Satish, a graduate student from India studying in San Francisco, thought this fall would be about finishing his business degree and then lining up an H-1B visa, the work permit that’s become a mainstay for skilled immigrants in the United States.

Instead, he’s worried about his ability to build a career in the United States as he tries to make sense of the Trump administration’s plan to raise the H-1B application fee to $100,000.

“When someone moves here, they move with the motive of working hard and building something better,” said Satish, who like many interviewed asked that their full names be withheld, saying they feared drawing attention to their visa status or complicating their future plans. “With everything that’s going on no one is willing to speak a thing. They’re scared of the

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