‘No big changes’ in H-1B visa, nothing new on H-4: US deputy chief of mission
Against the backdrop of the Trump administration’s plan to overhaul the immigration system, the US on Wednesday said that there have been “no big changes” in the H-1B visa programme and “nothing new” on the H-4 visa policy.
On a day when the US Mission in Delhi observed ‘Student Visa Day’, to mark higher education ties between India and the United States, US deputy chief of mission (DCM) MaryKay L Carlson said it was the sovereign decision of a country to grant employment visa and work permits.
It was reported in April that the Trump administration was planning to disallow spouses of H-1B visa holders to work legally in the US.
This move will affect over 70,000 H-4 visa holders with work permits, with Indians constituting the largest proportion at 90%, according to a study by Migration Policy Institute. The H-4 visa is issued to spouses of H-1B visa holders.
The holders of this visa were given a work permit under a special order issued by the Obama administration, largely benefitting Indians working in the US.
Prior to that, spouses couldn’t be employed in the US while H-1B visa holders sought permanent resident status, which could take over a decade. PTI had reported that more than 100,000 H-4 visa holders have been beneficiaries of this rule to date.
US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Director Francis Cissna said in a letter to Senator Chuck Grassley that a formal communication may be made later this summer.
In the letter, Cissna writes that such a move is being contemplated in order to comply with an executive order requirement to propose new rules and guidance. This is to replace the previous ones with a view to protect the interests of American citizens.
Last month, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj had said that the government would try and convince the Trump administration against scrapping the H-4 visa.