Overview

• The president signed an order setting a $100,000 per‑year charge on employers for each H‑1B skilled‑worker visa, with collection mechanics not yet detailed.
• Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the price is intended to make importing and training inexperienced workers uneconomic so companies opt to hire Americans.
• The program is heavily used in tech, with more than 10,000 H‑1B approvals for Amazon in the first half of 2025 and over 5,000 each for Microsoft and Meta.
• One news outlet estimated Amazon’s exposure at roughly $1 billion under the new fee, underscoring the potential cost to major employers.
• Trump also signed the Trump Gold Card for residency at $1 million and promoted a proposed Platinum option offering up to 270 days’ stay for $5 million with no U.S. tax on foreign income, which officials say would require congressional approval.