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Setback for Trump’s H-1B plan? Lawsuit filed in San Francisco challenges $100,000 visa fee
The lawsuit, the first major challenge to Trump's H-1B visa plan, was filed in a federal court in San Francisco on Friday.
A group of unions, higher education professionals and a staffing agency, among others, have sued the Donald Trump administration over its decision to charge a $100,000 fee for H-1B visas that allowed skilled foreign workers to work in the US.
The lawsuit, the first major challenge to Trump's H-1B visa plan, was filed in a federal court in San Francisco on Friday. The plaintiffs include the Justice Action Center, the Democracy Forward Foundation and South Asian American Justice Collaborative, the New York Times reported.
Also Read: Impact of $100,000 H1-B visa fee on Indians: How Trump's move shatters dreams
Trump had signed a proclamation last month requiring the $100,000 fee payment for a new H-1B visa application. The White House had argued of an "abuse" of the visa programme and said it historically hurt domestic workers, adding that the new fee will help discourage companies to hire foreign workers to replace Americans.
The move is set to affect Indian nationals, who make up around 70% of these visa holders. There are currently around 3 lakh high-skilled Indian workers on H-1B visas in the US.
What does the lawsuit say?
The lawsuit has claimed that Trump's move is unlawful and alleged that he changed the H-1B programme, forcing employers to either “pay to play” or seek a “national interest” exemption, which “opens the door to selective enforcement and corruption", according to Bloomberg.
It argued that the change in visa program was unlawful because the president had no authority to unilaterally impose taxes as the power lies with the Congress.
Also Read: 'No new H-1B unless...': How US govt shutdown will impact Indians, hitting visa
“Most fundamentally, the president has no authority to unilaterally impose fees, taxes or other mechanisms to generate revenue for the United States, nor to dictate how those funds are spent,” the lawsuit read.
“The Constitution assigns the ‘power of the purse’ to Congress, as one of its most fundamental premises. Here, the president disregarded those limitations, asserted power he does not have, and displaced a complex, Congressionally specified system for evaluating petitions and granting H-1B visas," it further said.
What changes came with the new order?
The suit comes after Trump signed an executive order imposing a $100,000 fee for applicants to the H-1B visa programme, which led to confusion and chaos with many leading companies issuing advisories urging those outside the US to rush back.
The new programme is set to affect technology sector companies like Amazon, Microsoft, Meta and Apple, which employ thousands of H-1B visa holders.
Several other sectors like healthcare and higher education also hire lecturers, doctors and research staff.
The US awards 85,000 H-1B visas every year by a lottery system, with Indians accounting for 70 per cent of these visa holders. Moreover, the visa fee in most H-1B cases was $215, with an additional $750 charge. Now, the $100,000 payment would be in addition to the existing fees.
