H-1b visas

The H-1B is a non-immigrant visa category in the United States under the Immigration & Nationality Act, section 101(a)(15)(H). It allows U.S. employers to seek temporary help from skilled foreigners who have the equivalent US Bachelor's Degree education. H-1B employees are employed temporarily in a job category that is considered by the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services to be a "specialty occupation". A specialty occupation is one that requires theoretical and practical application of a body of specialized knowledge along with at least a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent. For example, architecture, engineering, mathematics, physical sciences, social sciences, medicine and health, education, business specialties, accounting, law, theology, and the arts may be considered to be specialty occupations.

The actual size of the H-1B program is difficult to gauge due to exemptions from the 65,000-person quota limit. 130,497 new H-1B visas were approved in FY 2004 and 116,927 in FY 2005. It was reduced to 65,000 beginning in 2006. This cap, however, does not apply to non-profit organizations or higher-education institutions. The demand for H1-B employees is so high that American corporations have filed for H-1B applicants, six months in advance of issuing the visa in 2007. Nonetheless, previously unavailable data indicates that demand for H-1B visa was substantially higher among Indian outsourcing firms with a workforce based primary in India. 7 of the top 10, receivers of H-1B visas were Companies engaged in this practice. Among the top ten, only Microsoft, IBM, and Oracle have H-1b demand that is even remotely close to the Indian outsourcing firms.[2] USCIS has received over 130,000 applications from U.S. corporations for the 2007-2008 year quota of 65,000. Fortunately, the H-1B visa is not the only means for U.S. employers to lawfully hire skilled foreign nationals[3]The list of the top 200 receivers of H-1B visa in 2006 has recently been made available for the first time, however the number of applications that were submitted unsuccessfully for each company remains unpublished. However, data suggests that companies that engage in offshoring work to India submitted H1-B visa applications in heavy volume. For instance, it is known that Infosys and Wipro submitted approximately 20,000 applications in 2006. [4]

The H-1B visa program is controversial [5] Advocates say the program (and similar ones operated by other technologically-advanced countries) helps the host country maintain its technological as well as economic superiority by providing a steady flow of highly skilled professionals who may be in short supply domestically. It also provides an incentive for companies not to move their operations abroad. recent data suggests, that this intent is not the guaranteed outcome.

The H-1B program has been criticized for displacing substantial numbers of experienced American citizen technical professionals or lowering wages enough to encourage them to abandon volatile careers in targeted fields such as computer technology. Although there are differing views on whether or not the H-1B visa is good for the US economy, economist Milton Friedman has called the program a form of subsidy.[6]. Currently the number of H-1B visas issued per year is limited to 65,000 with an additional 20,000 for those with U.S. graduate degrees and no limit for universities and non-profit and government research laboratories.

For a full list of Visas available to Foreign Nationals please click here.