H-1B visa doctors: The White House on Monday indicated that doctors could be exempt from the Trump administration’s proposed $100,000 fee for high-skilled H-1B visa applications. The announcement comes amid growing concern that the fee could disrupt the pipeline of international medical graduates.
Potential Exemptions for Physicians and Medical Residents
“The Proclamation allows for potential exemptions, which can include physicians and medical residents,” White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said in an email to Bloomberg News. Doctors have expressed alarm that the fee could severely limit the number of skilled professionals entering the U.S. healthcare system.
The order released a few days ago stated, “The restriction imposed pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) of this section shall not apply to any individual alien, all aliens working for a company, or all aliens working in an industry, if the Secretary of Homeland Security determines, in the Secretary’s discretion, that the hiring of such aliens to be employed as H-1B specialty occupation workers is in the national interest and does not pose a threat to the security or welfare of the United States.”
Tech Industry Braces for Impact
The Trump administration announced last Friday that companies would be required to pay $100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas. Big tech firms warned that the fee could drive skilled workers to leave the U.S. or deter them from coming altogether, potentially affecting companies heavily reliant on talent from India and China.
“If you’re going to train somebody, you’re going to train one of the recent graduates from one of the great universities across our land,” said Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. “Train Americans. Stop bringing in people to take our jobs.”
Since taking office in January, President Trump has pursued a broad immigration crackdown, including limits on some forms of legal immigration. The proposed changes to the H-1B visa program are seen as his most high-profile effort to reshape temporary employment visas.