More than 2,00,000 H1-B visa holders in US could lose Legal status: Report

A new report says that layoffs in the United States due to the coronavirus pandemic could have an adverse effect on H1-B visa holders (guest/speciality workers) who could risk losing their legal status by June end.

Jeremy Neufeld, an immigration policy analyst with the Washington DC-based think tank Niskanen Center was stated as saying that around 2,50,000 guest workers trying to obtain a green card in the US, with 2,00,000 of them on H-1B visas, could potentially lose their legal status by June end. He also added that scores of more individuals, who are not looking for resident status, may also be compelled to go back home. The report said that close to three-quarters of H-1B visas are given to those employed in the technology sector.

Millions of Americans have been laid off over the last two months. However, workers on visas are more prone to hardships as H1-B visas are linked to location and an employer who agrees to award the recipient a basic salary. Pay cuts and even work from home arrangements can go against the visa rules. H-1B workers who are fired have 60-days to find a new job, shift to a different visa type or return home. Even for those able to hold on to their jobs, Covid-19 has posed the challenge of not getting their visas renewed.

A spokesperson from the US Department of Immigration and Services declined to comment on these developments but said owing to the pandemic, special support could be provided to people.