H-1B Visa Delays: How India Is ‘Directly Engaging’ with the US On The Crisis - Explained

New Delhi: India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Friday raised concerns about issues faced by its nationals regarding the rescheduling of H-1B visa appointments after receiving numerous complaints

from its nationals. The government said that though they have flagged the issue with the United States both in New Delhi and Washington, Visa related issues pertain to the sovereign domain of any country but the government is actively engaged with the US to minimise the disruptions caused to the nationals.Addressing a presser, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the government of India has received several representations from Indian nationals who are facing problems with their rescheduling of their visa appointments.

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"Visa related issues pertain to the sovereign domain of any country, we have flagged these issues and our concerns to the US side, both in New Delhi and in Washington, DC... Several people have been stranded for extended period, which have caused a lot of hardships to the families as well as their children's education... The government of India remains actively engaged with the US side to minimise the disruptions caused to our nationals," Randhir Jaiswal said. Why US Has Delayed H-1B Visa Rescheduling AppointmentsThe interviews of thousands of H-1B visa applicants slated from the middle of this month in India have been abruptly postponed by several months to scrutinise their social media posts and online profiles.Some of the applicants, whose visa appointments were scheduled last week, received e-mails from US immigration authorities informing that their interviews are being pushed back as late as May next year.ALSO READ | H-1B Visa Overhaul: US Ends Lottery System, To Now Prioritise Higher-Paid, Higher-Skilled WorkersThe mass cancellation of scheduled interviews of the H-1B visa applicants in view of the enhanced vetting measures has resulted in significant delays in their return to the US.

How H-1B Visa Delay Is Affecting Indians

The rescheduling of the interviews is for all applicants who were previously given appointments from December 15 onwards.ALSO READ | 'Policy Decision': US Judge Upholds Trump’s $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee, Rejects Business Group's ChallengeMost of them were already in India and are now unable to return to the US pending their new interview dates since they don't have a valid H1B visa to travel back to the US for their jobs.Applicants whose interviews were scheduled for December 15 received emails postponing the date to sometime in March. While many of them whose appointments were scheduled for December 19 have now been given new dates in late May.It is learnt that interviews of several other categories of visa applicants are also being postponed in view of the new norms for scrutinising the social media profiles of the applications.The exact number of applicants impacted by the delays in the visa interviews is not immediately known.

Not Just H-1B, But H-4 Visa Holders Also Affected Due To Trump Govt's New Policy

Apart from H-1B visa, the Trump administration's policy impacted H-4 visa applicants as well. The H-4 visa holders are primarily spouses of H1B visa workers."There are several people who have been stranded for extended periods of time because of scheduling and rescheduling of consular appointments," Jaiswal added.Jaiswal said the disruptions in the visa appointment schedule have caused "a lot of hardships" to the applicants, their families as well as the education of their children.

Why Trump Govt Tightened Noose on H-1B Visa Programme

The Trump administration has been tightening the H1B visa programme under its broader policy on checking immigration. There has been wider scrutiny now of social media posts and profiles of visa applicants.Under the H-1B visa programme, companies recruit foreign workers with specialised skills to work in the US, initially for three years that can be renewed for three more years.Indians made up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).In September, US President Donald Trump signed a proclamation raising the fee for H-1B visas to a staggering USD 100,000.There is a possibility of H1B visa seekers facing more challenging situation in the future.US Vice President JD Vance a few days ago said that the Trump administration has worked to restrict H-1B visas as it believes it is wrong for companies to "bypass American labour just to go for cheaper options in the third world".With inputs from PTI