Trump's Proclamation Could Be Legally Challenged by Immigration Law Firms

Hyderabad: Legal experts are preparing to challenge US President Donald Trump’s proclamation demanding corporations to pay $1,00,000 for entry into the United States for each H-1B visa granted to skilled foreign workers.

Immigration law firms believe that the new policy will be contested in court; once done, individuals who file a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block enforcement of the new order while lawsuits wind their way through the judicial system.

While several arguments are being played, legal experts said that the biggest caveat for the proclamation is that the President lacks authority under current US law to impose such a steep fee. They say that Congress, rather than the executive branch, must authorise changes of this kind to visa fees.

The proclamation cited 8 United States Code (USC) 1182 (f), which lets the President suspend or restrict entry of noncitizens if it’s deemed “detrimental to U.S. interests”. Experts, however, said that the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) 212 (f) could be used to argue that the setting of a $1,00,000 fee should be done by the Congress, not the executive.

Experts further argued that H-1B visas already have an ironclad fee structure set by the Congress, and a Presidential proclamation cannot override that.

Since the proclamation is effective from September 21, any lawsuits filed could seek a TRO so that the existing visa holders or pending applications are not subject to the new fee until courts decide on legality.

Additionally, legal pundits and employees are hoping for a lawsuit filed by corporations which benefit from skilled H-1B holders. Companies like Amazon, Google and Meta, which hire thousands of H-1B employees, will have a major issue with putting the job status of their employees in limbo, and legal experts believe they will try to push back the proclamation.