PTI Washington

The US Chamber of Commerce has filed a lawsuit against the Donald Trump administration's decision to impose a USD 100,000 fee on all new H-1B visa petitions, describing it as "misguided policy and plainly unlawful" action that could cripple American innovation and competitiveness.

The lawsuit, filed on Thursday in a district court in Columbia, challenges the administration's September 19 proclamation, 'Restriction on entry of certain nonimmigrant workers', arguing that it violates the Immigration and Nationality Act by overriding Congress' authority to regulate the H-1B visa programme.

The departments of Homeland Security and State, along with their secretaries, Kristi L Noem and Marco Rubio, respectively, have been named as defendants.

The exorbitant fee, up from the current level of around USD 3,600, would make it "cost-prohibitive for US employers, especially start-ups and small and midsize businesses to utilize the H-1B programme, which was created by Congress expressly to ensure that American businesses of all sizes can access the global talent they need to grow their operations here", said Neil Bradley, Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer at the US Chamber.

In its complaint, the business body said the proclamation is "not only misguided policy; it is plainly unlawful".