<para> In this letter, an iterative weighted least-squares (LS) approach is proposed for the design of variable fractional-delay (VFD) finite impulse response (FIR) digital filters in minimax sense. For deriving the elements of relevant matrices, there is no need for numerical integration or closed-form formulation and they obey given specifications. Comparing with the existing method, the proposed method does not lead to a misleading problem, and the performance of convergence is also better. Especially, it is found that the used LS weighting function is only dependent on the frequency, not on the tunable parameter, which makes it easier for the minimax design of VFD FIR digital filters. </para>