US President Donald Trump has signed a proclamation that will require a $100,000 application fee for H-1B visa applications among other changes to the programme for highly skilled foreign workers that has come under scrutiny by the administration.
Companies who apply to bring in workers from other countries on H1-B visas will have to pay $100,000 per visa annually, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said on Friday.
Lutnick made the comments in the Oval Office during which Trump signed a proclamation overhauling the visa system.
H-1B visas are meant to bring the best and brightest foreigners for high-skilled jobs that tech companies find difficult to fill with qualified US citizens and permanent residents.
The programme instead has turned into a pipeline for overseas workers who are often willing to work for as little as $60,000 annually. That is far less than $100,000-plus salaries typically paid to US technology workers.
The programme was created in 1990 for people with a bachelor's degree or higher in fields where jobs are deemed hard to fill, especially science, technology, engineering and math.
Lottery system
Critics say they allow companies to pay lower wages with fewer labour protections.
Historically, these visas — 85,000 per year — have been doled out, mostly to Indians, through a lottery system.
This year, Amazon was by far the top recipient of H-1B visas with more than 10,000 awarded, followed by Tata Consultancy, Microsoft, Apple and Google.
Geographically, California has the highest number of H-1B workers, according to the US Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Critics say H-1B spots often go to entry-level jobs, rather than senior positions with unique skill requirements.
And while the programme isn't supposed to undercut US wages or displace US workers, critics say companies can pay less by classifying jobs at the lowest skill levels, even if the specific workers hired have more experience.
___
Source: TRT