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The United States has suggested changing the rules of the H-1B visa program shortly after President Donald Trump issued a proclamation to limit it. The new plan from the Department of Homeland Security aims to eliminate the current lottery method and introduce "a weighted selection process that would generally prioritize higher-skilled and higher-paid foreign workers, while still allowing companies to hire H-1B employees at all pay levels." As per the proposal, the selection will depend on the wage level assigned to each worker. Those in the top wage category, earning $162,528 per year, would have their names entered into the selection pool four times, while those in the lowest wage group would only be entered once. Nicole Gunara, a Principal Immigration Attorney at Manifest Law, mentioned that this new proposal could change the way international talent enters the US job market.
"In reality, an engineer offered $150,000 at Meta could have several chances in the lottery, while a junior developer at a startup with a salary of $70,000 might have just one chance. This changes the system in favor of well-established companies that can afford to pay high salaries and disadvantages newer firms that depend on younger foreign talent," Gunara stated. Additionally, the rule could lead to a preference for a more experienced, higher-paid tech workforce and change how the country competes globally for skilled workers. She explained, "If this new rule is put into action, the H-1B lottery will no longer be completely random. Instead, the odds for each applicant will be influenced by their salary level. A person in a top pay bracket could have multiple chances in the lottery, while someone earning an entry-level salary may only have one. This means those in higher-paid, senior positions will have much better chances of being chosen, while new graduates and early-career individuals will have tougher odds." Last week, Trump announced that there would be a $100,000 fee for every new application. The visa allows US companies to employ skilled foreign workers in areas like technology and engineering through a lottery system.
"President Trump has committed to prioritizing American workers, and this sensible action helps achieve that by discouraging companies from misusing the system and keeping wages down. It also provides certainty for American businesses that genuinely want to hire highly skilled workers in our great nation but have been affected by misuse of the system," said White House spokeswoman Taylor Rogers. While signing the proclamation, Trump emphasized that the "goal is to hire American workers." According to data from the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, Indians represent 71 percent of all approved H-1B applications. Will Scharf, the White House staff secretary, noted that the H-1B non-immigrant visa program is among the "most abused visa" systems currently in the US.
Indian technology companies like TCS, Infosys, and Wipro depend greatly on H-1B visas, and the new charges might lead to significant expenses for these firms amounting to billions. One effect could be fewer job openings or relocating positions back to India. This situation arises during a trip to the US by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal to discuss matters with officials from the Trump administration in New York on Monday.
