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Challenging the H-1B Fee
A coalition of labor unions, health care providers, schools, and religious organizations filed suit today (October 3) to stop President Trump’s latest anti-immigration power grab: a sweeping executive action that slaps an unlawful new $100,000 price tag on every new H-1B application. The proclamation – issued on September 19, 2025, and made effective just 36 hours later – has already thrown employers, workers, and federal agencies into chaos.
Plaintiffs are represented by Democracy Forward, Justice Action Center, South Asian American Justice Collaborative (SAAJCO), Kuck Baxter LLC, Joseph & Hall, P.C., and IMMpact Litigation.
“South Asians make up the majority of H-1B workers and are part of the fabric of America, staffing rural hospitals, advancing lifesaving research, and driving innovation in businesses across the country. This unlawful fee threatens workers, their families, and the financial and social wellbeing of the communities in which they live,” said Kalpana V. Peddibhotla, Executive Director of the South Asian American Justice Collaborative.
The Plaintiffs
The H-1B visa program was created by Congress to provide a critical path for the United States to attract highly skilled professionals from around the world to fill urgent needs in the economy and public services to strengthen American innovation. Under the program, U.S. employers can hire qualified foreign talent — such as doctors, nurses, engineers, teachers, and researchers — after a rigorous review process.
The lawsuit, Global Nurse Force et al v. Trump et al., filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, challenges the order as unconstitutional and unlawful under the Administrative Procedure Act.
Plaintiffs include Global Nurse Force; Global Village Academy Collaborative; Society of the Divine Word; the Fathers of St. Charles; Church on the Hill; International Union; United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America (UAW International); UAW Local 4811; American Association of University Professors (AAUP); Committee of Interns and Residents, SEIU (CIR), a citizen of the United Kingdom residing in the Appalachia region, and a citizen of India residing in the Northern District of California.
These plaintiffs represent medical residents, fellows, interns, and nurses serving rural and medically underserved communities, a public charter school network that relies on specialized H-1B teachers to serve their students, religious organizations that depend on the H-1B program to hire pastors and religious professionals that minister to underserved communities, and a healthcare staffing company that helps U.S. health systems hire qualified international nurses, and major labor unions representing tens of thousands of graduate researchers, postdocs, professors, physicians, and individual highly skilled workers whose careers and lives were upended overnight.
In an exclusive conversation with India Currents, Kalpana Peddibhotla said the coalition came together “because the H-1B program is woven into the fabric of the American economy, bringing in global talent to fill essential roles that keep our communities strong.”
An unlawful proclamation
The statement added that when the government makes it prohibitively expensive or impossible for these professionals to come to America, or for current H-1B workers to transition to a more permanent status, entire communities lose — patients wait longer for care, students have fewer teachers, and local economies miss out on the innovation and jobs these experts create.
The complaint argues that the sudden $100,000 demand is unlawful and would harm the economy and communities nationwide. Specifically, it:
Defies Congress: The H-1B program has a carefully crafted fee and oversight system set by law. The President cannot rewrite it overnight or levy new taxes by proclamation.
Invites chaos and favoritism: The order offers a vague “national interest” loophole with no clear standards for fee exemptions, opening the door to arbitrary, pay-to-play decisions.
Hurts communities nationwide: Rural hospitals warn they will be unable to keep needed doctors and nurses; schools say the unlawful fee is more than many teacher salaries; and nonprofit organizations and research institutions can’t absorb the significant expense. All will lose if they cannot utilize H-1B workers.
Undermines the economy: Economists agree that H-1B workers create U.S. jobs and drive new industries. Forcing talent away means companies move operations—and good jobs—overseas. Without relief, hospitals will lose medical staff, churches will lose pastors, classrooms will lose teachers, and industries across the country risk losing key innovators.
The suit requests that the court immediately block the order and restore predictability for employers and workers.
A short-sighted policy
“Trump’s restrictions on H-1B visa applications will lead to less lifesaving research, reduced innovation, and diminished competitiveness, said Todd Wolfson, president of the American Association of University Professors. “By discouraging the best and brightest minds from around the world—individuals who have enriched American higher education for decades—he’s sending a message: ‘You’re not welcome here. Go elsewhere.’ This short-sighted policy doesn’t just hurt universities — it hurts every American by slowing research breakthroughs, weakening our economy, and putting our global leadership at risk.”
“Resident physicians with H-1B visas are highly skilled professionals who provide high-quality and compassionate care to patients throughout the United States. They are part of the very backbone of our healthcare system. The unconscionable fee for H-1B petitions called for in the President’s proclamation will have a devastating impact on our patients and their communities by reducing the number of resident physicians available to provide care at a time our country is already facing a serious shortage of physicians,” said Dr. Taylor Walker, CIR/SEIU President.
“This isn’t about helping American workers; it’s about shutting the door on American innovation and essential work and opening the door to corruption,” said Skye Perryman, President and CEO of Democracy Forward. “H-1B workers keep rural hospitals staffed, bring STEM education to schools with teacher shortages, advance lifesaving medical research, keep our tech sector competitive, and help small businesses thrive. President Trump cannot impose a six-figure immigration ransom by fiat. This exorbitant fee invites corruption and is unlawful, destabilizing, and bad for everyone — that’s why we’ve joined this powerful coalition to challenge it in court.”
What happens next
Filing this lawsuit is the first step, said Peddibhotla. “We are asking the court to declare the Proclamation unlawful, block the government from enforcing the $100,000 fee, and require agencies to continue processing H-1B petitions under the law that Congress put in place. The case will now move forward in federal court.”