Skilled Indian Techie on H1-B visa soon shall be back from United States

Around 500,000 India should look upward to, at skilled work force returning home land from US if a proposal by President Trump administration not to extend H1-B visa of those waiting for permanent residency (green card) is implemented.

The statement from the Department of Homeland Security is said to consider new regulation that would prevent H-1B visa extension as part of President Donald Trump’s ‘Buy American and Hire American’ agenda from election campaign 2016 .As to current law, foreign guest workers are allowed one three year extension of the H-1b visa of three year validity, if in the end of those six years said guest workers has pending green card( permanent residency) application then there is an almost indefinite increase of the H-1B visa till time the application green card processing is completed.

In case an H-1B visa holder has applied for green card at the end of his 6years then he or she will have to exit the US till the processing is complete, as technically speaking its correct of Trump administration as also within the law to change the rules. As there is such huge stockpiled of green card applicants that to from countries like India and China, numerous of workers in thousand are from these countries spending 10-12 years in categories of visa.

While small comfort for them currently is that they can remain in US while their green card are being process which Trump administration is considering to alter with ending that deal.IT also seem that Trump administration is within the law want to change the rule reason H-1B visa was meant to address skilled workers shortage in the US, and not intended to become a route for immigration. But with passage of time hundreds of thousands of skilled foreign workers, particularly Indians and Chinese have used the H-1B route to become permanent resident via green card to the rights of citizens.

However they include Nadella, Pichai are to the storied names in US tech industry used  H-1B route to get green card, Indian born head of Microsoft and Google, as they added immense value to the US tech industry, while altering whole visa category has generally been looked at favorable by both the tech and previous administration. But in election 2016 in run-up to presidential elections nativist American tech workers who felt shortchanged by flow of foreign workers, including hiking processing fees and minimum salaries, demand for H-1B remains persistent as US industry reports not generating enough STEM graduates with requisite skill sets.

Anyway above reasons were of American administration but due these changes to the current H-1B visa rules, will affect India more than any other countries as more than 50% of the 85,000H-1B visas that are currently being issued annually goes to Indian workers. Of course, it is not necessary that all H-1B visa recipients are immigration aspirants or are having their green cards processed. Many simply go there for shortterm work or return after their stint.

Though it is not the first blow dealt by the Trump administration to foreign workers inflow as part of its effort to keep US Jobs for Americans, as already announced plan to roll back H-4 EAD introduced at the time of Obama presidency that allowed spouses of H-1B visa holders to work in the US subject to certain conditions.

Main in the category is young, foreign-born skilled workforce who pays in US tax system and enhances the American’s economy. As to many Techie who have warned that if US keeps them out, then certainly they will give their benefits of their skill in home countries by just going back and starting Facebooks and Ubers.

While it can also be possible that the visa extension rollback and never be implemented but present situation at a proposal stage and there are powerful arguments going on as to implementations.