INS Publishes Final Rule on H-1B Visa Fee

3/1/00

The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) published in the Federal Register yesterday (Vol. 65, No. 40, pp. 10678-10685) the final rule governing the H-1B visa fee provision of the American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act (ACWIA).

In 1998, as a provision of ACWIA, the annual cap on H-1B visas was increased from 65,000 for FY'98 to 115,000 for FY'99 and FY2000 and 107,500 for FY2001. In addition, the act called for a $500 fee with each H-1B application, which would be used to train and educate American students and workers for high-tech employment.

The act created exemptions from the fee for certain entities, including many academic and research organizations.

The final rule modifies the interim that was published by the INS on November 30, 1998. NASULGC staff will pass along additional information on the final rule after a thorough analysis.

The rule can be found on the world-wide web by conducting a search by date and page number at the following URL:
http://www.gpo.gov/su_docs/aces/aces140.html.