A recent US Supreme Court decision striking down President Donald Trump’s global tariffs has strengthened legal challenges against a $100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications, according to filings by business groups.
Bloomberg reported that challengers, including the US Chamber of Commerce, say the ruling supports their argument that the president cannot impose revenue-raising measures without approval from Congress.
The court’s 6-3 decision said that the US Constitution gives taxation powers to Congress, not the executive branch. This means a president must rely on clear statutory authority when adopting measures that raise revenue, even in matters involving foreign affairs.
“Like the challenged tariffs, the $100,000 fee plainly is an exercise of Congress’s taxing power,” wrote Adam G. Unikowsky, a partner at Jenner & Block LLP, which represents the Chamber, in a letter to the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.
The appeals court is currently reviewing a lower court decision that denied an injunction against the fee. The White House imposed the fee through a presidential proclamation in September 2025.
Legal fight over the H-1B fee
The $100,000 H-1B fee marked the most important escalation in a series of steps taken by the Trump administration to restrict employment-based immigration programs. The measure disrupted hiring plans for US employers and triggered multiple lawsuits.
The US Chamber of Commerce argues that the fee conflicts with the legal framework governing the H-1B program. According to the group, Congress intended visa fees only to cover administrative costs, not to raise revenue.
Bloomberg reported that the Chamber said the Supreme Court’s February 20 ruling in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump supports reversing the lower court decision. The high court also found that the executive branch’s regulatory authority does not include the power to impose taxes.
Plaintiffs in a separate lawsuit in California said the ruling is relevant in determining whether the president can rely on the Immigration and Nationality Act to impose what they describe as a tax on US employers. They also argued that the “major questions doctrine” requires clear congressional authorisation for a payment as large as $100,000.
The case before the appeals court is Chamber of Commerce v. DHS, No. 25-05473. The government is represented by the Department of Justice.
Trump’s order introduced $100,000 visa fee
In September 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive action imposing a $100,000 application fee for H-1B visas. The administration said the measure was aimed at reducing overuse of the visa program and encouraging companies to hire American workers.
“We need great workers, and this pretty much ensures that that’s what’s going to happen,” Trump said from the Oval Office.
Officials said the proclamation would restrict entry under the program unless the fee is paid. The administration described the measure as a way to ensure that only highly skilled foreign workers are hired when US workers are unavailable.
H-1B filings rose but approvals fell
H-1B visa filings increased in fiscal year 2025 but approvals dropped sharply. According to the H-1B annual report submitted to Congress, total petitions rose to 456,725 in FY2025 from 427,091 in FY2024, a 7% increase and the highest level since FY2022, when 474,301 petitions were filed. Petitions had earlier fallen to 386,584 in FY2023.Approvals declined to 328,185 in FY2025, the lowest level in five years and a 17.8% drop from 399,402 in FY2024.
The decline was especially sharp in the first quarter of the fiscal year. Approvals between October and December 2024 fell 45% to 47,821, compared with 87,018 in the same period a year earlier.