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Who Has To Pay H-1B Fees? Does an Employer Have to Pay H-1B Fees?

By February 12, 2015May 18th, 2021H-1B and E-3 Visa, Immigration

The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that permits a company to hire workers in specialty occupations. This visa category requires that the foreign worker have at least a Bachelor’s degree, and the U.S. employer can employ the worker for up to six years. While the bar for this visa is relatively low (the job must require a bachelor’s degree) the visa does have a cap such that only 85,000 visas are issued every year. In the last two years, the cap was reached right when the H-1B filing season opened in April and this is expected again in 2015. This is a very popular visa because unlike many other non-immigrant visas that make applying for a green card very difficult and require foreign workers to maintain a residence in their home country, the H-1B visa permits for “dual intent.” This dual intent allows one to apply for a green card while in the U.S. without running into problems.

One key thing to keep in mind with this Visa is that the entity filing the petition is the U.S. company and not the U.S. worker. In fact, the U.S. worker does not even sign the petition and is only listed as the beneficiary on the petition. We receive numerous calls regarding H-1B visas and some questions are always the same. Does the Employer have to pay H1B fees? Can an employee pay the H-1B fees? Can an Employer Seek Reimbursement of H1-B fees when the Employee is terminated? The answer to these questions depends upon the expense but generally speaking, costs must be paid by the employer and reimbursement contracts with an employee upon the employee’s termination can be tricky.

Who has to Pay H-1B Filing and Legal Fees?

For legal fees, the short answer is that the H-1B employer cannot require that an employee pay for or reimburse the employer for attorney fees associated with an H-1B Visa. The rules here are clear and this means that the employer is not permitted to enter in to a side arrangement with the employee to pay back fees and an employer cannot take the amount out of their pay. Employers may however get an employee to pay the legal fees associated with filing an application for the H-1B’s dependent spouse or child. You should keep in mind that the employer is required to sign an attestation in the labor condition application that they paid the fees and that they will not seek reimbursement from the employee.

The same rule applies to most filing fees. The H-1B visa has quite extensive filing fees that can amount to over $3,000 depending on the size of the company. Most of these fees cannot be paid by the employee. There is one exception though. If 15-day premium processing is desired, ($1225), this optional fee may generally be paid by either party.

Can an Employer Get an H-1B Employee to Reimburse them for Fees Upon Termination?

Employers should be cautious when drafting contracts that require an H-1B employee to reimburse them for H-1B expenses when they leave the company. The law in this area (and the payment of H-1B fees) stems from the prevailing wage determination associated with H-1B petitions which mandates that the employer must pay the employee a wage that is set by the Department of Labor so that lower paid H-1B workers are not displacing U.S. workers. If the reimbursement is a “penalty for ceasing employment with the employer prior to a date agreed to by the nonimmigrant and the employer” then the employer will not be able to recover. In some circumstances though, an employer may receive “liquidated damages” from an H-1B nonimmigrant who leaves the company so that the payment is viewed as a true reimbursement for the time and money spent by the company. These circumstances depend on how the damages are classified in the immigration context (e.g. legal fees or filing fees) and also on the facts and circumstances and whether state law deems the damages permissible. This is a very tricky areas and you should always have any reimbursement clauses reviewed by an immigration attorney.

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29 Comments

  • Raz says:

    Hi,
    I wanted to check my friends situation. His H1b application was denied after RFE. in denial notice it was clearly mentioned employer submitted false documentation. Employer is not ready to appeal or reopen the case. Employer has collected all h1b related fees from my friend. it is around 6000$. Can he sue the employer? How can he get his money back?

    • IanScott says:

      Thank you for contacting us. We appreciate your business and look forward to helping you. Please find attached a link that you can use to set up a 30 minute ($150) or 1 hour ($250) consultation. The system allows you to select a lawyer and a day and time that is convenient to you. If you end up hiring the firm and your bill is greater than $2,500, we will apply this consultation fee to your final bill. Please reach out if you have any questions.

      https://ScheduleScottLegalConsultation.as.me/

      Kind regards,

  • Maria says:

    Hi, my employer renewed my H1b visa and now they have me sign a contract to stay for 3 because they renew it and pay for it. If i leave earlier than 3 yrs then i have to pay $2000. Is this even possible?

  • Sam says:

    Hi, I joined the company ABC back in Apr, and started getting paychecks, after 3 months my h1 transfer it got denied by USCIS due to invalid employer-employee relationship, now they company is asking me for h1 transfer fee which they never mentioned to me before, now what do I do? I am in deep trouble and cannot afford to pay them h1 transfer cost all of a sudden. Is this even legal for them to ask me for h1 transfer fee? What are my options here? They are also with holding my last 2 weeks pay to cover up the h1 transfer fee please advise.

  • Sara says:

    Hello,

    What if employee leave the employer during H-1B visa process? Does employee have to pay back to employer for the attorney and application fee or company’s loss?

    Please answer my questions! Thank you!

    • IanScott says:

      The employer must pay the H-1B visa fee and should not seek reimbursement from employees. Please contact us if you would like to set up a one hour consultation if you have any further questions. Kind regards,

  • JP Tummler says:

    My employer sponsored my H1B visa and they are not giving me any raises for three years as a way to compensate for the cost of the visa. Is this legal or just a very sneaky way to charge me for the visa without leaving any proof of it? Is there anything I can do?

  • neil says:

    hello, i have been offered a job. the company have said they wont cover the cost of applying for h1b but can fill out the paperwork etc. Can i pay the fees myself? Thanks

  • David Andrews says:

    Hi,
    My employee is suing me for half of the legal fees paid for my H1b. I had some issues with my h1 and legal fees associated with my case came to $26000. I have left the company over two years ago but received a summons. Can they do this ?

    • IanScott says:

      Employers are required to pay for H-1b fees but if your fees were $26K, it appears there was something going on there. We would be happy to review your engagement letter and contract and would bill at $395 per hour to do this. After the review, we would be able to give you a more complete answer.
      Kind regards,

  • Woodstock says:

    Hi. I have a question.
    My employer sponsored a H1B visa for me. They made me sign a document stating that if I leave earlier than 3 years, then I have to pay for the expenses of the visa procedure. Is this legal?
    Thank you.

  • Alex Verbi says:

    Hello,

    What about for L1-B visas ?
    I received a lump sum for relocation that I expect to have to pay back if I leave within the 1st year of employment, but could an employer also demand repayment of the visa filing and immigration lawyer fees ? (I was never notified of the total cost of this process)

    In the “Expense Recovery Agreement for relocation expenses” that my employer had me sign there is the following:

    “FOR VALUE RECEIVED, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, I agree to the following agreement, terms and conditions:…”

    “Company XYZ, at its sole discretion, may demand reimbursement from me the total payment made to me or on my behalf by Company XYZ with respect to my relocation. This includes any lump sum payment made to cover relocation related expenses.”

  • Toni says:

    Hi, I understand that the company has to pay for H1b Fees. In my case, my application was denied and the firm is reluctant to appeal. Is it possible/allowed for me to pay for the appeal expense from a legal standpoint?

  • Sam says:

    Is there any guideline as to who pays the consular fee? Can an employee claim the same from the employer post obtaining the visa and starting work in the USA?

  • Bill says:

    Thanks for this information. Quick question. Can an employer have the employee pay the subject fees IF the employer is paying the employee more than the prevailing wage so as to cover the amount of those fees?

  • Thak bahadur purja says:

    Hi can i get job in usa please one of my usa cityzen friend told me that he has got job for me but that employer can send me visa easily.

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