Unexpected decision of the US President Donald Trump to raise the fee for submitting the H-1B visa application to 100,000. hole. She made companies – and large economies – began to think about the potential consequences of this decision.
Experts say, however, that for some global talent centers, especially those in Europe, in the Middle East and Asia, this can be a valuable opportunity.
As part of activities for the protection of American jobs, the Trump administration raised on Friday the application fee for qualified foreign employees. The proclamation, which entered into force on Sunday, imposes on the companies the obligation to pay a fee for obtaining visas necessary for new employees entering the country.
In addition to financial companies, Big Tech has long been counting on H-1B visits to fill highly qualified positions recruited from India and China, among others.
India, in turn, criticized Trump's administration for a new visa fee, claiming that “it will probably have humanitarian consequences.”
Donald Trump's decision is a chance for Europe?
Charles-Henry Monchau, director of the investment in Syz Group, said that the newly introduced six-digit fee for H-1B visits can be an impulse for global talent centers that want to attract qualified employees.
“This can certainly be painful for the United States in terms of innovation,” said Monchau on Monday in the Europe Early Edition program at CNBC.
He added, however, that the financial impact of the H-1B price increase seems to be relatively small for large technology companies, especially Amazon. According to the data of the US citizenship and immigration, the American e-commerce giant employed at the end of June the most H-1b owners-over 14,000. Meanwhile Microsoft, Meta, Apple and Google had over 4,000 visas in the fiscal year 2025.
“It can be a chance for Great Britain, it can be a chance for Europe, for places like Dubai, for example, or maybe for China … because of course, if the United States becomes more stringent, it will be a great opportunity for many of these countries to open the door for experts and employees from abroad,” said Monchau.
Harry Stebbings, founder of the VC and Podcast 20VC, shares this belief. “The biggest threat to European innovation is the loss of talents,” said Stebbings on Saturday in a post on social media. “Trump gave Europe the greatest chance.” Stebbings called on Great Britain to accelerate the process of issuing the H-1B visa as part of actions aimed at making the country a “magnet for talents”.
Source: CNBC
