Now Reading: US weighs added $4,000-$4,500 fee for H-1B, L-1 extensions
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US weighs added $4,000-$4,500 fee for H-1B, L-1 extensions
The US Department of Homeland Security has proposed extending its 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee to cover H-1B and L-1 visa extension petitions, Livemint reported. If finalised, employers would pay an…
The US Department of Homeland Security has proposed extending its 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee to cover H-1B and L-1 visa extension petitions, Livemint reported. If finalised, employers would pay an additional $4,000 for each H-1B extension and $4,500 for each L-1 extension, on top of existing filing fees. The charge would apply only to employers with 50 or more US employees where more than half the workforce holds H-1B or L-1 status, DHS says the added revenue would fund expansion of biometric entry and exit systems at US ports, including a comprehensive exit system mandated by Congress. The proposal was first published in the Federal Register in June 2024 and now appears in the Trump administration's 2026 Unified Regulatory Agenda as a pending final rule, though it has not yet taken effect, employers continue under the current fee structure until DHS issues a final rule with an effective date. If approved, it would apply to petitions filed through 30 September 2027.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The rule remains in the federal rulemaking process rather than a final regulation, and Livemint's account is explicit that current fees stay unchanged until DHS acts. The employer threshold, 50 or more US staff with over half in H-1B or L-1 status, means the fee would not touch every company that sponsors these visas, a distinction the report itself makes. DHS's stated justification, funding biometric screening infrastructure, is the department's own framing and is reported without independent scrutiny here. Watch for DHS to issue the final rule and specify its effective date.
Source: www.livemint.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
