A new $100,000 fee per H-1B worker has emerged as part of a Trump administration plan to tighten the US skilled-worker visa programme, Bloomberg Law News reports.

The reported proposal targets the H-1B programme, the main US visa route for highly skilled foreign professionals. If adopted, the fee would apply to employers seeking to sponsor workers under the programme.

What does the plan change?

According to the Bloomberg Law News report, the administration is preparing measures that would squeeze the H-1B programme by attaching a substantially higher price to each sponsorship.

The reported figure of $100,000 per worker would represent a major cost increase for US employers that rely on the programme to hire foreign talent in fields such as technology, engineering and medicine.

Details of the plan remain limited at this stage. The report does not yet confirm:

• whether the fee would apply to all H-1B petitions or only certain categories;
• when the measure would take effect;
• whether it would require new rulemaking or congressional action.

Who is affected?

The measure, as reported, would affect US employers that file H-1B petitions for foreign skilled workers, as well as prospective applicants planning to enter the annual H-1B selection process.

Companies that sponsor large numbers of H-1B workers would face the largest financial impact under a per-worker fee of this scale.

What happens next?

The plan has emerged but has not been enacted. H-1B policy changes typically proceed through federal rulemaking, which involves publication of a proposed rule, a public comment period and a final rule with an effective date.

Employers and applicants should monitor official channels for confirmation. Any binding change to H-1B fees will be announced by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) through the formal rulemaking process, not by press reports alone.

Passport File will update this story as official details become available.