H1B Visa Policy: India Already In talks With US Government On The Matter

After it came to light that the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) is planning to make major reforms to the country’s H1B visa policy, the Indian government has begun talks with the US government on the matter.

“It is a very important topic for us and that is the reason why time and again, at different levels, we have taken up the matter with the US side. Most recently, it was discussed and mentioned during the two-plus-two talks,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, reported Business Today.

Raveesh said that the Indian government is closely engaged with the Trump administration and the US Congress to seek more information on the proposed H1B visa reforms. He said that planned provisions are just bills that have been introduced by the US government to prevent abuse of the H1B visa policy, so, there’s nothing to worry as of now as none of them have been passed so far.

“It is indeed correct that the administration has taken measures to prevent abuse of this programme and there are certain bills which have been introduced,” Kumar added. “I think what we get to hear are the provisions from those bills, but it is important to note that none of these bills have been passed so far.”

The MEA spokesperson said India has already talked with the US about the contribution made by highly skilled Indian professionals towards the growth and development of the US economy.

Notably, the changes proposed in the US H1B visa policy include a change in the definition of employment and specialty occupations under foreign work visa category. The USCIS has also proposed to do away with the practice of granting work permits to H-4 visa holders. The move would likely have an impact on more than 70,000 H-4 visas holders, mostly Indians. The Department of Homeland Security believes scrapping work permit of H-4 visa holders will benefit some US workers.