A US federal court has ruled against the Trump administration’s US$100 000 (R1,6 million) fee for new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers.
The court concluded that the administration exceeded its authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act, which governs how federal agencies develop and issue regulations.
H-1B visas are meant for high-skilled jobs that are difficult to find American workers to fill. The case argued that the fee hike would make it more difficult to use the H-1B programme to fill critical shortages of doctors and teachers.
Last year, US President Donald Trump announced that employers sponsoring H-1B visas would have to pay an additional $100 000 per applicant before workers could enter the US. This decision was challenged by a coalition of unions, employers and religious groups, which filed a lawsuit to block the new order.
