US Representative Greg Steube, a Republican from Florida, introduced the 'Ending Exploitative Imported Labour Exemptions Act or EXILE Act', a bill that would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act by ending the H-1B visa programme.
The legislation is aimed at streamlining various services related to immigration and foreigners, including their entry, exit and stay in India.
'If companies want to hire foreign workers instead of Americans, my bill will hit them where it hurts: Their pocketbooks.'
India is proposing a new law that would impose a jail term of up to seven years and a fine of Rs 10 lakh on anyone found using a forged passport or visa to enter, stay, or exit the country. The Immigration and Foreigners Bill, 2025, also mandates reporting of foreign visitors by hotels, universities, and hospitals to track overstaying individuals. The bill aims to simplify laws, ease business, and strengthen national security while promoting economic growth and tourism.
The government has also listed three new bills for the session -- 'The Protection of Interests in Aircraft Objects Bill, 'Tribhuvan Sahkari University Bill', and the 'Immigration and Foreigners Bill'.
The UK Home Office has announced a crackdown on illegal working across the country, targeting restaurants, nail bars, convenience stores, and car washes. In January, Immigration Enforcement teams conducted record-breaking raids, arresting 609 individuals, a 73% increase from the previous year. The crackdown comes as the government introduces new legislation aimed at tackling criminal gangs that facilitate illegal immigration. The Home Office highlights the dangers of illegal migration and the exploitation of vulnerable individuals while emphasizing its commitment to safeguarding workers and removing foreign criminals.
Parliament's approval of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, a contentious piece of legislation aimed at reforming Waqf bodies, has sparked strong reactions from the opposition, who allege that the bill was "bulldozed" through Parliament. The bill, considered the government's most consequential legislation in its third term, was passed with comfortable majorities in both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha despite opposition claims of a lack of consultation and an intrusion into religious affairs. Other notable bills approved during the session included the Finance Bill, Appropriation Bill, Immigration and Foreigners Bill, and Tribhuvan Sahkari University Bill. The session, which saw high productivity, also witnessed debates on issues such as economic distress, delimitation, and the three-language policy. While the government touted its achievements, the opposition criticized the government's approach and vowed to challenge the Waqf bill in court.
Trump's proposed policy limits undergraduates from any one country to 5% at select top US universities, raising concerns for Indian aspirants eyeing elite colleges.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's sudden resignation after only a year in office has thrown Japan into political turmoil, raising doubts about how the country will handle economic and regional challenges, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
'...are young Indians with aspiration to go to the US.' 'The dream has to be more about working in India...'
India-US relations, like Rome, were not built in a day, nor can they be demolished in a day.
All said and done, when the new global order emerges, India can only remain with the democracies, asserts Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Opposition parties have called for a discussion in Parliament on the Maha Kumbh tragedy and the UP government's alleged focus on VIPs rather than the common pilgrims. Union minister Kiren Rijiju has stated that the Business Advisory Committee will decide on the agenda of the Budget Session, which will start from January 31. The Session will commence with President Droupadi Murmu addressing the joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Union Budget will be presented on February 1.
United States President Barack Obama, who pledged that enacting comprehensive immigration reform would be a priority in his second term, has rejected a Republican-sponsored immigration bill that would have created a new green card category for foreign students, reports Aziz Haniffa.
India's Parliament is set to begin its Budget session on Friday, with opposition parties poised to demand a discussion on the alleged mismanagement of the Maha Kumbh festival in Prayagraj, where 30 pilgrims died in a stampede. The opposition also accused the government of politicising parliamentary committees and pushing its agenda through its majority. The session will start with President Droupadi Murmu addressing both houses of Parliament. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Saturday for the eighth consecutive time.
As an IAS officer in Kerala, Gyanesh Kumar -- who the Congress described as Amit Shah's 'right hand man' -- had a good working equation with the state's Congress and Left leaders.
In a major move that will benefit hundreds and thousands of Indian IT professionals in America, the Biden administration has introduced an ambitious immigration bill in Congress which among other things proposes to eliminate the per-country cap for employment-based green cards.
A major divide has emerged within Donald Trump's MAGA team in the United States, as Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy who advocated for the expansion of the visa program for 'highly skilled workers' faced heavy backlash from within President-elect's base, CNN reported.
Top management of high-tech companies have been asking the US government to rework their Senate immigration bill to allow them to hire more foreign workers.
Milind Makwana, according to his close friends and family, spoke at the City Council meeting on July 18 against SB403, the anti-caste discrimination bill in California State Assembly.
Donald Trump's exaggerated opinion of his dealmaking capacity can get him into trouble, observes R Sriram.
In a huge relief for H-1B visa holders, a White House-backed bipartisan deal has been unveiled under which automatic work authorisation would be granted to about 100,000 H-4 visa holders, who are spouses and children of a certain category of H-1B visa holders. The National Security Agreement that was announced on Sunday after long negotiations between the Republican and the Democratic leadership in the US Senate also provides a solution to about 250,000 aged-out children of H-1B visa holders. The move comes as good news for hundreds and thousands of Indian technology professionals who are waiting in a painstakingly long wait for a Green Card, in the absence of which their spouses cannot work and their aged-out children face the threat of deportation.
One bill provides $60.8 billion for Ukraine, with over 80 percent of it for helping Kyiv amid its ongoing war with Russia, including replenishing supplies of US made weapons and ammunition.
In a remarkable comeback to power, Donald J Trump Monday took oath as the 47th president of the United States and immediately promised a blitz of executive orders as he announced the beginning of a 'golden age' of America.
There are about 2 million eligible Indian origin people that can vote.
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.
The Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment, or RAISE, Act, introduced by Republican senator Tom Cotton and David Perdue from the Democratic party, would alter the US immigration system to significantly reduce the number of foreigners admitted to the country without a skills-based visa.
A group of influential lawmakers have introduced a bipartisan legislation in the US Senate to comprehensively overhaul the H-1B and L-1 visa programmes and usher in more transparency in the recruitment of foreign workers. 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.
Egged on by more than 160 venture capitalists, including several Indian Americans -- the majority of whom are from California's Silicon Valley -- United States Senators John F Kerry, Massachusetts Democrat, and Richard Lugar, Indiana Republican, have introduced legislation to create jobs in America and increasing America's global competitiveness by helping immigrant entrepreneurs obtain US visas.
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.
The EAM when asked about his view of the world at present, said it would be "very grim forecast, for the next five years".
Ramaswamy's stance on H-1B visas is reminiscent of the 2016 Trump campaign, when then-candidate Donald Trump, who has also hired a number of foreign workers under H-1B visas for his businesses, took a hardline stance on these foreign workers before later softening his rhetoric.
Applicants for Indian citizenship under the Citizenship (Amendment) Act 2019 (CAA) can submit any of nine documents, including valid or expired passport, ID cards and land tenancy records, to prove he or she is a national of Afghanistan or Bangladesh or Pakistan.
"I am on the side of the bishops' conference," Francis said.
"You're not running against Joe Biden. You're running against me," Vice President Harris, who is the Democratic candidate, told the former President, when he criticised the current administration. The matchup on TV Tuesday night began with a handshake -- Harris took the initiative walking up to Trump's lectern -- but later descended into acrimony.
It was expected to be a friendly Bill for the IT outsourcing industry
Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have sparred over all major issues, including United States foreign policy, economy, border security and abortion, during their first presidential debate that could alter the course of the race for the White House.
The IUML alleged that the bill violates the fundamental Right to Equality of the Constitution.
In the afternoon, the home minister will introduce the Bill to amend the six-decade-old Citizenship Act and later in the day, it will be taken up for discussion and passage, according to the Lok Sabha's List of Business for Monday.
Pakistan Foreign Office in a statement said the latest legislation by the Indian government was another major step towards the realisation of the concept of "Hindu Rashtra.
In a major shift, US President Barack Obama has signalled a potential compromise on the contentious issue of immigration reform that could provide a path to citizenship to 11 million people, including some 2,40,000 Indians, already in America illegally.
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