A U.S. federal judge issued an injunction on Thursday that stops the implementation of a Ksh13 million (about $100,000) fee for new H‑1B visa petitions filed by American employers for foreign professionals.

The ruling provides relief for Kenyans aiming to enter the U.S. under the H‑1B programme, where the steep fee had raised concerns that employers might be deterred from sponsoring foreign workers.

The judge found that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the State Department failed to follow required rule‑making procedures before imposing the charge, a finding reported by Reuters.

The injunction follows an earlier temporary block in June that was part of a separate lawsuit brought by 20 U.S. states, keeping the fee in legal limbo pending further court action.

Separately, the Department of Homeland Security is pursuing a permanent fee of roughly Ksh13.34 million ($103,000), which may trigger additional legal challenges distinct from the current case.

Historically, H‑1B filing costs for Kenyan applicants ranged between Ksh259,100 ($2,000) and Ksh647,750 ($5,000) depending on the petition type, making the proposed Ksh13 million fee a dramatic increase.

The H‑1B programme allocates 65,000 visas annually, plus an additional 20,000 for holders of advanced degrees, with each visa typically valid for three to six years.

The Trump administration, which introduced the fee in September 2025, clarified that the one‑time charge applies only to new petitions and does not affect Kenyans already holding valid H‑1B visas or those seeking renewals.

Current H‑1B holders, including Kenyans abroad, remain unaffected by the proposed fee, according to the administration’s clarification.

The fee proposal is part of broader tightening of H‑1B requirements, including enhanced vetting and changes aimed at favouring higher‑skill, higher‑paid workers.

Other financial demands, such as a proposed bond of similar magnitude for certain green‑card applicants, have also been discussed but remain separate from the H‑1B fee issue.