COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Trump administration announced dramatic changes to the H-1B visa program last week, enacting a $100,000 fee for companies to bring in workers from outside the United States.

The H-1B visa allows employers to hire workers in “specialty occupations” with skills that are difficult to find among the U.S. workforce.

President Donald Trump added the $100,000 fee with the intention to encourage companies to hire American workers, rather than bring workers in from abroad.

The White House alleges the visa program “has been deliberately exploited to replace, rather than supplement, American workers with lower-paid, lower-skilled labor."

The sudden change was unexpected, according to Tom Davis, who practices immigration law in Columbus.

“The H-1B program is designed to

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