The Department of Homeland Security has proposed charging $103,265 at filing for every H-1B cap-subject petition. The proposed rule, titled “Fee for Certain H-1B Petitions,” was released for public inspection on Aug. 24, 2026 and published in the Federal Register on Aug. 25, 2026. Written comments are due on or before Sept. 24, 2026.
The number is not a typo and it is not a replacement for existing costs. The fee would be added to the USCIS fee schedule as a new charge payable in addition to all other applicable fees and payments — the base I-129 filing fee, the ACWIA training fee, the fraud prevention and detection fee, premium processing if elected, and attorney costs all remain on top of it. DHS estimates the fee would generate roughly $8.8 billion annually, based on an assumption of about 85,000 fee-paying petitions per year.
Critically, the fee reaches the advanced degree exemption. The proposal applies to all H-1B petitions subject to the annual numerical cap, explicitly including petitions filed under the 20,000-visa master’s cap for holders of U.S. master’s degrees or higher. That removes what has historically been the cheapest and statistically most favorable path into H-1B status for graduates of U.S. universities. Cap-exempt petitions are carved out: institutions of higher education, their affiliated nonprofits, and nonprofit or governmental research organizations would not pay the fee, which means universities, teaching hospitals and research institutes could continue filing at current cost while private employers could not.
The practical effect, if finalized as written, would be to price small and mid-sized employers out of the H-1B cap entirely. A $103,265 charge is a rounding error for a large technology company filing hundreds of petitions and a prohibitive expense for a startup, a regional engineering firm, or a small clinic filing one. It would also change the arithmetic of the March registration lottery itself, since employers would be committing to a six-figure obligation before knowing whether a selection converts into an approval.
One caution belongs at the front of any planning conversation: this is a proposed rule, not a final one. It is not in effect, and no one should assume it will be adopted in its current form. Proposed fee rules of this magnitude routinely draw heavy comment and frequently face litigation. Employers and prospective beneficiaries who would be affected have a concrete action available — the comment period runs through Sept. 24, 2026, and comments filed in the Federal Register docket are part of the record the agency must address.
For foreign nationals weighing their long-term options, the proposal is also a reminder that the employment-based green card categories that do not depend on employer sponsorship — the EB-2 National Interest Waiver in particular, along with EB-1A — carry no equivalent exposure to H-1B cap economics.
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