H-1B visa holders abroad hasten return to the U.S. after Trump announces new visa fees, as companies issue urgent travel advisories and confusion persists over who is affected

Workers on H-1B visas from India and China scrambled to return to the United States and abandon planned trips after President Donald Trump announced new visa fees as part of a broader immigration crackdown.

Tech companies and banks sent urgent guidance instructing employees abroad to return before 12:01 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time Sunday (4:01 a.m. GMT) and to avoid international travel. A White House official on Saturday said the order applies only to new applicants, not to existing visa holders or those seeking renewals, partially addressing confusion over its scope. Trump’s proclamation the day before nevertheless triggered immediate alarm in Silicon Valley.

At San Francisco International Airport, several Indian nationals said they cut short vacations. An engineer at a large tech company described choosing between remaining in the U.S. and family needs after his wife—also on an H-1B—boarded an Emirates flight from San Francisco to Dubai scheduled for 5:05 p.m. local time (12:05 a.m. GMT) on Friday. The flight was delayed by more than three hours after multiple Indian passengers demanded to deplane upon learning of the order or receiving employer memos; at least five were allowed off, the engineer said. A video circulating on social media appeared to show passengers leaving the aircraft, though Reuters could not independently verify it. The engineer said his wife proceeded to India to care for her sick mother, adding: “It is a situation where we had to choose between family and staying here,” and “It’s quite tragic. We have built a life here.”

On Chinese social media app Rednote, H-1B holders reported rushing back to the U.S., including some who had landed in China or other countries only hours earlier. One user, posting as “Emily’s Life in NY,” wrote that her “feelings are a mix of disappointment, sadness, and frustration.” She said she had boarded a United Airlines flight from New York to Paris that began taxiing, but after discussions with the airline the captain returned to the gate so she could deplane; she told Reuters she felt “insignificant” and “shaken,” and canceled the trip after receiving a letter from company lawyers urging employees abroad to return.

Since taking office in January, Trump has advanced a wide-ranging immigration agenda that includes efforts to limit some forms of legal immigration. The new H-1B measure is the administration’s most high-profile attempt to reshape temporary employment visas and, critics say, reflects a protectionist approach. It marks a reversal from Trump’s earlier stance backing the program, including siding with Tesla CEO Elon Musk in a prior public dispute over H-1B use. Administration officials argue the visa can suppress wages and that curbing it could open jobs for American tech workers; supporters contend the program supplies highly skilled talent needed to maintain competitiveness.

Debate over the order’s scope surged on social media, with some users expressing dismay over what they saw as a diminished attraction of the U.S. as a workplace. An anonymous Rednote user who cut short a Tokyo holiday to return described the dash as “a real-life ‘Fast & Furious’ return to the U.S.” The proclamation states that the Secretary of Homeland Security, Kristi Noem, may exempt petitioners from the fee at her discretion. On Friday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said companies would have to pay \$100,000 per year for H-1B worker visas, while White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt clarified in a post on X on Saturday that the fee is a one-time charge per new petition, not an annual levy.

Government data show that Indian nationals made up 71% of approved H-1B recipients last year, with Chinese nationals comprising 11.7%. Amid ongoing uncertainty, Rohan Singh, a 30-year-old manufacturing engineer based in North Carolina, scrapped plans to visit India, saying: “There is panic among H-1B visa holders because we do not know what’s ahead.” At San Francisco International Airport, a Nvidia engineer who had been on vacation in Japan with his wife and infant said he hurried to change his return flight after the announcement: “It feels surreal. Everything is changing in an instant.”