If you're preparing for an H1B visa interview right now, you've probably run into two pieces of news that get repeated constantly and explained clearly almost nowhere: a $100,000 fee, and a requirement to make your social media public. They're often mentioned in the same breath, which leads a lot of applicants to assume they're the same policy, or that both apply to them personally. They're not the same thing, and depending on your situation, one, both, or neither may actually apply to you. This guide separates the two clearly, explains what's confirmed versus still unsettled, and covers what you can actually do about each one.
The Two Policies, at a Glance
Policy 1: The $100,000 H1B Fee
What Actually Happened
On September 19, 2025, the President signed a proclamation titled "Restriction on Entry of Certain Non-immigrant Workers," effective 12:01 AM Eastern Time on September 21, 2025. Under it, new H1B petitions filed on or after that date must generally be accompanied by a $100,000 payment as a condition of eligibility, submitted by the sponsoring employer through pay.gov before filing with USCIS.
Who Is Actually Affected
This is where most of the confusion lives — the fee does not apply to everyone with an H1B connection:
Generally subject to the fee:
New H1B petitions filed on or after September 21, 2025, where the worker is outside the United States at filing and doesn't already hold a valid H1B visa stamp
Petitions requesting consular processing (i.e., the worker will get their visa stamped at a U.S. embassy or consulate abroad)
Cases where an amendment, change of status, or extension request is filed and USCIS finds the worker ineligible for that category, effectively converting the case to consular processing
Generally NOT subject to the fee:
Petitions filed before September 21, 2025
Currently approved petitions
Individuals who already hold a validly issued H1B visa
Straightforward change of status, extension, or amendment requests for workers already in the U.S., filed and approved without issue
H4 dependents — the fee itself does not apply to dependents
Warning: If you're already in the U.S. on H1B status and travel internationally while a petition is still pending, or if your change-of-status request is later found ineligible, your case can retroactively become subject to the fee. This is one of the more consequential edge cases — talk to your employer's immigration counsel before international travel if your status is in any kind of transition.
The Legal Status Is Still Moving
Worth knowing: this fee has been legally contested, and as of recent reporting, a court order has affected its enforcement while the government appeals — meaning the exact legal status can keep shifting. Don't treat any single article, including this one, as the final word on current enforcement — confirm the live status through your employer's immigration counsel or USCIS's own H1B FAQ page before making decisions based on it.
Exceptions
The Department of Homeland Security can grant exceptions where a worker's presence is deemed in the "national interest," but USCIS guidance has described these as extraordinarily rare, without a clearly published set of qualifying criteria as of this writing.
Policy 2: Social Media Vetting for H1B and H4 Applicants
What Actually Happened
Effective December 15, 2025, the Department of State expanded its "online presence review" — first applied to F, M, and J visa applicants in June 2025 — to cover all H1B specialty-occupation applicants and their H4 dependents. This is a Department of State screening policy, separate from the $100,000 fee, and it applies at the point of your visa interview, regardless of when or how your petition was filed.
What You're Actually Required to Do
Set all social media accounts to public — not just the ones you consider "professional" or relevant
Disclose every platform and handle you've used in the past five years on your DS-160, including accounts that are now inactive or that you rarely use
Keep your online presence broadly consistent with what's stated in your DS-160 and your employer's petition materials
What Officers Are Reportedly Screening For
The Department of State hasn't published a detailed public checklist, but based on the stated purpose of the review and reporting on related guidance, officers are assessing for things like:
Content suggesting a security or public-safety risk
Expressions of hostility toward the United States, its government, or its people
Support for or association with groups considered threats to national security
Involvement in antisemitic violence or harassment
For H1B specifically, one internal directive reportedly calls for heightened scrutiny of applicants whose prior work involved content moderation, fact-checking, or misinformation-related roles — a notable, occupation-specific angle that doesn't apply to the F/M/J version of this policy
Interviewivy Tip: If you work in tech, media, trust & safety, or any adjacent field, it's worth reviewing your own employment history through this specific lens before your interview — not to hide anything, but so you're not caught off guard if it comes up.
The Real-World Consequence: Delays
Multiple immigration-law sources have reported that H1B and H4 interviews originally scheduled for mid-to-late December 2025 were pushed back — in some documented cases from December into March, April, or even May 2026 — as consular posts adjusted their daily interview capacity to accommodate the additional review time this policy requires. This has been reported most heavily from India, simply because India processes the highest volume of H1B and H4 cases of any country, not because Indian applicants are being treated differently in substance. If you're applying from India specifically, our Complete Guide to U.S. Visa Interviews in India covers the full booking process across all five consulates.
This Trend Is Still Expanding
If you're hoping this is a one-off adjustment that's already settled, it's worth knowing the opposite has been true so far: on March 30, 2026, the Department of State expanded social media vetting requirements to 14 additional visa categories beyond H1B/H4 and F/M/J — including fiancé(e) visas and several humanitarian categories. That expansion doesn't directly affect H1B applicants, but it's a strong signal that online-presence review is becoming a permanent, standard part of the process rather than a temporary measure.
How These Two Policies Actually Interact
For most individual H1B applicants, here's the realistic breakdown:
If you already hold a valid H1B visa and are just attending a future interview (e.g., renewing your stamp) — the $100,000 fee almost certainly doesn't apply to you, but social media vetting does, every time.
If you're a brand-new H1B petition beneficiary outside the U.S. — both policies are likely relevant: your employer needs to navigate the fee question before filing, and you'll go through social media vetting at your interview regardless.
If you're an H4 dependent — the fee itself doesn't apply to you directly, but social media vetting does.
Do's and Don'ts
Do's:
Confirm your specific fee applicability with your employer's immigration counsel — don't assume based on general articles, including this one
Set every social media account you have to public well before your interview date, not the week of
List every platform and handle from the past five years on your DS-160, even old or inactive accounts
Expect possible delays and build extra time into any travel or start-date planning
Don'ts:
Assume the $100,000 fee applies to you just because you're an H1B applicant — many aren't affected
Delete, deactivate, or suddenly lock down accounts right before your interview
Treat "the news said H1B is harder now" as specific guidance for your situation — the two policies affect different people differently
Rely on a single article (this one included) for a fast-moving legal and policy area — confirm current status through official sources before major decisions
Both of these policies are genuinely disruptive, and it's reasonable to feel like the ground keeps shifting under H1B applicants right now. But most of what's changed sits upstream of your actual interview — your employer navigates the fee question, and the social media requirement is really just "keep your accounts public and consistent," not a new bar to clear through some special performance. The interview itself, once you get there, is still fundamentally the same conversation it's always been: your role, your qualifications, and your intent. That part hasn't changed, and it's the part fully within your control.
Disclaimer
This article is for educational purposes only and is not legal or immigration advice. Visa decisions are made solely by U.S. consular officers based on your individual circumstances and applicable U.S. immigration laws and policies. While we strive to keep our content accurate and up to date, requirements and procedures may change. Always refer to official U.S. government resources for the latest guidance.