Large tech companies have responded to President Donald Trump’s dramatic changes to H-1B visa applications by telling employees with those visas to remain in the United States, according to multiple media reports.
The White House announced Friday that Trump had signed a proclamation requiring employers to pay a $100,000 fee for H-1B visa applications. In response, Amazon, Google, and Microsoft reportedly emailed their employees telling those with H-1B visas to stay in the United States and avoid foreign travel for now. The companies advised that if employees are already traveling, they should try to return before the proclamation takes effect at 12:01am Eastern on Sunday.
Business Insider published the memos from Amazon and Microsoft, while other sources published a similar memo from Google. TechCrunch has reached out to Amazon, Microsoft, and Google for comment.
According to government data, Amazon employees have received the most H-1B visas so far this fiscal year, followed by Tata Consultancy Services, then Microsoft, Meta, and Apple, with Google ranked sixth.
Meanwhile, a White House official told Axios that the fee will only apply to new applicants, not existing H-1B holders or renewals.