Skilled tech professionals, especially from India, are bearing the brunt of President Donald Trump’s September 2025 $100,000 one-time fee on certain new H-1B visa petitions. Mid-sized firms and consultancies have rescinded job offers, delayed start dates, or halted international hiring altogether rather than pay the steep surcharge. But the biggest victim isn’t the tech world, it’s the policy itself, and by extension, the “America First” agenda it championed. Fresh USCIS data filed in an ongoing court case proves the fee has backfired financially.