WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump is set to sign a proclamation imposing a $100,000 application fee for H-1B visa applications. This change is part of a broader review of the program for highly skilled foreign workers, which has faced criticism from the administration. A White House official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, indicated that the signing could occur as soon as Friday.

H-1B visas are designed to attract top foreign talent for high-skilled jobs that U.S. tech companies struggle to fill with qualified American workers. However, critics argue that the program has become a means for companies to hire overseas workers willing to accept lower salaries, often around $60,000 annually, compared to the $100,000-plus salaries typically offered to U.S. technology employees.

The H-1B program was established in 1990 to facilitate the employment of individuals with at least a bachelor’s degree in fields where there is a shortage of qualified U.S. workers, particularly in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Critics contend that the program allows companies to pay lower wages and offers fewer labor protections.

Historically, the program allocates 85,000 visas annually through a lottery system. In the current year, Amazon emerged as the leading recipient, securing over 10,000 H-1B visas, followed by Tata Consultancy, Microsoft, Apple, and Google. California has the highest concentration of H-1B workers, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

Concerns have been raised that many H-1B visas are awarded for entry-level positions rather than senior roles that require specialized skills. Critics argue that companies can circumvent wage protections by classifying jobs at lower skill levels, even when the hired workers possess significant experience.

This has led many U.S. companies to outsource basic tasks, such as help desk support and programming, to consulting firms like Wipro, Infosys, HCL Technologies, and Tata in India, as well as IBM and Cognizant in the U.S. These firms often employ foreign workers and contract them to U.S. companies seeking cost savings.

Doug Rand, a former director of USCIS during the Biden administration, described the situation as a “split personality disorder” for the H-1B program. He noted that only about half of the visas are allocated to traditional companies that provide long-term employment and pathways to citizenship. The other half often go to staffing or consulting firms, some of which are small operations that rely heavily on the H-1B program.

“They’re basically entering the lottery so they can hire people that they then rent out to other larger companies doing actual work,” Rand said. “And so there’s a lot of misbehavior and chicanery in this part of the system.”

In 2024, the number of lottery bids for H-1B visas dropped nearly 40%. Authorities attributed this decline to efforts to combat individuals who were “gaming the system” by submitting multiple questionable applications to enhance their chances of selection. Major tech companies have called for reforms after a surge in bids reduced the likelihood of their employees and potential hires winning the lottery.

In response to concerns about fraud and abuse, USCIS announced that each applicant would only have one chance in the lottery, regardless of the number of job offers they received. While critics welcomed this change, they argue that further reforms are necessary. The AFL-CIO stated last year that while the lottery changes were a step in the right direction, they did not go far enough. The labor group advocates for visas to be awarded based on the highest wages rather than through a random lottery, a reform that Trump had previously sought during his first term.