Overview

• Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said employers will owe $100,000 per H-1B worker each year, arguing the price forces companies to hire and train Americans instead of bringing in junior foreign staff.
• The change targets a visa stream heavily used by tech firms, with government data showing more than 10,000 H-1B approvals for Amazon and over 5,000 each for Microsoft and Meta in the first half of 2025, many from India and China.
• The 'Trump Gold Card' is priced at $1 million for individuals and $2 million per employee for corporate sponsorship, with an initial 80,000 cards and rights akin to a green card that could lead to citizenship, and officials tout more than $100 billion in potential revenue.
• A proposed 'Platinum' option would cost $5 million, allow up to 270 days a year in the U.S. without U.S. tax on foreign income, offer no path to citizenship, and require congressional approval, with officials citing roughly $1 trillion in projected revenue.
• The administration says exceptions to the new H-1B fee may be granted in the national interest, while specifics on implementation and the durability of the measures under likely legal scrutiny remain open.