A federal judge on Monday voided President Donald Trump’s requirement of a $100,000 application fee for H-1B visas, ruling that he lacked authority to impose the new policy for a program used by companies to hire highly skilled foreign workers in specialized fields.
US District Judge Leo Sorokin said that only Congress had the power to change federal immigration policy to include such a requirement, which he viewed as a tax, and that lawmakers had not given the executive branch permission to unilaterally make the change.
“The President had no power or delegated authority to impose a tax on H-1B petitions,” Sorokin, an appointee of former President Barack Obama based on Boston, wrote in a 42-page decision striking down the policy.
The case was brought by a coalition of Democratic state attorneys general in December, several months after Trump imposed the $100,000 requirement in an effort to rein in the program, which he said was being overused.
H-1B visas allow foreign professionals to seek work in professions that are considered to be more specialized. Applicants must hold a bachelor’s degree or a similar equivalent.
