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US H1-B Visa News: The US Embassy in India suddenly canceled the appointments for H-1B visa. Due to this thousands of Indians are trapped. The new visa policy has increased delays and confusion. In such a situation, Google has advised its employees to avoid travelling.
Thousands of Indian H-1B visa holders, who returned to India for renewal of work permits in December, are currently stranded in the country. The US Embassy and Consulates suddenly canceled their visa appointments and rescheduled them several months later. Due to this unexpected delay, tech giant Google has advised some of its employees to avoid international travel as the ‘risk of being stuck outside for a long time’ has increased.
According to a report by The Washington Post, ‘hundreds, possibly thousands’ of Indians who had appointments scheduled between December 15 and 26 are affected by this decision. No prior notice of appointment cancellation was given, leading to confusion among both passengers and companies.
What did Google say to its employees?
Meanwhile, an internal memo of Google further highlighted the seriousness of the situation. The company hires about 1,000 H-1B visa workers every year. In the memo, employees were warned that those who need a visa stamp to return to the US should not leave the country for the time being, because the visa processing time has increased significantly. According to Reuters, in September also Alphabet had advised its employees to avoid international travel and H-1B holders to stay in the US. However, Google did not immediately give any official response on this.
According to a report in Hindustan Times (HT), America’s new visa-checking policy is believed to be the reason behind rescheduling of the appointment. Under this policy, applicants’ social media activities and ‘online presence’ are being thoroughly reviewed. US officials say that this process is to identify those applicants who may pose a risk to national security.
How did Trump’s decision increase the problem?
This development is another episode of the ongoing controversies regarding the H-1B program. Once considered the backbone of US immigration policy, this program allowed highly-skilled professionals to work and live in the US. More than 70 percent of those who get H-1B visas are Indians. However, US President Donald Trump and many of his allies have taken a tough stance on this, which is considered part of a broader anti-immigration policy. In September, the Trump administration also imposed a fee of $1 lakh on new H-1B applications.
Speaking to The Washington Post, an immigration lawyer described the situation as ‘the biggest mess we have ever seen.’ He says that sudden cancellation of appointments and long delays have become a big problem not only for the employees but also for the American companies.
