Overview
- U.S. District Judge Leo Sorokin in Boston vacated the fee nationwide in a decision issued Monday, June 8, and ordered agency guidance and implementation actions set aside.
- Sorokin concluded the $100,000 requirement functioned as a tax rather than a penalty, meaning Congress—rather than the president—must authorize such revenue measures.
- The court found agencies violated the Administrative Procedure Act by adopting the charge without the required notice-and-comment rulemaking or a reasoned explanation for the change.
- The White House has announced it will appeal, and the ruling deepens a split with an earlier D.C. decision that upheld the fee, making an appellate resolution likely.
- Practically, few employers paid the charge while it was in effect (USCIS reported 85 payments as of Feb. 15), and the vacatur restores normal H‑1B filing costs and eases hiring pressure on tech, health care, universities and research institutions.