US Imposes $104,000 H-1B Visa Fee on African, Nigerian Fintech Talents, Experts List Benefits

• US H-1B fee hikes are pushing technology companies toward talent already inside America
• Smaller businesses face rising recruitment costs as Big Tech dominates the foreign-worker market
• Africa could benefit as US companies shift from relocating skilled professionals to remote hiring across the continent

Pascal Oparada is a journalist with Legit.ng, covering technology, energy, stocks, investment, and the economy for over a decade.

The United States’ attempt to make hiring foreign professionals significantly more expensive could have an unexpected winner: Africa’s fast-growing technology ecosystem.

In September 2025, US President Donald Trump introduced a $100,000 fee for certain H-1B petitions involving professionals recruited from outside the country.

The H-1B programme allows American employers to hire foreign workers for specialised occupations, particularly in technology and engineering.

The measure was designed to discourage alleged abuse of the visa programme and protect American workers. But its impact exposed a major shift in how US technology companies recruit global talent.

By February 2026, only about 70 employers had paid the $100,000 fee, while companies increasingly recruited foreign professionals already living in the US.

Big Tech finds another route

Major technology firms adapted quickly.

PitchBook data cited in the source showed that OpenAI recorded 27 new-employment H-1B approvals in the first half of fiscal 2026, while Stripe doubled its approvals from 23 to 46.

Companies also increasingly relied on change-of-employer petitions involving existing H-1B holders. OpenAI recorded 126 such transfers, while Databricks had 89 and Anthropic secured 48.

This gave wealthy technology companies an advantage because they could compete for skilled foreign workers already in America without paying the offshore recruitment fee.

Smaller businesses, meanwhile, faced a much tougher choice: abandon overseas recruitment or absorb an enormous additional cost.

New $103,265 proposal raises the stakes

Trump’s original measure has since been blocked by a federal court, but an even broader proposal has emerged.

On August 25, the Department of Homeland Security proposed a $103,265 fee for H-1B petitions subject to the annual cap. The proposal is open for public comment until September 24 and is not yet in effect.

Unlike the previous measure, the proposed fee would apply more broadly to new cap-subject petitions, potentially affecting international graduates already living in America.

The US has also introduced a wage-weighted selection system for FY2027, giving higher-paid positions greater weight in the H-1B process.

Why Africa could benefit

For African technology professionals, these restrictions could make relocating to America more difficult. Nigeria recorded just over 2,400 H-1B approvals in FY2025, although that was the highest number in Africa. India accounted for 69.9% of approvals and China about 12.1%.

But the same restrictions could accelerate remote hiring.

Rather than spend more than $100,000 sponsoring a foreign engineer, some US companies may find it more economical to employ skilled professionals remotely in Lagos, Nairobi, Cape Town and other African technology hubs.

That could transform what appears to be an immigration barrier into an opportunity for Africa’s digital economy.

If American companies cannot easily bring African talent to Silicon Valley, they may increasingly have to bring Silicon Valley jobs to Africa, TechCabal reports.

Why Nigerians cannot apply for US Green Card

Legit.ng earlier reported that the United States government has published the official breakdown of countries whose citizens were selected under the 2026 Diversity Visa programme, commonly known as the Green Card Lottery, with 16 African countries making the list and Nigeria absent once again.

The US Department of State said 20,822,624 qualified entries were submitted during the 37-day registration period, which ran from October 2 to November 7, 2024.