Donald Trump drops H-1B visa plan that could get 750,000 Indians deported

WASHINGTON: In a relief for Indian techies, US authorities today said that the Trump administration is not considering any proposal that would force H-1B visa holders to leave the country.

The announcement by the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) came days after reports emerged that the Trump administration was considering tightening H-1B visa rules that could lead to deportation of 7,50,000 Indians.

The reports had said it was mulling ending extensions for H-1B holders.

Some US lawmakers had criticised the Trump administration's reported plan to curb H-1B visa extensions that could result in self- deportation of an estimated 500,000-750,000 Indian Americans

The USCIS "is not considering a regulatory change that would force H-1B visa holders to leave the United States by changing interpretation of Section 104 C of the American Competitiveness in the 21st Century Act (AC21) statute that states that USCIS may grant the extensions," an official said.

This provides for H-1B extensions beyond the 6 year limit. 

"Even if it were, such a change would not likely result in these H-1B visa holders having to leave the United States because employers could request extensions in one-year increments under section 106(a)-(b) of AC21 instead," Jonathan Withington, Chief of Media Relations at the USCIS, said in a statement.

 

"The agency is considering a number of policy and regulatory changes to carry out the President's Buy American, Hire American Executive Order, including a thorough review of employment based visa programmes," Withington said. 

The statement comes after last week's news report by US- based news agency McClatchy DC Bureau according to which the US was considering new regulations to prevent the extension of H-1B visas, the most sought after by Indian IT professionals. 

The USCIS was never considering such a policy change, he said adding that "any suggestion that USCIS changed its position because of pressure is absolutely false." 

The reported move had been opposed by both the industry and several lawmakers. 

The National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM), a trade association of Indian information technology, had warned that any disruptive move on the visa front would be detrimental for both India and the US. 

The USCIS has a Congressional mandate to issue 65,000 H- 1B visas in general category and another 20,000 for those applicants having higher education -- masters and above -- from US universities in the field of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The H-1B programme offers temporary US visas that allow companies to hire highly skilled foreign professionals working in areas with shortages of qualified American workers. 

Since taking office last January, the Trump administration has been talking about cracking down on the H- 1B visa scheme. 

During his election campaign, President Trump promised to increase oversight of our H-1B and L-1 visa programmes to prevent its abuse. 

New US rules may prevent H1B visa extension

The move could directly stop hundreds of thousands of foreign workers from keeping their H-1B visas while their green card applications are pending.

The U.S. is considering new regulations aimed at preventing the extension of H-1B visas, predominantly used by Indian IT professionals, as part of President Donald Trump’s “Buy American, Hire American” initiative, a media report has said.

The move could directly stop hundreds of thousands of foreign workers from keeping their H-1B visas while their green card applications are pending.

The proposal which is being shared between the Department of Homeland Security Department (DHS) heads is part of Mr. Trump’s “Buy American, Hire American” initiative promised during the 2016 campaign, U.S.-based news agency McClatchy’s DC Bureau reported.

It aims to impose new restrictions to prevent abuse and misuse of H-1B visas, besides ending the provision of granting extension for those who already have a green card.

“The act currently allows the administration to extend the H-1B visas for thousands of immigrants, predominantly Indian immigrants, beyond the allowed two three-year terms if a green card is pending,” the report said.

“The idea is to create a sort of ‘self- deportation’ of hundreds of thousands of Indian tech workers in the United States to open up those jobs for Americans,” it said, quoting a source briefed by Homeland Security officials.

“The agency is considering a number of policy and regulatory changes to carry out the President’s Buy American, Hire American Executive Order, including a thorough review of employment-based visa programmes,” said Jonathan Withington, chief of media relations for United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).

The H1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows U.S. companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

It is typically issued for three to six years to employers to hire a foreign worker. But H-1B holders who have begun the green card process can often renew their work visas indefinitely.

The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.

The proposed changes would have a dramatic effect particularly on Indian visa holders considering more than half of all H-1B visas have been awarded to Indian nationals, the report said, quoting the Pew Research Center report.

“This would be a major catastrophic development as many people have been waiting in line for green cards for over a decade, have U.S. citizen children, own a home,” said Leon Fresco, who served as a deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department in the Obama administration who now represent H-1B workers.

Fresco estimates more than one million H1-B visa holders in the country are waiting for green cards, many of whom are from India and have been waiting for more than a decade.