{"id":1301751,"date":"2025-10-25T07:10:08","date_gmt":"2025-10-25T01:40:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/?p=1301751"},"modified":"2025-10-25T07:10:39","modified_gmt":"2025-10-25T01:40:39","slug":"100000-h1b-visa-fees-this-loophole-allows-free-h1b-visa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/100000-h1b-visa-fees-this-loophole-allows-free-h1b-visa\/","title":{"rendered":"$100,000 H1B Visa Fees: This Loophole Allows Free H1B Visa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In a major clarification, the <strong>U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS)<\/strong> has confirmed that students already residing in the United States under <strong>F-1 visas<\/strong> will not be required to pay the <strong>$100,000 H-1B visa fee<\/strong> when they change their visa status. The exemption applies to individuals seeking <strong>status changes, extensions, or amendments<\/strong>, such as switching employers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"500\" src=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-04-26-at-3.17.27-PM-1024x500-1.png\" alt=\"$100,000 H1B Visa Fees: This Loophole Allows Free H1B Visa\" class=\"wp-image-1301757\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-04-26-at-3.17.27-PM-1024x500-1.png 1024w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-04-26-at-3.17.27-PM-1024x500-1-300x146.png 300w, https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Screenshot-2025-04-26-at-3.17.27-PM-1024x500-1-768x375.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The \u201cLoophole\u201d Debate<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The clarification has sparked significant discussion among immigration attorneys and <a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/world\/us\/what-is-the-massive-loophole-in-100000-h-1b-fee-that-indian-lobbies-in-us-are-celebrating\/articleshow\/124747133.cms\">Indian tech professionals.<\/a><br>Immigration lawyer <strong>Charles Kuck<\/strong> called it a <em>\u201cmassive loophole\u201d<\/em>, noting that anyone entering on a non-immigrant visa\u2014such as F-1 (students) or B-1\/B-2 (visitors)\u2014is not required to pay the hefty fee when changing status within the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Indian-origin techie <strong>Deedy Das<\/strong> echoed the sentiment, calling it <em>\u201cHUGE immigration news\u201d<\/em> and suggesting that the rule primarily targets outsourcing-heavy <strong>WITCH IT companies<\/strong> (Wipro, Infosys, TCS, Cognizant, HCL), while sparing genuine international students who studied in the U.S.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Why It\u2019s Not Actually a Loophole<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Immigration experts argue that this isn\u2019t a loophole but an intentional policy design. The <strong>$100,000 fee<\/strong> aims to discourage companies that rely heavily on importing foreign talent while promoting <strong>U.S.-educated graduates<\/strong>. This distinction encourages skilled professionals who have studied and trained in the U.S. to remain and work legally, strengthening the domestic talent pipeline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Analysts say this could <strong>reverse the ongoing trend<\/strong> of international students preferring <strong>the UK, Germany, or Ireland<\/strong> over the U.S. due to high costs and visa uncertainties.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>OPT to H-1B: What Changes<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Under the <strong>Optional Practical Training (OPT)<\/strong> program, F-1 visa holders can work for up to a year after graduation\u2014three years for STEM students. When these graduates shift to H-1B status, their employers will pay the <strong>standard visa processing fee<\/strong>, not the $100,000 surcharge, making the transition smoother and more affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In a major clarification, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed that students already residing in the United States under F-1 visas will not be required to pay the $100,000 H-1B visa fee when they change their visa status. The exemption applies to individuals seeking status changes, extensions, or amendments, such as switching [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":1301757,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[282],"class_list":["post-1301751","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-h1b-visa"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>$100,000 H1B Visa Fees: This Loophole Allows Free H1B Visa - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trak.in\/stories\/100000-h1b-visa-fees-this-loophole-allows-free-h1b-visa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"$100,000 H1B Visa Fees: This Loophole Allows Free H1B Visa - Trak.in - Indian Business of Tech, Mobile &amp; Startups\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"In a major clarification, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has confirmed that students already residing in the United States under F-1 visas will not be required to pay the $100,000 H-1B visa fee when they change their visa status. 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