Two United States senators have sought modifications in a 9/11 compensation-related bill, seeking to extend the increase in hike on H-1B and L1 visa fees for another six years and impose excise on some foreign companies to fund free treatment of 200,000 Americans living with health problems contracted while working at the Ground Zero.
Uncertainty in the economy leads to fewer offers this year.
Youngsters looking to settle abroad, especially the US, by working in the IT industry should opt for career growth within India, which offers larger growth opportunities than anywhere else in the world, Infosys mentor N R Narayana Murthy said.
The official spokesperson of the US Embassy, New Delhi speaks about the visa process and shares advice on studying in the US.
Indian IT firms are not losing sleep over the recent report of spike in visa denials in the L1 and H1-B visa category, as they have been dealing with high visa denial rates since the last two years.
The proposals being put forward by a coalition of powerful Democratic Senators are aimed at fixing the country's broken immigration system.
The recent hike in H-1B and L1 visa fee to raise $600 million for securing the American border with Mexico is "a bad policy" for the US and could very well "sour" its ties with India whose IT sector is affected by the move, two noted economic experts have said.
The United States is in discussion with India trying to understand the potential impact of the increase in fee of categories of H-1B and L1 visas on Indian companies.
The provisions of the border security bill, which allows massive increase in the fees on categories of H-1B and L1 visas, is discriminatory against the Indian companies, India has said and asked the United States to amend it.
The Union Commerce and Industry Minister, Anand Sharma, had last week written a letter to the US Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, in this regard.
The steep increase in visa fee of certain categories of H-1B and L1 visas was part of the $600 million border security bill signed by the US President Barack Obama, last week, to strengthen security along the US-Mexico border.
The US is reviewing the suggestion that the border security bill, that significantly increases visa fees of H1-B and L1 categories, was not WTO compliant, days after President Barack Obama signed it into law.
Ignoring the concerns of Corporate America and India, US President Barack Obama signed into law a new Border Security Bill proposing a steep hike in some categories of H-1B and L-1 visa fees on Friday.
The Emergency Border Security Supplemental Appropriations Act was passed yesterday by a voice vote in the House of Representatives.
Nasscom representatives, on their recent visit to the US, met a large cross-section of stakeholders the US administration, elected representatives of the Congress, various associations, US headquartered companies and customer companies as well. The industry body also said that protectionist policies would only delay the recovery of the US from the ongoing recession.
In 2016, there were 580,000 Indians in the US as resident non-immigrant. Of these, 440,000 were temporary workers, which includes those on H-1B visas and 140,000 were students.
Even as India reacted strongly against the proposed changes in the US visa regime, trade experts said the country could do little in multilateral forums like the World Trade Organization to appeal against implementation of such measures.
Infosys as working on becoming "independent of the visa issue" as much as possible and hire more locals
Over 15,000 NRI resumes have accumulated in the inboxes of headhunters, and the number is set to increase, say HR executives.
Reduced hiring in the US market due to the lingering impact of the global financial crisis has resulted in a spike in the number of non-resident Indian resumes received by Indian human resources (HR) companies. Over 15,000 NRI resumes have accumulated in the inboxes of headhunters, and the number is set to increase, say HR executives.
If Obama makes it difficult for U.S. companies to send jobs overseas or hire using H-1B visas, India's huge IT sector could suffer
US Consular Officers hosted a chat with readers to address their queries and doubts. The transcript.
With countries like the US restricting hiring of foreign workers on H-1B work visas, the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Tuesday opposed imposition of restrictions on international migration.
Everyday job cuts, a slump in university admissions and a dwindling demand for H1B visas might project a gloomy US scenario to an average student in India but there is light at the end of the tunnel for those who think ahead.
"For most Americans, the beginning of April signifies the start of spring. For others, it means Opening Day of the baseball season. But for US employers, April first marks the day that US Citizenship and Immigration Services begins accepting new H-1B visa petitions for 2009," it said. "And once again, America's companies will be left in the lurch as the sparse annual allotment of H-1B visas will be reached on the very first day," the association said.
Bank of America has become the first US bank to withdraw job offers made to MBA students graduating from US business schools this summer, citing conditions laid out in its bail-out deal as the reason.
Of the approximately 11,000 employees of Satyam USA, 7,000 are on H1B visas, says Mathew Daniel, a vice president of US operations with the company.
The $140-billion Indian IT market is facing challenges on multiple fronts including stricter visa regime in key markets and shortage of skilled manpower for new technology areas like data science.
The arrest of Nilesh Dasondi, noted community activist and Edison zoning board member, in an immigration scam involving his company, Cygate Software and Consulting, has shocked the community. Dasondi, 41, is charged with violations including visa fraud and conspiracy to commit visa fraud.They posed as software experts and were sponsored for H1-B visas by Cygate; in the event, they were running shops or doing other businesses, according to court papers.
With the arrest of seven Indians, American authorities have claimed to have busted an immigration racket run by an infotech company owner who charged tens of thousands of dollars from expatriates by fraudulently sponsoring their H-1B work visas.
The bill, however, has to be passed by the Senate, wherein the Republicans enjoy a majority, before it can be signed into law by the US President Donald Trump.
A bipartisan legislation has been introduced in the US House of Representatives to eliminate the per country cap on employment-based Green Card, a move which is likely to benefit Indian IT professionals languishing over decades of waiting for the Permanent Resident Card. The legislation was introduced by Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and Congressman John Curtis. The Equal Access to green cards for Legal Employment (EAGLE) Act, 2021 needs to be passed by the Senate before it can be sent to the White House for the president to sign it into a law. A Green Card, known officially as a Permanent Resident Card, is a document issued to immigrants to the US as evidence that the bearer has been granted the privilege of residing permanently.
Even as the H1-B cap for the year was reached for regular and 'advanced degree' students, the Department of Homeland Security announced an extension of the Optional Practical Training period up to 29 months.
The other top officials who will accompany the US president are Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, National Security Advisor Robert O'Brien and Energy Secretary Dan Broulliette, the sources said.
IIM Calcutta (IIM-C) held the first phase of its final placements process between February 21 and 24, which saw a total of 207 offers being made to a total of 265 students from the Post Graduate Diploma in Management (PGDM) and Post Graduate Diploma in Computer Management (PGDCM) batch of 2007-09.
The Budget will obviously be crucial. But US President Donald Trump may have even more of an influence than Finance Minister Arun Jaitley when it comes to sentiment, argues Devangshu Datta.
"Fifteen years ago, I was leading the efforts to approve the historic civil nuclear deal with India. I said that if the US and India became closer friends and partners, then the world will be a safer place," Biden, who was vice-president in the Obama administration, said while addressing the Indian-American community on India's Independence Day.
Infosys, Tata Motors, ONGC, TCS and GAIL are the top 5 losers.
Looking for crumbs from Obama doesn't say much for India Shining.
With visas set to max out quickly again, tech companies want more. Amid rising joblessness, does America need more skilled foreign workers?
