U.S. Increases Costs for Hiring Foreign Workers
The United States plans to require companies to pay $100,000 annually for each H-1B work visa starting next year, according to the English section of webangah News Agency,citing Mehr News Agency and Euronews. This decision could deal a important blow to the technology sector, which heavily depends on skilled workers from India and China.
Since taking office in January, Donald Trump has launched an extensive campaign aimed at restricting immigration, including efforts targeting certain forms of legal migration. The revision of the H-1B visa program is his management’s most prominent step toward reforming temporary work visas.
The move has sparked protests among tech companies that had contributed millions of dollars to Trump’s presidential campaign.
Microsoft and jpmorgan have warned employees holding H-1B visas against international travel or advised them to return to the U.S. promptly before the new fee structure takes effect at midnight local time tonight.
Some analysts warn this policy could push companies to relocate valuable operations overseas and weaken Washington’s position in critical competition with China in artificial intelligence growth.
Currently, obtaining an H-1B visa involves only modest fees totaling a few thousand dollars if approved.
in his executive order released yesterday, Trump stated that between 2000 and 2019, the number of foreign workers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields in the U.S. more than doubled-reaching approximately 2.5 million-while total employment growth in thes sectors was just 44.5% during that period.
