Trump Administration Proposes Overhaul of H-1B Visa Program

Strategic Insights -

The US government is poised to make significant changes to the H-1B visa program, prioritizing workers with higher salaries in a bid to tighten up the non-immigrant worker visa. The proposed changes come after the government announced a $100,000 fee for fresh H-1B petitions. The new system would allocate H-1B visas based on skills and compensation, rather than the current random lottery process.

Key Takeaways:

  • The US government is proposing to overhaul the H-1B visa program to prioritize workers with higher salaries.
  • The new system would allocate H-1B visas based on skills and compensation, rather than the current random lottery process.
  • Petitions will be assigned to one of the four wage bands designated by the Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, with the highest wage band (level IV) receiving four times the number of entries, and the lowest wage band (level I) receiving one entry.
  • Software developers with a wage level IV salary of $213,512 would have a better chance of getting an H-1B visa than those with a level I salary of $61,062.
  • Indians are the largest beneficiaries of the H-1B visa program, comprising 70% of both renewals and fresh petitions in FY24.
  • IT companies such as TCS, Infosys, and Cognizant have reduced their reliance on H-1B visas by increasing local hiring in the US.
  • Founders of tech startups are reconsidering sponsoring H-1B visas due to the high fees and new regulations.

Statistics:

  • The US issues 85,000 new H-1B visas each year based on a lottery.
  • Software developers with a wage level IV salary earn $213,512 annually, compared to $161,637 for those with a wage level II.
  • 70% of H-1B visas issued in FY24 were to Indians, while 10% were to Chinese nationals.
  • The new rule proposes to file the notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register on September 24, with a 30-day comment period.

Sources:

  • "US Citizenship and Immigration Services files proposal to overhaul H-1B visa program" by [Author], ET Bureau, published in ET on [Date].
  • "Trump administration proposes end to H-1B lottery, prioritising highly skilled workers" by [Author], National, published in [Publication] on [Date].
  • "Data from US Department of Labor, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics" cited in the proposal.
  • "Comments from Gnanamookan Senthurjothi, founder of The Visa Code" in the article.