Businesses that hire foreign workers under the US H-1B Visa and L-1 visa programmes will soon have to pay additional fees when those workers apply to extend their stay in the country.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has issued a new final rule that will add a $4,000 biometric screening fee to H-1B applications for extensions of stay. Companies applying for L-1 intracompany transfers will have to pay an even higher screening fee of $4,500.
The new rule will take effect on September 9, according to the Federal Register.
The proposal is particularly important for Indian professionals because Indian nationals make up the largest share of H-1B visa holders in the US.
According to USCIS data, Indians account for nearly 70% of the roughly 85,000 H-1B visas issued each year. The US also has a large number of Indian professionals waiting for permanent residency. USCIS data cited in the report says around 1 million Indians are currently stuck in the US green card backlog.
New costs for companies hiring foreign workers
The additional fees are the latest in a series of rising costs for companies that depend on foreign workers under the H-1B programme during the Trump administration.
Last year, a White House proclamation introduced a $100,000 fee for new H-1B workers being hired from outside the US. The move led to a dramatic fall in the number of employees being sponsored through the programme.
At the same time, the US Department of Labor has proposed increasing the minimum wages that employers must pay H-1B workers. That proposal could cost companies as much as $18 billion in its first year.
The latest DHS rule is expected to bring in more money through the biometric fees. DHS estimates that the payments will increase by $37.9 million in fiscal year 2026 and another $40 million in fiscal year 2027.
What is changing for H-1B and L-1 workers?
Employers already pay these fees when they first get approval for a worker’s status or when they change an employee’s employer. The new rule will expand the fee requirement to certain extension requests.
The businesses affected include companies with at least 50 employees where H-1B or L-1 workers make up at least 50% of the company’s total workforce.
The US government describes these charges as the “9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fees”.
According to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, “The 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fees for H-1B and L-1 Visas (9-11 Response Fees) are fees paid by certain employers of H-1B and L nonimmigrant workers.”
The government further said, “To implement Public Law 114-113, DHS is amending and clarifying the regulations to specify that the 9-11 Response Fees will apply to all H-1B and L-1 extension petitions in addition to all previously covered H-1B and L-1 petitions.”
What is the 9-11 response fee?
The 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee is an additional government charge that certain employers must pay when they file H-1B or L-1 visa petitions. It is separate from the regular filing fees charged by US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
The fee was introduced under Public Law 114-113 in 2015. It originally covered certain H-1B and L-1 petitions, including initial applications and some cases where workers changed employers.
The Trump administration now wants to expand it to routine extension petitions as well. The money collected through the fee is meant to support border security and biometric entry-exit programmes in the US.
What does this mean for H-1B workers?
For now, there is no immediate change for people who already hold H-1B or L-1 visas. Existing visa approvals remain valid, and the proposed extension fee has not yet been implemented.
The rule is still awaiting finalisation, with the US government’s regulatory agenda indicating that a final decision is expected in the coming weeks.
If the rule is approved, companies could face an additional $4,000 cost every time they file an eligible H-1B extension petition and $4,500 for an eligible L-1 extension.
That could make it more expensive for companies to keep foreign workers on their payroll and may influence decisions around hiring and renewing visas.
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