H-1B Visa: US District Judge Beryl Howell has announced that the effort of US President Donald Trump to radically increase the cost of H-1B Visa is lawful.
The court’s decision gives the much-needed boost to the campaign of the Trump administration to restrict immigration and push demand for US workers. The US Chamber of Commerce, which had sued the Trump administration to block the proposal, can appeal.
The Judge ruled that Trump’s proclamation was issued under “an express statutory grant of authority to the President.” She wrote that Congress has given the president broad authority that he used to address “in the manner he sees fit, a problem he perceives to be a matter of economic and national security.”
H1-B Visa Decision Not A Good One For The Industry
In a statement, Daryl Joseffer, the Chamber’s executive vice president, said the $100,000 fee makes H-1B visas cost-prohibitive. Joseffer added that we are disappointed in the court’s decision and are considering further legal options to ensure that the H-1B visa program can operate as Congress intended: to enable American businesses of all sizes to access the global talent they need to grow their operations.
In October, the Chamber that is the country’s largest business lobbying group, argued that raising the H1-B fee is unlawful. It contended that the visa price hike overrides federal immigration law and exceeds the fee-setting authority afforded by Congress.
Uncertainty Prevails On The H-1B Visa
Meanwhile, the US Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday has remarked that it will soon replace the lottery system to choose H-1B visa applicants with a weighted selection to overcome wage arbitrage and incentivize American employers “to petition for higher-paid, higher-skilled foreign workers.”
This would mean that low-skill or low-paid Indians will not be able to secure H1B visas, shattering their long-cherished hopes and dreams.
