The New $100,000 H-1B Visa Application Will Impact Asset Managers

After scrambling to account for workers with H-1B visas — such as whether they are currently in the US — companies are relieved that the Trump administration’s pivot to charge $100,000 for applications doesn’t apply to current visa holders.

The White House clarified the changes this week, explaining that the new, dramatically higher fee will go into effect next year. Before that, companies were bracing for the worst — JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon told the media that the change caught them off guard. Visas are critical for firms, like JPMorgan Chase, that move many workers around the globe, he noted. The fee change is expected to steeply reduce the number of applications for H-1B visas, the charges for which are currently just $215, not including legal costs and other fees. Companies will likely reserve applications in the lottery-style system for highly skilled, highly compensated workers. Only as many as 85,000 H-1B visas are approved per year.

“Imposing new H-1B fees will have a significant financial impact on asset management firms. Firms like Fidelity employed nearly 1,800 H-1B workers from 2022 to 2024,” Nicole Gunara, principal immigration attorney at Manifest Law, said in a statement. “At a projected cost of about $100,000 per worker over three years, these requirements translate into over $180 million dollars in additional cost for these companies.”

Power Users

The firms with the highest numbers of approved H-1B visas are in the tech sector, but financial services, including major asset managers, also benefit extensively from the program. Goldman Sachs, for example, has more than 1,000 H-1B visas approved for workers in fiscal 2025, government data show. And it’s likely that the companies with the deepest pockets will be able to handle the costs, with the forthcoming fee being a roadblock to smaller and midsize firms, lawyers told ETF Upside.

“Across the financial services industry, hiring will be more selective in regards to which roles get H-1B filings,” said Michelle Abeckjerr, managing partner at Abjeckjerr Immigration Law. Applications “will likely be limited to only senior, high value or hard-to-fill technical or quantitative roles that justify the cost.” It’s unclear how the positions break down, as the data readily available from the government are high level. Global asset managers often seek regional expertise for investment strategies, for example, but many of the jobs are tech-related.

Some of the other H-1B power users include:

• Bank of America, with 492 approved applications for fiscal 2025
• Morgan Stanley, with 447
• Charles Schwab, with 395

Small Companies, Bigger Problems: Multinational firms often bring workers with specific expertise to the US for long periods of time, Envision Financial Systems COO Brian Jones said in a statement. “The new requirements may make it more difficult and costly for multi-national firms to execute their business model,” he said. Still, regulations — and big changes to them — are nothing new for financial services, said Mario Favetta, relationship manager at Fuse Research Network. “This change that will likely affect future hiring practices is just another change, and I’m confident that the industry as a whole is going to be able to adapt.”