Starting September 9, 2026, employers petitioning to extend H-1B or L-1 status will face a significant new cost — the 9-11 Response and Biometric Entry-Exit Fee now applies to all extension petitions, not just those involving a change of employer. DHS finalized this rule after concluding it had been misreading the statute for years, and employers who assumed same-employer renewals were fee-exempt need to update their budgets immediately.

Key Points

  • What: The 9-11 Biometric Fee ($4,500 for H-1B, $4,000 for L-1) now applies to all extension of status petitions filed by covered employers, including same-employer renewals.
  • Who: "Covered employers" — companies with 50+ U.S. employees where more than 50% hold H-1B or L-1 status — sponsoring H-1B or L-1 workers.
  • When: Effective September 9, 2026.
  • Impact: Employers that previously skipped this fee on same-employer extension petitions must now pay $4,000–$4,500 per petition.

What Changed — and Why

The 9-11 Biometric Fee was created by Congress in 2015 to fund a biometric entry-exit tracking system for the U.S. border. The fee is $4,500 for H-1B petitions and $4,000 for L-1 petitions, and it only applies to "covered employers" — those with 50 or more U.S. employees where more than half are in H-1B or L-1 status.

For years, DHS interpreted the law to mean this fee only applied when the separate Fraud Prevention and Detection Fee (a $500 fee) also applied. That $500 fee is triggered by new hires and employer changes — but not by same-employer extensions. So covered employers renewing a worker's status without changing employers had been skipping the 9-11 Biometric Fee entirely.

DHS now says that interpretation was wrong. Congress's 2015 law explicitly added the phrase "including an application for an extension of such status," which DHS now reads as requiring the fee for all extensions — regardless of whether the Fraud Fee applies.

Who Is a "Covered Employer"?

This fee only applies to a specific type of employer:

  • 50 or more total U.S. employees, and
  • More than 50% of those U.S. employees are in H-1B or L-1 nonimmigrant status

This typically captures outsourcing firms and staffing companies that heavily rely on work visa holders. Most mainstream U.S. tech employers, universities, and hospitals — who have many more U.S. citizen or permanent resident employees than visa holders — are not covered employers and are unaffected.

What Stays the Same

The fee amount is unchanged. The rule doesn't create a new fee — it expands which petitions trigger the existing one. Initial grants of H-1B or L-1 status were already subject to this fee and remain so.

The 9-11 Biometric Fee is currently set to expire on September 30, 2027, unless Congress extends it again.

What You Should Do

If you work for a covered employer (heavy H-1B/L-1 workforce): Talk to your HR or immigration team now. Extension petitions filed on or after September 9, 2026 will require this fee. Budget planning for renewals needs to account for the additional $4,000–$4,500 per petition.

If you're an H-1B or L-1 worker at a covered employer: You don't pay this fee directly — it's the employer's obligation. But be aware that the added cost may affect your employer's willingness or timeline to file extensions.

If you work for a non-covered employer (most U.S. companies): No action needed. This rule does not affect you.

This is a final rule — the comment period is closed. No further public input is being accepted.