H-1B Work Visa

Recently, the US administration has once again amended the H-1B visa norms by changing the rules to give priority to higher wages and skills for the selection of deserving candidates.

 What is H-1B Work Visas?

• In 1952, after the US started expanding its presence in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines, it felt the need to hire quality workers.
• The need to hire workers to pave the way for the introduction of the H-1 work visa system.
• The work visa system was further subdivided into H-1B, H-2B, L1, O1, and E1 visas, depending on the qualification required.
• The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

New wage-based H-1B work visa regime

• The new wage-based work visa regime will now give priority in the selection of visas to applications of those employers where the “proffered wage equals or exceeds” the prevailing level in that area of employment.
• The proffered wage is the wage that the employer intends to pay the beneficiary.
• This will be done for both the 65,000 regular visas and the 20,000 advanced degree exemption visas.
• This regime will also take into account the skill set that the respective worker brings to the country and cross-check it whether such a skill set is available at the same cost among the US workers.
• It will be implemented for both the H-1B regular cap and the H-1B advanced degree exemption, but it will not change the order of selection between the two as established by the H-1B registration final rule.
• It will incentivize employers to offer higher salaries, and/or petition for higher-skilled positions, and establish a more certain path for businesses to achieve personnel needs and remain globally competitive.

What was the lottery system for selection of H-1B?

• Currently, every year the US administration issues 85,000 H-1B work permits.
• Of these, 65,000 are for people with speciality occupations, while the rest is reserved for -foreign workers who have earned a master’s or a higher university degree in the US.
• Since the number of applications for H-1B visas filed each year exceeded the 65,000 caps in the speciality occupations and 20,000 for the higher education category, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services then employed a random lottery selection of the eligible applicants to fill the 65,000 vacancies and then moved on the fill the next 20,000.
• This lottery system was completely randomized and did not consider any requirements such as wages, skills or needs of the employer.