Has Trump wrecked your chances of a USA H1B visa

The Trump administration’s reforming of immigration laws may have denied would-be expats the chance to work in the USA.

Over the past year, US lawmakers have allowed a number of changes to the country’s immigration laws in addition to banning expats from certain countries suspected of being hotbeds for terrorists.
Concerns have been expressed about migrants and workers from overseas taking up jobs meant for US citizens, with subsequent restrictions on work visas and permits as a result. As with other countries’ similar actions, the moves are causing friction between domestic business interests and new immigration policies.

The Trump administration seems determined to revise the popular H1B work visa granted to foreigners with expertise in certain speciality sectors. The moves are certain to impact on many would-be expatriates formerly hoping to live and work in the USA, as well as on American and international firms wanting to hire them. The visa was especially popular with IT specialists from the Indian continent, many of whom won their positions via a lottery pool of some 200,000 applicants. Over 85,000 lucky expat experts were granted H1B work visas and are now happily ensconced in Silicon Valley making money for their companies.

It seems that Trump’s campaign pledge to get rid of the visa has, unlike many of his other less destructive pledges, been taken seriously, as the existing programme is now due for a total overhaul, as are the visas of current expat employees. Silicon Valley companies are the hardest hit as they employ the majority of expat IT experts for their exceptional technical skills. IT companies are now looking to set up offices in Canada and other countries due to tighter controls on bringing in skilled professionals, and existing employees may be asked to transfer out of the USA.

The H!B scheme now excludes entry level programmers, is being heavily vetted, and spousal and family visas are being curbed, causing distress to many expat professionals who’d planned to bring their families in as well as those who fear their nearest and dearest already resident are about to be kicked out. These actions seem to be just the tip of a noxious iceberg aimed at forcing companies to employ only American workers whatever their skill levels. It’s a fact that top skills in this comparatively new field may not be easily available in-house, causing talented professionals to look elsewhere when deciding on an expat destination.