The three-judge panel, made up entirely of appointees of Democratic presidents, ruled that the Trump administration had not shown it was likely to succeed on appeal in proving it did not overstep its authority in imposing the fee.
A US federal appeals court on Friday rejected the Donald Trump administration’s request to revive its controversial $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas, leaving in place a lower court ruling that struck down the charge as an unlawful tax not authorised by Congress.
The Boston-based First US Circuit Court of Appeals denied the administration’s motion to stay a June 8 ruling by US District Judge Leo T. Sorokin, who invalidated the fee in a lawsuit brought by attorneys general from 20 Democratic-led states.
“…we deny the defendants’ motion to stay pending appeal to this Court, the district court’s June 8, 2026, Memorandum and Order and accompanying Judgment,” the three-judge bench said in its order.
The appeals court ruled that the Trump administration had failed to demonstrate it was likely to succeed in arguing that it had the authority to impose the fee. The judges also agreed with the plaintiffs that “the question here is not whether Congress may delegate the authority in question. It is whether Congress has done so”.
Referring to a 1989 US Supreme Court ruling, the court said the executive branch must show that Congress had spoken “clearly” in granting it the authority to impose financial burdens, whether described as fees or taxes.
“However, the Trump administration has not explained why that clear standard isn’t required in this case,” the order said.
The court further held that the administration failed to establish that the plaintiff states would not suffer significant harm if the stay was denied.
The defendants “cursorily assert that the plaintiffs would face ‘minimal’ harm without developing that argument — if it does constitute an argument as to the plaintiffs’ lack of substantial injury — further,” the order said.
Trump announced the $100,000 fee through a presidential proclamation issued in September last year, arguing that the H-1B programme “has been deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labour.”
The H-1B visa programme allows US employers to hire foreign professionals in specialised occupations requiring technical or theoretical expertise. American technology companies rely heavily on the programme to recruit skilled workers, particularly from India and China.
The US issues 65,000 H-1B visas annually, along with an additional 20,000 visas for workers with advanced degrees. Before the proposed fee hike, employers typically paid between $2,000 and $5,000 in visa-related fees.
The $100,000 fee applied only to new H-1B visa applications and did not cover foreign nationals already in the US on student visas, who account for a large share of new H-1B recipients. Few employers have paid the fee since it was introduced.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
