Is H1B visa losing its shine? 11,000 remain unused
By siliconindia   |   Monday, 27 December 2010, 22:30 IST   |    47 Comments
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Is H1B visa losing its shine? 11,000 remain unused
Bangalore: According to the latest available count from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) it has come to the notice that there are more than 11,000 H1B visas still remain as unused. Usually, the H1B visas have been in great demand, but that flagged even last year when the quota was filled only by the third week of December. This year that target appears to be even more difficult to meet since the weak American economy has impacted demand and that has been compounded by the visa fee penalty. These visas, available to all countries, have mainly been utilized in recent years by Indian tech companies like Infosys. What may be the reason? Over the years it has changes its name from skilled labour visas to cheap labour visas also the U.S. brushed aside India's stand on the issue and passed a bill to extend the fee hike on H1B and L1 visas used by Indian professionals working in America and impose an additional two per cent fee on Indian exports. However, the country's protectionist sentiments have taken the shine off the H1B.

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