Ema Alice: A federal judge on Tuesday ruled in favor of the Trump administration, upholding its $100,000 H-1B visa fee.
U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell rejected a challenge filed by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Association of American Universities, which alleged the move was unlawful. Earlier this month, 18 Democratic states also filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration over the H-1B visa application fee. However, the groups have the right to appeal.
The ruling comes after months of immigration reform under President Trump and is likely to impact technology companies, known for using H-1B visas to hire foreign skilled workers.
The change coincides with other adjustments to the visa program, which include the replacement of the random lottery for H-1B visa applicants.
Instead, officials plan to prioritize the allocation of visas to higher-skilled and higher-paid foreign workers, according to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).
“The existing random selection process of H-1B registrations was exploited and abused by U.S. employers who were primarily seeking to import foreign workers at lower wages than they would pay American workers,” said U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services spokesman Matthew Tragesser said in a Tuesday statement.
“The new weighted selection will better serve Congress’ intent for the H-1B program and strengthen America’s competitiveness by incentivizing American employers to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers,” he added.
Currently, the United States admits 65,000 individuals under the H-1B visa, with an additional 20,000 for U.S. advanced degree holders, per DHS.
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BP/SM
