🇺🇸Blue States Just Took Trump to Court Over a $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee

California AG Rob Bonta, backed by 19 other states, has launched a major lawsuit against the Trump administration after it moved to hike H-1B petition fees to $100,000 — a move critics say goes far beyond what Congress ever authorized. Bonta framed it bluntly: “No presidential administration can rewrite immigration law.”

Silicon Valley rely heavily on high-skilled foreign talent, but Bonta argues the impact runs deeper: physicians, researchers, teachers, nurses, and public-sector workers could all be harder to hire — worsening existing labor shortages across multiple industries.

The Trump administration defends the move as a “commonsense” effort to protect American workers and discourage system “spamming,” while still allowing companies to bring in elite global talent. Even Trump himself has recently softened his tone, acknowledging the U.S. still needs specialized workers.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce and university groups already filed their own lawsuits. Now Bonta’s coalition is taking the fight to Massachusetts federal court.