California and 18 other US states filed a lawsuit seeking to block President Donald Trump’s $100,000 fee on new H-1B visas for highly skilled foreign workers, according to California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, is at least the third legal challenge to the fee announced by Trump in September.
The proposal would sharply increase the cost of obtaining an H-1B visa, which employers currently pay between $2,000 and $5,000 to secure.
In a statement, Bonta’s office said Trump lacks the authority to impose the fee and that it violates federal law, which permits immigration agencies to collect only fees necessary to cover the cost of administering visa programmes.
The H-1B programme allows US employers to hire foreign workers in specialty fields.
Technology firms, many of them based in California, rely heavily on the visas to recruit skilled staff.
Unnecessary financial strain
Bonta, a Democrat, said the proposed fee would place unnecessary financial strain on providers of essential services such as education and healthcare.
He warned it could worsen labour shortages and threaten the delivery of services.
States joining California in the lawsuit include New York, Massachusetts, Illinois, New Jersey and Washington.
The White House has defended the measure in response to other lawsuits, saying the fee is a lawful use of Trump’s executive powers and would deter employers from abusing the H-1B programme.
Critics of H-1B and other work visas argue that they are sometimes used to replace American workers with foreign employees willing to accept lower pay.
Business groups and major companies counter that the programme helps address a shortage of qualified US workers.
The US Chamber of Commerce, along with a coalition of unions, employers and religious groups, has filed separate lawsuits challenging the fee.
A judge in Washington, DC, is expected to hold a hearing in the Chamber’s case next week.
Under Trump’s order, new H-1B recipients would be barred from entering the United States unless their sponsoring employer pays the $100,000 fee.
The administration has said the measure does not apply to existing visa holders or those who applied before September 21.
