The United States of America has imposed a fee of $100,000 (about N150m) on the H-1B visa category, effective immediately.
The same amount will be paid every year to renew the visa else it will be revoked and the visa holders deported.
Until now, the total cost of the visa was $1,500 (about N2.3m).
US President Donald Trump signed an executive order that made this law on Friday, September 19, 2025. It goes into action on Monday, September 21, 2025.
The implication is that those holding that type of visa who are outside the US either on vacation or on assignment will not be able to enter the US as from Monday, unless their companies or they pay the new fee.
The visa category is usually sponsored by companies in the US which have a need for highly skilled workers.
They are expected to foot the bill for the visa on behalf of their foreign staff, or the visa holder can pay at the port of entry.
It is however not clear if any company will be able to shell out the hefty sum for only one staff.
According to information available on White House website, the prohibitive fee was introduced to curb the abuse of the visa category.
The US government alleged that many companies are replacing American workers with foreign talent who will then be paid less.
The White House said the visa category had been “deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labour”.
The H-1B visa category is a mainstay for tech firms and startups seeking highly educated foreign talent.
Experts are now expressing doubts about the due diligence that went into the process of arriving at the new fee.
They argue that the policy could severely undercut US competitiveness in the global economy, especially in the tech sector.
