Federal judge blocks Trump's $100,000 H-1B visa fees, claims it's an unlawful tax

A federal judge in Massachusetts has blocked President Trump’s $100,000 fee imposed on H-1B visas for companies trying to hire foreign workers. US District Judge Leo Sorokin ruled that the fee amounted to an unlawful tax, siding with a group of Democrat-led states that argued that the administration had exceeded its authority with the fee.

Trump signed an order in September imposing the new fee, with Trump saying at the time, "We need great workers, and this pretty much ensures that that’s what’s going to happen." The White House said the visa program was being "deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor."

A group of 20 states sued over the order, alleging that they would be impeded in their hiring of educators, which would exacerbate "existing teacher shortages" and "negatively impact their ability to staff public colleges and universities and stymie critical academic research." The states also alleged that the policy would impact the medical field, increasing staffing shortages. They alleged violations of the Administrative Procedures Act and overstepped Congress’ power to set immigration policy and taxes. 

Judge Sorokin wrote, "Here, the substance and application of the $100,000 payment reveal that it is a tax, regardless of what the payment is called." He added, "The Court finds that the Policy imposes a tax on H-1B petitions without the requisite delegation by Congress." The judge also rejected the Trump administration’s claims that the issuance of the policy amounted to an "unreviewable presidential action."

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said in a statement, "We disagree with this blatant judicial activism dismantling President Trump’s historic efforts for immigration reform. Under President Trump and Secretary Mullin, our immigration system is being reformed to serve American citizens, American workers, and American families and to preserve our national identity—not to rapidly import foreigners who take American jobs, commit crimes, burden our welfare system, and erode our cultural and social fabric."