Billionaire Silicon Valley investor Michael Moritz, who helped shape the modern internet by investing in companies like Google, PayPal, and others, has harshly criticised President Donald Trump’s proposed $100,000 H-1B visa fee. Michael Moritz warned that the policy would have unintended consequences and would demonstrate the administration’s misunderstanding of what drives the success of the American tech industry.
The policy, announced in a presidential order on Friday, would impose the hefty fee on new H-1B visa applications starting September 21, far exceeding the current fee of $2,000 to $5,000. The administration also proposed changes to the lottery system to prioritise higher-paid workers. The Trump administration claims that the program is being used to deliberately replace American workers, not to support them.
The announcement caused a stir in Silicon Valley over the weekend, with companies like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google advising H-1B employees to return to the US before the Sunday deadline.
