Milwaukee Public Schools announced in September that it would stop hiring new international teachers to help fill desperately needed empty positions.
The change comes after the Trump administration announced it is overhauling the H-1B visa program, which MPS uses to fill the jobs. The H-1B program is designed to help U.S. employers hire international applicants to work in specialized industries like tech, education and engineering. The visa is limited to about three years and can be renewed.
Among the changes is a hike in the fee for new applications to $100,000. Previously, it cost an employer around $3,000 to hire an employee from abroad.
MPS has relied on more than 200 international teachers hired each year to help fill teaching vacancies. The district has previously hired teachers from Jamaica, Colombia, Ghana, Nigeria and Spain, among many other countries.
International teachers aren't limited to languages — they teach math, work with special education students and support reading curriculum in MPS classrooms. MPS spokesperson Stephen Davis said the district currently plans to keep working with the hundreds of international teachers already here.
"Our current understanding is that those international teachers already with MPS will be able to finish their stay and be able to renew their visas," Davis wrote in a statement to WUWM. "In light of the current climate, we paused active recruitment of new international teachers."
Milwaukee immigration attorney weighs in on $100,000 H-1B visa fee, 'absolutely' expects it to be challenged in court
Kelly Fortier is an immigration lawyer at the law firm of Michael Best in Milwaukee. She spoke with education reporter Katherine Kokal about why employers feel like they're in limbo.
Here's their conversation, which has been edited for length and clarity:
Kelly Fortier: The (presidential) proclamation has really put into confusion H-1B approvals for individuals that are outside the United States. So any employer who recruits from outside the United States or regularly uses H-1B workers really has to reevaluate their plans for 2026. I think they are correct in pausing it and waiting to see what happens.
It's very possible there'll be more clarifications, and they'll be able to continue to file for and obtain new H-1B approvals for these teaching roles. But there's also a good chance they won't. A $100,000 fee per worker is almost punitive in nature. U.S. employers, the vast majority of them at least, cannot afford to add that cost to the cost of onboarding a new employee, even if they're incredibly valuable, even if they're really needed. So I again, I think it's very reasonable for a school district like MPS to just pause for the time being and see how this shakes out.
Katherine Kokal: I want to clarify that as of right now, we know that the $100,000 fee is for only new applications for an H-1B visa that were filed after Sept. 21.
Fortier: That is correct.
Kokal: There were questions about whether people who are currently here will be able to renew. So maybe they can finish out the visa, but will they be able to renew? And the school district said, as of right now, based on its current understanding, yes, they will be able to renew. Do you think that this is going to be challenged in court?
Fortier: Absolutely. I know there are several attorneys across the country that are looking for plaintiffs, or that already have plaintiffs. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce indicated that they may be filing some litigation related to the proclamation and the new fee. So I absolutely expect we will see litigation filed this month. I think the big question will be, what are the specific issues that are being challenged? Is it cap-exempt employment? Is it the amount of the fee? Is it the lack of clarity around the fee? So I think there's a lot to challenge. We'll see who challenges what.
The other big unknown is how long will it take this litigation to work its way through the court system to be at a place where it impacts or doesn't impact the next H-1B lottery, which opens in March of 2026.
Kokal: The lottery process, of course, is the traditional way in which these are awarded, correct? And it's extremely competitive.
Fortier: Correct. We have seen demand for these numbers far outweigh, far exceed what's available to the tunes of hundreds of thousands of people not getting selected each year in the H-1B lottery. So I think one definite impact I expect from this proclamation is far fewer lottery registrations. I think the uncertainty is going to cause employers to back away if they can from the H-1B program. I would expect far fewer lottery submissions in March.
Katherine Kokal is the education reporter at 89.7 WUWM - Milwaukee's NPR. Have a question about schools or an education story idea? You can reach her at kokal@uwm.edu
