Our Amicus Brief in the First Circuit $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee Case

The Cato Institute and a constitutional law scholar have filed an amicus brief in the First Circuit supporting California and other states’ challenge to a US$100,000 fee on H-1B visa applications. The brief argues that the Trump administration cannot impose a tax on visa entry by describing it as a restriction, and that the case matters because it tests the limits of presidential power over immigration and revenue.

A district court struck down the fee, finding the executive had usurped Congress’s taxing power; another court later invalidated it on different grounds. The brief draws on the Supreme Court’s recent decision against Trump’s tariffs, arguing that the Immigration and Nationality Act sets out specific fees and does not grant the president unlimited discretion to raise revenue. It also invokes the major questions and nondelegation doctrines.