Author: Sanjay Smart

EATC and USATC certified study abroad expert. IELTS, TOEFL, PTE, SAT, GRE, GMAT Verbal/AWA Instructor.

Hefty hike for H1B and L1 Visa Extensions imminent: Announcement on 8th July

USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) is all set to announce new rules for H1B visas in a move aimed to combat fraud and enhance national security. The new rules will set the extension fee for an H1B visa at $ 4000, as suggested by the Department of Homeland Security, severely impacting employers and professionals. The authorities are set to implement changes to the cost of L-1 visa extensions too. This visa allows companies to bring managers and executives from their foreign offices to the US. The proposed regulation would require a $4,500 fee for extending an L-1 visa.

 

Indian professionals will be the demographic most severely impacted by the new rules given the high numbers of Indian IT professionals who are already on this visa. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa permitting U.S. employers to temporarily hire foreign professionals for specialized roles while the L1 is a temporary non-immigrant visa that enables international companies with branches in the US and abroad to transfer specific qualified employees to their US office.

However, the Department of Homeland Security announced that the new fees will not apply to L-1 or H-1B visa extensions until a final decision is made.

The H1B extension fee hike will have immediate effects on both employers and employees, increasing the financial burden on companies and potentially discouraging them from retaining valuable foreign talent. In the long term, this change could lead to a shift in the global workforce dynamic, as companies may seek to relocate operations or hire talent in other countries with more favourable immigration policies. The increased costs could also impact the overall competitiveness of the U.S. in the global market, potentially slowing innovation and economic growth. As businesses and workers navigate this new landscape, it will be crucial to monitor and adapt to the evolving immigration policies and their broader implications.

Green Card for Students Upon Graduation: Donald Trump on All-In Podcast!

In stark contrast to his usually hawkish views on immigration, the presumptive Republican Party nominee for the 2024 US Presidential election has stated that international students should qualify for a green card upon graduation. In an interaction on the All-In podcast, a popular show hosted by Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks, and David Friedberg, Trump categorically stated that anyone who graduated from a college even if it was a junior college and a 2-year degree should be automatically eligible for a green card.

“What I want to do and what I will do is, you graduate from a college, I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card, to be able to stay in this country, and that includes junior colleges too. Anybody graduates from a college, you go there for two years or four years, if you graduate or you get a doctorate degree from a college, you should be able to stay in this country” said Trump when one of the hosts asked him to act upon a previous statement made by Trump that he wanted to attract the ‘best of the best’ to America.

Donald Trump, known for his bold and often controversial statements, has occasionally redacted his comments or failed to act on his promises. However, he has remained consistent in his views with regard to international students and migration for skilled individuals. In the podcast, Trump also lamented the fact that many graduates of top colleges went back to their own countries, set up successful business there and became billionaires. “I know of stories where people graduated from a top college and they desperately wanted to stay here and they had a plan for a company, a concept and they can’t, and they go back to India, they go back to China, they do the same basic companies at those places and they become multi-billionaires employing thousands and thousands of people and it could have been done here”.

This has set the educational sector in the USA and the international educational sector abuzz. However, there are several hurdles to be crossed if such a policy were ever to be implemented, including Congressional approval, getting the legislation over the line, and turning the immigration regime in the USA on its head.

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