H1b

Trump, Tech Tycoons Talk Overhaul Of H1b Visas

... Miller proposed scrapping the existing lottery system used to award the visas. A possible replacement system would favor visa petitions for jobs that pay the highest salaries, according to the sources. H-1 B visas are intended for foreign nationals in "specialty" occupations that generally require higher education, which according to U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) includes, but is not limited to, scientists, engineers or computer programmers. The government awards 65,000 every year. Companies say they use them to recruit top talent. But a majority of the visas are awarded to outsourcing firms, sparking criticism by skeptics that say those firms use the visas to fill lower-level information technology jobs. Critics also say the lottery system benefits outsourcing firms that flood the system with mass applications. The H-1 B visa program tends to be more critical to outsourcing firms than U. S. ...

New H1b Legislation For Foreign Techies May Hurt Indian It Firms

... and Dick Durbin — will require U. S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to prioritise for the first time annual allocation of H 1 B visas. It will ensure the “best and brightest” students being educated in the U. S. receive preference for an H 1 B visa, a statement issued by the Senators said. The preference system also gives a leg-up to advanced degree holders, those being paid a high wage, and those with valuable skills, it said. “American workers first”. “Congress created these programmes to complement America’s high-skilled workforce, not replace it. Unfortunately, some companies are trying to exploit the programmes by cutting American workers for cheaper labour,” Mr. Grassley said. “We need programmes dedicated to putting American workers first. When skilled foreign workers are needed to meet the demands of our labour market, we must also ensure that visa applicants, who honed their ...

Panic Over Trump’s H1b Visa Curbs; E Ahamed Passes Away

... was an act of terror. “Forensic and ballistic experts are reaching the spot tomorrow morning. As per preliminary investigations by local police, we cannot rule out the terror angle,” Arora said. (Source: The Indian Express ). 5. UP Election: BJP to Dial Down on Modi Rallies, Focus on 'Local Factors' Instead. The BJP has decided to scale down Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s involvement in the poll campaign in Uttar Pradesh, a departure from its original plan to use its most popular face to the optimum level. BJP sources said Modi would address 14 rallies in UP – two in each of the seven phases of elections. The number is in sharp contrast to Bihar, where he addressed over 30 rallies in the run up to the assembly elections in 2015. While the strength of Bihar assembly is 243, UP elects 403 MLAs. The BJP’s stakes are also higher in UP that sent 71 BJP MPs to the Lok Sabha. Besides, the results of UP elections would be seen as a verdict on the NDA government’s decision to scrap Rs 500 and Rs 1000 banknotes, although the BJP has since returned to its ...

What's The Difference, And How Could They Change Under Trump

... degree, and to have a specialized skill needed to perform the job. There is a cap on the number of H 1 B visas issued each year. H 2 B visa. An H 2 B visa is for foreign workers coming into the United States to do non-agricultural seasonal work — for instance, working at resorts only open during some seasons. There is a cap of 66,000 visas issued per year. Demonstrators protest U. S. immigration policy at one of several May Day protests in downtown Los Angeles. Source: Reed Saxon/AP. E 3 Visa. An E 3 visa is a special program for workers from Australia to come to the United States. To make their way to the States from down under, workers must work in a specialty job, including positions in business, architecture and law. Green card. A green card offers permanent residence to an immigrant. It can be issued for various reasons, including family ties, jobs or refugee status. ...

Indian It Anxiously Awaits Trump's Verdict On The H1b

... advisor Stephen Miller suggested deep-sixing the existing lottery system for the H 1 Bs and replacing it with visa petitions for jobs that pay the highest salaries. This is something that the Electrical and Electronics Engineers, that industry's largest professional association, approves. Reuters also suggests that at a meeting with the country's tech titans a month or so ago, Trump was apparently not so energised to take a scythe to the visa program and "seemed to be searching for middle ground." Apparently, a dozen of the top tech executives in the country were in a huddle with him to try and figure this out. Amongst them was Microsoft's Satya Nadella, who apparently tried to impress upon Trump the importance of being able to recruit from abroad when necessary. (In fact, both Nadella and Sundar Pichai, the boss at Google, probably benefitted from the H 1 B in their own career trajectories, which is as good a case as any for the benefits of the H 1 B.). The ultimate irony however is that Trump has himself used the H 2 B programs to ...

How Trump's Presidency Will Hit Indians' Jobs, Studies And Travel

... for the best. Added burden on the pocket. Trump plans to revive business sentiments in the US. During his campaign, he talked extensively about cutting corporate tax rates and reducing government regulations. He has also talked about imposing tax on imports, in order to help the country’s local businesses thrive. This is likely to check inflation and generate employment. Besides, the US Federal Reserve is expected to further hike interest rates. All this is likely to lead to a stronger dollar, making US goods and services expensive for Indians. We will now have to pay more for every dollar we purchase. We will have to shell out more when we send our children to study in the US and on travelling to the country. During 2016, the rupee had touched a low of 67.74 against the dollar. The year ended at a low of 67.90. In January 2017 ...

Bill Targeting H1b Visas Reintroduced In Us Congress

... to companies that would pay the most, rather than on the lottery model currently used. The 'Protect and Grow American Jobs Act' has been introduced before Trump, a vocal opponent of outsourcing, has even been sworn in as the US president. Any move that Trump makes to restrict the availability of visas is a key concern for the sector. "We knew it would begin in some form. This has just been introduced in the house, we have to still see what the new president does. If the bill passes we will have to adapt. The industry has already started hiring onshore so that will increase," an executive with a large IT company said. He declined to be identified. The Indian IT industry has often said that the US does not have enough IT talent, which requires them to bring in workers from India on the work permit. ...

The Message From H1b Visa Reforms

... and is already struggling with the challenge of jobless growth. It is futile to wishfully hope that “this too shall pass”. The game has irrevocably changed and the government of India and Indian technology companies need to embrace this new reality and act accordingly. Free trade is based on Adam Smith’s thesis of comparative advantage; trading leaves both partners better off. Certainly outsourcing has created a lot of jobs and prosperity in India. However it hasn’t done so at the expense of American jobs; rather, by enabling US companies to innovate and be more cost-efficient, India’s technology companies have helped US companies grow and create more jobs in their core businesses. For instance, at the heart of virtually every engineered product whether a Cisco Systems router, a General Electric engine or scanner, or Skype, is code written in India. By taking on uncompetitive IT operations and dying technology products, and “re-badging” employees, India’s tech companies have contributed directly to saving American jobs. ALSO READ | H 1 B visas: Business as usual after short-term flap. Indian tech companies have helped create over 400,000 ...

Restrictions On H1b Visas Is Bad News; We Can’t Target 8-10% Growth If Globalisation Is Reversed

... bank managers, they are being asked to take decisions about writing off the debt to big firms. This is not an easy thing. This has to be centralised, the level has to be raised, it has to have political cover, and that’s the heart of the problem. It’s not easy. Read | H 1-B work visa explained: The what, who and how. How much write down is required to make a visible dent on NPAs. If you read the chapter, we have a lot of calculations. It varies from sector to sector. Power, steel, telecom — well telecom does not have NPAs as yet — steel, power, textiles and clothing, SMEs also. In the power sector, for example, we have some calculations based on work that others have done, you may have to write (down) 20, 30, 40 per cent of the debt. Similarly, in the steel sector. But luckily for steel sector it is not across the board, it’s few companies. But this is about companies now, resolving their bad debts, it’s much more difficult than putting money into the banks. That’s easy. You said ...

Silicon Valley Lawmaker Introduces H-1b Reform Bill

... as firms with 50 or fewer workers. She also seeks to change how permanent visas are allocated. Currently, there is a limit to how many visas can be awarded to people from each country. Lofgren's bill would eliminate that. She believes that would take some of the pressure off the H-1 B program. Related: Trump's regulatory freeze: What happens to 'startup visa alternative'. There's a huge backlog for visas from Indian and Chinese nationals due to country quotas. As a result, many stay on H-1 Bs while they wait. Because H-1 Bs are tied to employers, it is difficult for these workers to change jobs. Vikram Desai, vice president of nonprofit Immigration Voice, estimates there are 1.5 million of those workers in the U. S. He says Lofgren's bill would help them get visas sooner, giving them more job mobility. Lofgren, who introduced the bill on her own, would need ...

H1b-industry 2 Last

... locals. The risks to the IT services sector include an increase in cost per professional, more local hiring and a disruption in service continuity, which may have a negative impact on profitability of companies that are visa-reliant," he told PTI. Availability of key skills will be limited as well and it will have an impact on wage and productivity which some IT companies are worried about, Mishra added. Meanwhile, shares of TCS plunged by 5.46 per cent to touch an intra-day low of Rs 2,206.55 on BSE, while Infosys lost 4.57 per cent to Rs 905 and Wipro was down by 4.11 per cent to Rs 445.55. While the prospects of a stricter visa regime have been around for a while, the Indian IT industry has been putting on a brave face hoping that the regime would be "business- friendly" given that Trump himself is an entrepreneur. Besides, Indian IT companies have also been ramping up local hiring even as the move impacts their margins and profitability. Trump is set to sign a new executive order aimed at overhauling work visa programmes like the H-1 B and L 1, a ...