US Expands H-1B and L-1 Fee to Extension Petitions From September 2026

The US Department of Homeland Security is expanding the 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee to certain H-1B and L-1 extension-of-stay petitions. The rule was published in the Federal Register on August 10, 2026, and is scheduled to take effect 30 days later, on September 9, 2026, if the publication schedule remains unchanged.

Under the new rule, covered US employers will pay a $4,000 fee for H-1B petitions and $4,500 for L-1 petitions. The fee does not apply directly to the visa holder. It applies only to employers with at least 50 US employees where more than 50% of the US workforce holds H-1B or L-1 status.

Previously, the fee applied to initial H-1B and L-1 petitions and change-of-employer filings. The expansion now includes extension-of-stay petitions for existing employees, including routine same-employer extensions where no other change is requested. Amended petitions that do not request an extension of stay are exempt.

This fee is separate from the proposed $100,000 H-1B fee that has been blocked by a federal court. The $4,000 H-1B and $4,500 L-1 charges are part of a separate fee mechanism supporting biometric entry-exit programs and are scheduled to remain applicable through September 30, 2027, unless Congress extends them. A similar rule proposed in 2020 was blocked by courts on unrelated grounds, and the current rule may also face legal challenges.

US employers and foreign workers should verify the latest USCIS, DHS and Federal Register guidance before relying on the new fee requirements or filing timelines.