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UAE: H-1B visa holders rush back to US after Trump announces $100,000 fee
Although the US later clarified the new fee only applies to fresh applicants, many are still moving up their return out of fear the rules could change again
- PUBLISHED: Mon 22 Sept 2025, 6:00 AM UPDATED: Mon 22 Sept 2025, 11:35 AM
After US President Donald Trump announced a $100,000 entry fee for non-immigrant visas, some H-1B visa holders in the UAE are expediting their return journeys to the US.
Travel agents in the UAE said that there was a "panic" among travellers holding H-1B visa on Saturday after the new fee was announced by Trump. Some US firms asked these visa holders not to travel abroad, prompting people who were already living abroad to rush back to the US.
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Following a clarification by the US official that the new fee rule applies only to fresh applicants and not existing visa holders or renewals, the rush is subsiding, but people are still preponing their return to the US, out of fear that the Trump administration might change the rules again.
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Avinash Adnani, managing director of Neo Travels and Tourism, said there was a lot of demand from students and professionals who wanted to fly to the US on Saturday after the announcement of the new fee for H-1B visa.
“All US-bound flights were full on Saturday because both Emirates and Etihad Airways provide strong connectivity for people flying from the Indian subcontinent to the US. Most people preferred to travel to the US through Abu Dhabi’s Zayed International Airport because travellers can fast track their US immigration procedure due to pre-clearance facility available at airport,” Adnani told Khaleej Times on Sunday.
A large number of Indian and Pakistani diaspora living in the US, Europe and other Western countries fly with the UAE carriers due to strong connectivity.
“The situation is better today after the US clarified that this new fee is applicable only to new applicants and not existing visa holders. But people are still preponing their return to the US and want to go back in the next few days because they received messages from their companies asking them to stay in the US,” he said.
Reena Philip, general manager of Airtravel Enterprises and Tourism, said there was a “panic and uncertainty” among H-1B visa holders in the wake of the latest fee announced by the US government.
“We have students and professionals going from here, but not many. The main concern is in India. There is already a challenge of getting a US visa appointment here because people have to wait for a year, and now this is an additional concern for the people who want to fly to the US,” she added.
Flights full, airfares up
Videos went viral on social media over the weekend about passengers asking an airline to de-board them due to changes in the H-1B visa.
Tech giants such as Amazon, Tata Consultancy Services, Microsoft, Meta Platforms, Apple and Google are among the largest H-1B visa recipients. E-commerce giant Amazon employed over 14,300 H-1B visa holders, while Tata Consultancy employed over 5,500 people under the visa scheme at the end of June 2025. Similarly, other firms also hired thousands of highly skilled workers under this programme.
The US president’s executive order said that some employers exploited the programme to hold down wages, bringing disadvantage to the US workers.
Avinash Adnani said that flights are operating at full capacity, and this massive jump in demand could result in up to 20 per cent spike in airfares.
“Bookings are looking very healthy over the next few days as people are preponing trips. Since it is a supply-demand factor, we could see airfares going up by about 15 to 20 per cent for a short period in the coming days,” he said.
