With immediate effect, H1B visa and L1 visa fees are to go significantly higher for most Tier-1 IT Service providers.

From December 18, 2015, companies must submit an additional fee of USD 4,000 for H1B visas and USD 4,500 for L1 visas.

Per the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2016 signed into law on December 18, 2015, the additional fees apply to petitioners who employ 50 or more employees in the US, with more than 50 per cent of those employees in H-1B or L (including L-1A and L-1B) nonimmigrant status.

This fee is in addition to the base processing fee, Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee, American Competitiveness and Workforce Improvement Act of 1998 fee (when required), as well as the premium processing fee, if applicable.

This will remain in effect until September 30, 2025.

This will mean lower margins for work done onsite. Indian IT companies may in turn move more work offshore.

This may also lead to higher demand for workers with American citizenship and Green cards. This may also lead to Indian IT companies trying to reduce the percentage of workers on H1B and L1 visas in proportion to the total US workforce over a period of time.

This may be a good sign for the employees, in that companies may seriously evaluate processing their Green cards more quickly.