After $100,000 annual fee, US plans to replace H-1B visa lottery system: What it may mean for Indian and foreign workers

US President Donald Trump recently announced the fee hike for H-1B visa program. Last week, the US government increased the H-1B visa fee to $1,00,000 from $10,000. This annual fee applies to all the fresh H-1B visa applications. Now, days after imposing the new fee, the Trump administration has introduced a new proposal which is aimed at revamping the H-1B visa program. As reported by Reuters, the new proposal of the Trump administration aims to scrap the the long‑standing lottery system and replace it with a weighted selection process that favours higher‑skilled and higher‑paid applicants.

From lottery to merit‑based selection

Presently, the H-1B program is capped at 85,000 visas annually and it uses a random lottery when the application exceed demand. Under the new rules, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposes a wage‑based ranking system, giving preference to applicants with advanced degrees, specialized skills, and higher salary offers.


As per the Reuters report, the official suggests that this change will make sure that the visas go to the “the best and brightest” while still allowing employers to hire foreign workers at all wage levels. The administration claims that it has framed the reform in order to curb the ‘abuse’ of the system done by outsourcing firms.

Impact on Indian IT professionals

The changes made to the H-1B visa system could have a critical impact on the Indian technology workers, who make up the largest share of H-1B recipients. While highly paid engineers and specialists may benefit, entry‑level workers and outsourcing companies that rely on bulk visa applications could face reduced opportunities.

Experts suggest that this new rule could reshape the global IT services market and will push the companies to expand operations in India or other regions of access to US visa becomes restricted.

Next steps and legal challenges

This new proposed rule of the Trump administration will now undergo a public comment period before it is finalised. The legal challenges are expected as the earlier attempt to reform the H-1B visa system have faced pushback in the US courts. If implemented, the reforms — combined with the new $100,000 annual fee — would mark one of the most dramatic shifts in U.S. skilled immigration policy in decades, with ripple effects across the global technology and outsourcing industries.