including those from small employers and cap-subject nonprofits — but it is PROPOSED, not final, and has no effective date.

The notice of proposed rulemaking, Fee for Certain H-1B Petitions, was published August 25, 2026 (91 FR 54817; RIN 1615-AD20; DHS Docket No. USCIS-2026-0298). Comments closed September 24, 2026.

As proposed, the fee would:

• Apply to every cap-subject petition — the regular cap and the U.S. master’s cap alike.
• Be payable at filing, on top of every other fee.
• Apply whether the worker is abroad or changing status inside the U.S., so it would reach F-1 to H-1B cap petitions.
• Not apply to cap-exempt petitions. DHS tied that exclusion to how it already exempts certain nonprofits from the Asylum Program Fee.
• Not apply to extensions, amendments or transfers of workers who were already counted against the cap.

Some early coverage said nonprofits were exempt. The rule text says otherwise: DHS describes the fee as applying to all cap-subject petitions, including small employers or nonprofits. Only cap-exempt employers fall outside it — see the cap-exempt section for why “nonprofit” alone isn’t enough.

DHS says the fee would fund immigration-related costs at USCIS, ICE, CBP, the immigration courts, the State Department and the Labor Department. It projects 85,000 petitions a year and about $8.8 billion in annual revenue, while acknowledging registrations may drop.

The proposal also says that if a proclamation payment is ever required at the same time, a petitioner would owe both amounts.

What’s still unknown

• Effective date. DHS must review comments and publish a final rule first. It has not announced timing.
• Final amount and scope. A final rule can differ from the proposal; DHS said related rulemakings could change the number.
• Refund if a petition is denied. We did not find a refund provision for denied petitions in the proposal.
• Transition rules for registrations already selected when a final rule takes effect.

How the Wage-Weighted H-1B Lottery Works

Each registration now gets one to four entries in the draw, based on the wage level of the offered pay — then USCIS picks at random from that weighted pool.

The final rule was published December 29, 2025, took effect February 27, 2026, and was first used for the FY2027 cap season, whose registration ran March 4–19, 2026.

When registering, the employer lists the job’s occupation code, the area of employment, and the highest Department of Labor OEWS wage level the offered wage equals or exceeds. Each unique beneficiary still counts once toward the cap.

Why it’s still a draw: a Level IV registration is more likely to be picked than a Level I, but every selection is random. How likely any one registration is depends on how many others register at each level — which no one knows in advance. We don’t publish odds for that reason.

Two cautions:

• The level must be real. The Labor Condition Application and petition filed after selection must match the registration, and the rule includes consequences for misstating the level.
• The lottery level isn’t the same as the LCA prevailing wage determination, though both use OEWS data. Get them checked together.

FY2028 timing: registration is expected in March 2027. USCIS announces the exact dates, usually a few weeks ahead.

The Full Cost of an H-1B Petition

Today, the government fees for a new cap-subject petition at a 26-plus-employee employer come to $3,595 before premium processing or legal fees — and the blocked and proposed fees would sit on top of that.

That $3,595 is the $215 registration, $780 I-129 fee, $1,500 ACWIA fee, $500 fraud fee and $600 Asylum Program Fee. Premium processing adds $2,965. Use the calculator for your situation.

What the H-1B Fees Mean for F-1 Students

F-1 students changing to H-1B inside the U.S. were exempt from the $100,000 payment, but would be covered by the $103,265 fee if it is finalized as proposed.

• The $100,000 payment: did not apply to an F-1 to H-1B change of status that USCIS approved. It could apply if USCIS denied the change of status and the student had to get a visa abroad.
• The $103,265 proposal: covers all cap-subject petitions, including change of status. Your employer would pay it, not you.
• The lottery: your offered wage level sets your entries. Many first jobs are Level I, which means one entry.
• Cap-gap: if you are selected and your employer files on time, cap-gap rules can extend your F-1 status and OPT work authorization while the petition is pending — under current rules, up to April 1 of the fiscal year. Confirm your own dates with your DSO.

Cap-exempt employers — universities and related nonprofits — remain outside both the lottery and the proposed fee. See the next section.

Talk to your international student office before you travel. Leaving the U.S. while a change of status is pending can change how your case is processed.

Cap-Exempt H-1B Employers

Cap-exempt employers skip the lottery and would be outside the proposed $103,265 fee — but being a nonprofit is not enough to qualify.

Cap-exempt employers generally include:

• U.S. institutions of higher education.
• Nonprofits related to or affiliated with those institutions.
• Nonprofit research organizations and government research organizations.

A charity, hospital or nonprofit school that doesn’t fit those categories is cap-subject. It enters the lottery and would pay the $103,265 fee if finalized. It may still get lower standard fees: the $460 I-129 rate and a $0 Asylum Program Fee.

Cap-exempt status did not exempt an employer from the $100,000 payment when hiring from abroad. Confirm your status with counsel; it depends on your organization’s structure and affiliations.

H-1B Workers Already in the U.S.

If you are already in H-1B status, neither the $100,000 payment nor the $103,265 proposal reaches an extension, amendment or transfer granted inside the U.S.

• Extensions and transfers: not cap-subject, so outside the $103,265 proposal. One exception to check: moving from a cap-exempt employer to a cap-subject one can make the petition cap-subject.
• The $4,000 fee: since September 9, 2026, covered employers (50+ U.S. employees, more than half in H-1B or L status) pay it on extensions too, including same-employer extensions.
• Travel: holders of a valid H-1B visa were not subject to the $100,000 payment when re-entering.
• Program reviews: a September 18, 2026 executive order directs agencies to coordinate H-1B reviews and consider employer layoffs. Watch for implementing guidance.

What employers can’t charge you

Under Department of Labor rules (20 CFR 655.731), the employer may not pass the ACWIA fee to you in any form. Deductions for the employer’s business expenses — which include the costs of preparing and filing the petition — can’t reduce your pay below the required wage.

Premium processing is treated differently in some situations. Ask your employer in writing who is paying for what.

New to the U.S. on an H-1B? Our guide to building U.S. credit as an immigrant covers your first months.

Paid the $100,000? The H-1B Refund Question

No refund mechanism has been announced for employers who paid the $100,000, and the court rulings so far haven’t resolved whether refunds are owed.

At a February 26, 2026 court hearing, a Justice Department attorney said about 70 employers had paid it — so the question affects a small group, but large sums.

Keep:

• The pay.gov confirmation and the bank record of the payment.
• The petition copy, receipt notice and approval or denial notice.
• Any request for evidence or USCIS correspondence about the payment.
• Evidence of where the worker was when you filed.
• Internal approvals and dates, in case a claims process opens.

Talk to immigration counsel about whether and how to pursue a refund. Be cautious of anyone offering a guaranteed refund for a fee.

What Happens Next With the H-1B Fees

Several separate decisions are pending, and any one of them could change the status of a fee. We describe the scenarios; we don’t predict outcomes.

• First Circuit merits decision (State of California v. Mullin): briefing was expected to end October 16, 2026. No decision date is set. A ruling for the government could restore collection; a ruling against it would keep the payment blocked.
• Ninth Circuit stay request (Global Nurse Force): even if granted, the Massachusetts judgment separately sets aside the same policies, so a Ninth Circuit stay alone would not restart collection.
• D.C. Circuit (Chamber of Commerce v. DHS): decides whether the 2025 ruling upholding the payment stands.
• Supreme Court: the government could ask it to pause the lower-court orders. If it did and a stay were granted, collection could resume quickly.
• DHS final rule on the $103,265 fee: needed before that fee can take effect, with an effective date. A final rule could also be challenged in court.
• Proclamation 11069: runs through September 21, 2027 unless changed.
• FY2028 registration: expected March 2027; USCIS will announce dates.
• Labor Department wage rule: DOL proposed higher prevailing wage levels on March 27, 2026 (91 FR 15454). If finalized, the pay that maps to each lottery level could change.

H-1B Checklists Before the March 2027 Registration

For employers

• Confirm whether you’re cap-subject or cap-exempt.
• Set the offered wage and know which OEWS wage level it maps to.
• Budget for IN EFFECT fees; plan scenarios for BLOCKED and PROPOSED ones.
• Check whether the $4,000 fee now applies to your extensions.
• Watch for USCIS’s FY2028 registration announcement.
• If you paid the $100,000, keep receipts, the petition record and correspondence.
• Talk to immigration counsel about timing.

For F-1 students

• Know your OPT or STEM OPT end dates and how cap-gap applies.
• Ask your employer early about sponsorship and the proposed fee.
• Understand that your lottery entries depend on the offered wage level.
• Keep your status documents current.
• Talk to your DSO before any travel.

Sources

• USCIS — H-1B Specialty Occupations (current payment status and guidance)
• USCIS — Form G-1055 fee schedule
• Federal Register — Fee for Certain H-1B Petitions, NPRM, 91 FR 54817 (Aug 25, 2026)
• Federal Register — Weighted Selection Process for Registrants and Petitioners Seeking To File Cap-Subject H-1B Petitions, final rule (Dec 29, 2025)
• Proclamation 10973, 90 FR 46027 (Sept 2025); Proclamation 11069, 91 FR 60497 (Sept 23, 2026)
• Federal Register — 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee for H-1B and L-1 Visas, final rule, 91 FR 51360 (Aug 10, 2026)
• AILA — First Circuit denies stay in State of California v. Mullin (Doc. No. 26072806)
• Ninth Circuit docket — Global Nurse Force v. Trump, No. 26-6667
• U.S. Chamber — Chamber of Commerce v. DHS case page
• eCFR — 20 CFR 655.731 (wage and deduction rules)

Last updated: October 26, 2026. We re-verify this page weekly while the appeals and the DHS rule are pending.

This article is general information, not legal advice. Immigration rules and court orders change frequently; the statuses on this page were verified on October 26, 2026. AdvoraHQ is not a law firm and does not recommend any employer, law firm or staffing company. Talk to a qualified immigration attorney or your international student office (DSO) about your situation before you act.