Good news from US amid PM’s visit, Indians will benefit, Biden’s plan

Washington: The Joe Biden administration is working on a major plan to make it easier for Indians to live and work in the United States. The Biden administration could use Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit this week to help Indians enter or stay in the country by easing visa rules, according to three people familiar with the matter. One of the sources said the State Department could announce as early as Thursday that some Indian and foreign workers will be able to renew H-1B visas in the United States without traveling abroad.

This will be a pilot project, which may be extended in the years to come. By far, the most active users of US H1-B visas are Indian citizens. In FY2022, approximately 442,000 people used the H1-B visa, 73% of whom were Indian citizens. Another US official said: “We all recognize that the mobility of our population is a major asset for us and therefore we aim to provide them with facilities in a multifaceted way. The State Department is already working very hard to find creative ways to change things.

A US State Department spokeswoman declined to comment on questions about the types of visas eligible or when the pilot will launch. Plans for this pilot project were first reported by Bloomberg Law in February. Excluding that it would be implemented on a small scale, the spokesperson said: “The pilot project will start with a small number of cases with the intention of expanding the initiative over the next one to two years. ” The White House declined to comment, saying changes to the plan could come and were not finalized until announced.

Each year, the US government makes 65,000 H-1B visas available to companies seeking skilled foreign workers. Also provides 20,000 additional visas for workers with higher degrees. This visa is valid for 3 years and can be renewed for 3 years. According to US government data, companies using the most H-1B workers in recent years include India-based Infosys and Tata Consultancy Services, as well as Amazon, Alphabet and Meta in the US.

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Keywords: America, H-1B, US President Joe Biden, US Visa