The US Administration has brought a key reform to the H-1B visa programme. The rules came into effect today, January 17. The updates under this aim to promote fairness, efficiency and transparency in getting foreign talent into the country, as per the US Government.

The Indians are the largest group who hold this H-1B Visa. The 386,000 visas were issued in 2023, and 72% of this was given to the Indians. As per the experts. the Indian tech professionals stand to benefit significantly from these changes.

The H-1B visa allows US employers to temporarily get foreign workers with specialized skills by hiring them. As per the US Citizenship and Immigration Services, these changes are made to simplify the visa approval steps and also boost the flexibility of the programme.

The US Department of Homeland Security has highlighted the two major objectives to modernize this programme. Under this comes the enhancing the clarity and and efficiency of the programme and giving benefits to the employers and visa holders.

The definition of specialized work under this program has been updated. As per the new rules, it gives relief to students with F1 visas in the US, ensuring the continuity of their legal status.

Their F-1 Visa will get an extension until April 1, during the review of the H-1B visa application. The Non-Profit and government research organizations will be free from this H-1B cap. They will be exempted from this even if research is not their first focus.

The companies that are applying for this H-1B visa are now need to prove the existence of legitimate ‘specialty job’.

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