To help those applying for US work visas, the Biden administration has proposed significant modifications to the H1B foreign workers program. On October 23, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will publish these new regulations.
The same was noted by Alejandro N. Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, who said that “the Biden-Harris administration’s priority is to attract global talent, reduce undue burdens on employers, and prevent fraud and abuse in the immigration system.”
However, Congress’ mandated annual cap of 60,000 H1B visas will continue to apply.
What adjustments are being suggested?
To prevent potential abuse and fraud, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is considering reforms that would change the way H1B registrations are chosen.
Currently, a person’s chances of being chosen through a lottery improve as more registrations are submitted for them. According to the proposed rule, each person’s registration would only be considered for the selection process once, regardless of how many registrations were made on their behalf, the DHS said in a statement. This would streamline the process and improve fairness and transparency.
“By considerably lowering or eliminating the benefit of submitting many registrations for the same beneficiary only to raise the likelihood of selection, this would increase the likelihood that a legitimate registration would be chosen. Furthermore, because each registrant who submitted a registration for a chosen beneficiary would have the authority to file an H-1B petition on the beneficiary’s behalf, it may also give beneficiaries more options between valid employment offers, it added.
By forbidding connected organizations from submitting numerous registrations for the same beneficiary, misuse and fraud in the H1B registration process would be decreased in addition to strengthening integrity safeguards and altering the selection process. The DHS added that the regulation would also formalize USCIS’ right to conduct site visits and make it clear that failure to comply with site visits might lead to the petition being denied or revoked.
“These proposed changes mark a significant step towards streamlining our immigration system and making it more accessible for highly skilled professionals and students from around the world,” Indian American Ajay Bhutoria, a key proponent of immigration reform, said in a statement to PTI.
The H1B program assists US employers in filling open positions with the staff they require to run their companies successfully and compete on a worldwide scale, all while abiding by the legal requirements for worker protection in the US.
Source- Livemint