Amid mass layoffs in the tech sector, the federal agency for immigration services has said it is wrong to assume that sacked workers holding the much-sought-after H-1B visas have to leave the country within 60 days, asserting they have multiple options to stay in the US. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
The US has announced that individuals travelling to the country on a business or tourist visa - B-1 and B-2 - can apply for new jobs and even appear in interviews, but the prospective employees must ensure that they have changed their visa status before starting a new role. B-1 and B-2 visas are generally referred to as "B visas", and they are the most common types of visa issued for a wide range of uses in the United States. The B-1 visa is issued mainly for short-term business trips, while the B-2 visa is issued mainly travelling for tourism purposes.
A presidential advisory sub-committee has recommended the federal government to extend the grace period for H1-B workers, who have lost their jobs, from the existing 60 days to 180 days so that the workers have enough opportunities to find a new job or other alternatives. "The immigration subcommittee recommends the Department of Homeland Security and the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) to extend the grace period for H1-B workers, who have lost their jobs, from 60 days to 180 days," Ajay Jain Bhutoria, member of the President's Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders, said on Tuesday. In his presentation, Bhutoria highlighted the significant challenges faced by H1-B workers laid off from their jobs.
Canada will undertake a review of its immigration rules after a diplomatic row with India over denial of visas to people on grounds that their service in army, police and intelligence units made them complicit in human-rights violations.
Those on H-1B visas have to find a new job within 60 days or head back to India.
Amid the diplomatic sparring and souring of bilateral ties in the wake of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegation of Indian involvement in the killing of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar, the Special Envoy and Coordinator, Global Engagement Centre, James Rubin said the standoff was a 'tricky subject' as he sought cooperation into the investigation as far as it goes.
The Indian software industry, which has a big exposure to the US market, has expressed its concerns over the comments by the US President. Some US companies, which outsource a number of their IT jobs to Indian companies, have launched a campaign against the new law that ends tax incentives to those firms which create jobs overseas.
In yet another immigration-friendly move that would benefit thousands of Indian-American women, the Biden administration has agreed to provide automatic work authorisation permits to the spouses of H-1B visa holders, most of whom are Indian IT professionals.
The US Citizenship and Immigration Services would accept petitions for the H-1B work visas on the first five working days beginning April 1.
"I am on the side of the bishops' conference," Francis said.
Aryan Anand had submitted fake and falsified documents to secure admission into Lehigh University, a private research university in Pennsylvania for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Rescinding its more than 13-year-old policy, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services has said that the burden of proof in establishing eligibility is, at all times, on the petitioner.
The 15,000 Indians including 8,500 students are safe, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his weekly media briefing.
New rules are expected to make it tougher for British companies wanting to bring in foreign professionals from outside the EU, including countries like India
An estimated 46 million foreign-born persons resided in the United States in 2022, approximately 14 per cent of the total US population of 333 million, according to American Community Survey data from the US Census Bureau.
Internet services across Assam will remain suspended till December 16 to prevent alleged misuse of social media in disturbing peace and to maintain law and order in the state, officials said on Saturday.
Do not underestimate the ingenuity of the Deep State in America to have its way. Keeping the guard down will be a catastrophic mistake on the part of the Delhi establishment. We could get hit when least expected. That's what happened in Bangladesh and Syria, warns Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Dubbed as Startup Act 3.0, the legislation would also enable such immigrant entrepreneurs by giving them permanent residency upon meeting certain requirements.
Two US lawmakers have introduced a bill in the House of Representatives that aims at granting an automatic right to H-4 visa holders to work in the country, a move which will benefit the spouses of thousands of foreigners, including Indians, and also address the labour shortage affecting American businesses. H-4 visas are issued to dependent spouses and children who accompany H-1B, H-2A, H-2B, and H-3 visa holders to the United States. Many H-4 visa holders are highly skilled people in their own right and previously had careers of their own or worked to support their families.
The US is planning to resume the process of domestic visa revalidation in certain categories, like H-1B and L1 visas, on a pilot basis later this year, a move that will benefit tens of thousands of foreign tech workers, particularly from India. Until 2004, certain categories of non-immigrant visas, particularly the H-1B, could be renewed or stamped inside the US. After that, for the renewal of these visas, in particular, those on H-1B, the foreign tech workers have to go out of the country, mostly to their own country to get the H-1B extension stamped on their passport.
Enchanted rings, talking teddy bears and arranged marriages of the phony kind, hijack horror and more on OTT this week.
In a filing to SEC, the company said proposed regulations may discourage its customers from seeking services.
He said over 30 people were detained for questioning during searches in 30 Rohingya settlements in Jammu city.
The immigration tribunal ruled that the Sikh man who "housed and fed" armed Khalistani militants in India over a decade should be allowed into Canada because he did so "mostly out of necessity" and fear of retribution, the paper said.
Over the years, India has enjoyed bipartisan support in the US and this asset must be kept intact and nurtured through across the board political and civil society engagement, suggests former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
The US has received enough electronic applications during the initial registration period to reach the 2022 fiscal year cap for the H-1B foreign workers visa, the most sought-after work visa among Indian professionals. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services, the federal agency which screens and allocates H-1B applications, said it was randomly selected from among the registrations properly submitted to reach the cap. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows the US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. The technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
In the last 12 months, over 7,500 Indians have applied for a resident permit.
An Indian who used the services of Mumbai-based immigration offices of terror suspects David Headley and Tahawwur Rana has been deported by US authorities to India after his documents were allegedly found to be false. The person (name withheld) hailing from Gujarat arrived at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi early on Thursday morning, airport sources said.
The US has received enough petitions needed to reach the congressionally mandated 65,000 H-1B visa cap for the fiscal year 2022, a federal agency has announced. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China.
The Supreme Court on Thursday agreed to hear in March a plea seeking direction to the government to release Rohingya refugees who have been 'illegally and arbitrarily' detained in jails and detention centres across the country.
Four Indian-Americans, including top US attorney Preet Bharara, are among 38 distinguished personalities who have been honoured with this year's prestigious "Great Immigrants: The Pride of America" award.
Visa-related restrictions and costs to affect profitability of all major offshore-centric IT firms.
'Are we to believe that coordinated moves by the Canadian and US authorities are no longer taking place?', asks Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Sunak, 44, was facing the impossible challenge of overcoming voter anger against the incumbent Tories after 14 years in power. The 61-year-old Keir Starmer-led Labour Party, meanwhile, maintained a strong lead over the Tories throughout the six-week campaign.
The indictment alleges that Patwardhan falsely represented to the government that 19 non-immigrant applicants had high technology job offers with an American employer, when in reality he knew that he did not have jobs for the applicants
The Maharashtra CM said he doesn't think the Centre has a plan on settlement of Hindu immigrant from other countries.
Congress should pass laws that create US jobs, not destroy them," said Marc Apter, president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers-USA.
US President Barack Obama has already backed the Bill that seeks to put curbs on the use of H-1B visa for those companies which have a higher ratio of work force under this category.
Harris, who is of Indian and African heritage, has received the backing from more than the 1,976 pledged delegates needed to win the Democratic Party's nomination on the first ballot, CNN reported on the first full day of her campaign.
Infosys on Friday said it is in discussion with clients for a contingency plan to ensure business continuity in the event of the US immigration reforms bill becoming a law.