Trump’s H-1B Fee Hike Hits Top US Firms As Cognizant, Walmart Scale Back Sponsorships: Report

Last Updated:October 25, 2025, 18:01 IST

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month imposing a new $100,000 fee for H-1B visa petitions, sending shockwaves through global tech hubs.

Trump's $100,000 fee on H-1B visas has caused companies to pause sponsorship on such visas. (Image: Representative)

Several top US employers have paused or scaled back their sponsorship of H-1B visas after the Donald Trump administration imposed a $100,000 fee for new applicants in a move towards preventing abuse of the system to bring in cheap labour and protect American workers.

US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month that sent shockwaves through global tech hubs: a new $100,000 fee for H-1B visa petitions, effective October 6. The move, targeting the programme that brings skilled workers – 70% of them Indian – to US shores, aims to prioritise American jobs.

The rise in H-1B fee is also being challenged by unions, employers, and religious groups in a California federal court. The new rules had sparked panic and concern among prospective Indian workers, who are worried that their ambitions of gaining employment in America will face severe setbacks.

Which Firms Are No Longer Sponsoring H-1Bs?

Despite the new fee hike, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang told his staff that the company will continue to sponsor H-1B visas and cover all associated costs, according to Business Insider. “he miracle of Nvidia — built by all of you, and by brilliant colleagues around the world — would not be possible without immigration," he said in a memo.

However, several businesses have paused or scaled back hirings that rely on H-1B sponsorship. Cognizant, an IT company founded in India, said it would “only consider applicants for this position who are legally authorised to work in the United States without the need of employer sponsorship" in a job listing for a South Carolina-based software engineering role on October 14, reported Newsweek.

Intuitive Surgical, a California-based med-tech firm, also stopped offering sponsorship to applicants requiring an H-1B visa from late September. based on notices attached to more than 100 job listings on its website and covering a range of roles. “Due to the uncertainty caused by the recent U.S. executive proclamation, we are temporarily pausing offers to candidates who require H-1B visa sponsorship," the listings said.

Tata Consultancy Services, which is one of the largest sponsors of H-1B visas in the United States, has said it will no longer be hiring applicants through the program. CEO K Krithivasan told the Times of India that the company had a sufficient number of H-1B entrants and would be focused on hiring local talent.

Walmart, one of the top retail corporations in America that employs an estimated 2,400 H-1B holders, has paused hiring candidates who require the visas, according to Bloomberg. A Walmart spokesperson said that it remains “committed to hiring and investing in the best talent to serve our customers, while remaining thoughtful about our H-1B hiring approach."

Why This Matters?

The Chamber of Commerce, a pro-business lobbying group, has warned that the steep fee hike of H-1B visas would be “cost-prohibitive for US employers, especially start-ups and small and midsize businesses."

“The new $100,000 visa fee will make it cost-prohibitive for US employers, especially start-ups and small and midsize businesses, to utilise the H-1B programme, which was created by Congress expressly to ensure that American businesses of all sizes can access the global talent they need to grow their operations here in the US," said Neil Bradley, executive vice president and chief policy officer at the US Chamber of Commerce.

The H-1B visa, introduced under the Immigration Act of 1990, has historically allowed US companies to hire skilled foreign workers in specialised fields where domestic talent is insufficient. Currently, 65,000 H-1B visas are issued annually, with an additional 20,000 set aside for individuals holding a US master’s degree or higher.

Indians have traditionally been the largest beneficiaries of the program, accounting for roughly 75% of all H-1B visas in 2023, with professionals employed across global tech giants including Google, Microsoft, and Amazon.

Aveek Banerjee

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master's in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international...Read More

Aveek Banerjee is a Senior Sub Editor at News18. Based in Noida with a Master's in Global Studies, Aveek has more than three years of experience in digital media and news curation, specialising in international...

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