President Donald Trump on Sept. 18, 2026 signed a new proclamation extending the $100,000 H-1B fee restriction for another 12 months. The extension runs until 12 a.m. eastern daylight time on Sept. 21, 2027. The proclamation keeps in place the same $100,000 payment requirement introduced by Proclamation 10973 on Sept. 19, 2025.The fee is still blocked in federal court. But the administration is extending the legal framework that requires it. What the original 2025 proclamation did Proclamation 10973, signed Sept. 19, 2025, required that new H-1B petitions filed for workers outside the United States be accompanied by a $100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility. The fee applied to consular-processed petitions, covering workers who were abroad and needed a visa stamp to enter the country. Workers already in the United States changing status or extending were generally not subject to it. The proclamation took effect Sept. 21, 2025 and was set to expire after 12 months, making Sept. 20, 2026 the original end date. What the courts did The $100,000 fee faced immediate legal challenges. On June 8, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts vacated the guidance implementing the fee, ruling it unlawful. The government appealed. On July 24, 2026, the First Circuit denied the government’s motion to stay that ruling. A separate challenge from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is also pending in federal court. The fee has been blocked from being collected since the June 8 ruling. Despite that, the administration chose to extend the proclamation rather than let it expire. What the proclamation says the fee accomplished The Sept. 18, 2026 proclamation includes a detailed findings section presenting data the administration says demonstrates the 2025 proclamation was effective. These figures come directly from the proclamation text and reflect the administration’s characterization of the program’s outcomes. The proclamation states that since the 2025 proclamation took effect, the largest IT staffing and outsourcing firms reduced their combined H-1B registrations from 24,946 to 2,055, a 92% decrease. It also states there has been a nearly 97% decrease in consular processing requests from the FY2025 to FY2027 cap seasons. On the composition of registrations, the proclamation says the share of registrations for beneficiaries with at least a U.S. master’s degree rose from 45.1% of total registrants for FY2026 to 66.1% for FY2027. Job offers at the two highest wage levels accounted for approximately 46.3% of H-1B registration selections in FY2027, while those at the lowest wage level accounted for only 17.8%. The proclamation also cites more than 700 petitions for which the $100,000 payment was actually made while the fee was in effect before the court blocked it. Why the administration is extending despite the court block The proclamation states directly that “the underlying conditions necessitating the restrictions persist.” It cites unemployment for recent college graduates at 5.7% as of June 2026, down only slightly from 5.8% in September 2025. Underemployment for recent college graduates rose from 41.8% in September 2025 to 42% as of June 2026. The administration argues that without the extension, progress would halt and program abuse would resume. Four cabinet secretaries jointly recommended the extension: the Secretary of State, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Labor, and the Secretary of Homeland Security. The legal logic of extending a blocked fee is straightforward from the administration’s perspective. The proclamation creates the framework. Courts have blocked enforcement of the payment requirement, but the underlying proclamation remains on the books. Extending it preserves the administration’s legal position during the appeal and keeps the framework active while the courts work through the challenges. What other actions the proclamation references The Sept. 18 proclamation references two other policy changes initiated under the 2025 proclamation. First, DHS published a final rule on Dec. 29, 2025, at 90 Fed. Reg. 60864, creating the wage-weighted H-1B lottery that took effect for the FY2027 cap season. That rule prioritizes higher-paid and higher-skilled workers in the selection process and remains in effect today regardless of the court’s ruling on the fee. Second, DOL published a proposed rulemaking on March 27, 2026, at 91 Fed. Reg. 15454, to revise prevailing wage levels for the H-1B program. The proclamation says DOL’s analysis found the average wage paid to H-1B workers remains well below the average wage earned by comparable American workers. That rulemaking is still pending. Who the fee applies to under the extension The structure of the fee is unchanged from the 2025 proclamation. The $100,000 payment applies to H-1B petitions for workers outside the United States who need to enter through consular processing. Workers already in the United States on H-1B status extending, amending, or transferring employers are not subject to it. Exceptions can be granted at the discretion of the Secretary of Homeland Security for individual aliens, companies, or entire industries where hiring is determined to be in the national interest and does not pose a threat to U.S. security or welfare. What this means for H-1B workers and employers For H-1B workers currently in the United States on valid status, the extension changes nothing about their situation today. The fee applies only to new petitions for workers outside the country. For employers planning to hire H-1B workers through consular processing in the coming year, the extension means the $100,000 fee framework remains in place. Whether it can actually be collected depends on the outcome of the ongoing federal court litigation. The First Circuit is reviewing the June 2026 ruling. A decision there will determine whether the fee can be enforced during the extension period. Within 30 days of the H-1B lottery that immediately follows this proclamation, the Secretaries of State, Labor, and Homeland Security and the Attorney General must jointly submit a recommendation to the President on whether a further extension beyond September 2027 is warranted. Reviewed by the H1BIQ editorial team. All figures, legal citations, and regulatory details sourced directly from the presidential proclamation published Sept. 18, 2026 on whitehouse.gov. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal or immigration advice. For official guidance, visit uscis.gov or consult a licensed immigration attorney.