Late last week, the White House issued a Proclamation which added a payment requirement of $100,000 to new H-1B petitions. The Proclamation provides a narrow exception for persons whose employment is determined in the Secretary of Homeland Security’s discretion to be in the national interest of the United States. This new requirement went into effect on September 21, 2025, and expires after 12 months absent extension.
A memorandum issued by USCIS later clarified that the proclamation only applies to petitions that have not yet been filed on the effective date of the proclamation. How the proclamation is to be implemented by the relevant agencies and how extension of status and change of employer petitions will be affected is to be determined.
Federal legal challenges to this new payment requirement are anticipated.
