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The low annual limit for US H-1B work visa petitions is currently the main problem facing employers trying to secure foreign-born talent, according to a new research. The H-1B visa denial rates have returned to low levels following the administration's losses in federal court during former President <keyword id="6354484" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="donald-trump" source="Orion">Donald Trump</keyword>'s last year in office, the National Foundation for American Policy (<keyword id="663584" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="nfap" source="Orion">NFAP</keyword>) said in a new study released on Thursday. In April 2022, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (<keyword id="137642" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="uscis" source="Orion">USCIS</keyword>) reported employers submitted over 483,000 H-1B registrations, almost 400,000 above the 85,000-annual limit for H-1B petitions. The denial rate for (new) H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY 2022 was 2 per cent. The rate declined during the final year of the <keyword id="6354862" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="trump" source="Orion">Trump</keyword> administration after judges declared many of its H-1B-related actions unlawful. This led to a legal settlement and changes to restrictive immigration policies that resulted in the denial rate for new H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY 2021 dropping to 4 per cent -- far lower than the denial rate of 24 per cent in FY 2018, 21 per cent in FY 2019 and 13 per cent in FY 2020. The research, based on data from the USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub, also found that Amazon had the most approved H-1B petitions for initial employment in FY 2022, with 6,396, followed by Infosys (3,151) and TCS (2,725). The 85,000 new H-1B petitions allowed each year for companies represent only 0.05 per cent of the approximately 165 million people in the US labor force. An H-1B petition is often the only practical way to hire a high-skilled foreign national, including an international student. At US universities, more than 70 per cent of full-time graduate students in electrical engineering and computer and information sciences are international students. A 2022 NFAP study found 55 per cent of America's startup companies valued at $1 billion or more have at least one immigrant founder, illustrating the importance and contributions of immigrants to the US economy. "Despite the end of the Trump administration's restrictive immigration policies that made US companies less competitive in the global battle for talent, companies in America still must deal with the low annual limit on H-1B petitions and employment-based green cards," said <keyword id="608170" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="stuart-anderson" source="Orion">Stuart Anderson</keyword>, NFAP's executive director. "These and other policies encourage employers to send work and people outside the US and make it difficult for many talented people to pursue their dreams in America," he added. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/lok-sabha-adjourned-till-2-pm-rajya-sabha-till-230-pm-over-adani-issue/articleshow/97571601.cms">Lok Sabha adjourned till 2 pm, Rajya Sabha till 2:30 pm over Adani issue</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/rupee-gains-12-paise-to-82-08-against-us-dollar/articleshow/97572111.cms">Rupee gains 12 paise to 82.08 against US dollar</a>

Low H-1B visa limit affecting employers: National Foundation for American Policy

As reported earlier, the <keyword id="6354862" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Trump">Trump</keyword> administration is considering <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/After-H1B-its-time-for-US-startup-visas-to-get-blocked/articleshow/59543210.cms">doing away</a> with the <keyword id="591827" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Startup-visa">startup visa</keyword> program, having already postponed the launch from its intended date of 17th July. The visa programme was approved in January by <keyword id="15962" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Barack-Obama">Barack Obama</keyword> administration, and if implemented, would allow non-US founders to live in US if they build their startups there. As per the varied <keyword id="6357722" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="silicon-valley">Silicon Valley</keyword> startup culture, more than half of the US startups valued at $1 billion dollars or more have been founded by immigrants, who are also key members of either management or product development teams in more than 70% of these companies. The above data was compiled in a 2016 study by the <keyword id="606579" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="National-Foundation-for-American-Policy">National Foundation for American Policy</keyword> (<keyword id="663584" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="NFAP">NFAP</keyword>), a US-based non-profit nonpartisan public policy think tank. Out of these startups founded by immigrants, around 30% have been founed by people of Indian origin. "Without doubt, bringing in entrepreneurs creates American jobs and expands the economy, it is the closest thing there could be to a free lunch for the <keyword id="6356955" type="COUNTRY" weightage="100" keywordseo="united-states">United States</keyword>. This is a lose-lose for the US and for the entrepreneurs who would have come here but it will benefit the countries where they would have come from," said Indian-American technology entrepreneur and academic <keyword id="143828" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Vivek-Wadhwa">Vivek Wadhwa</keyword>. "This is the type of brain-dead policy that is becoming a hallmark of the Trump administration. They are pandering to anti-immigrant groups rather than focusing on US competitiveness and economic growth," he added. Another Silicon Valley entrepreneur <keyword id="3322410" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Puru-Vashishtha">Puru Vashishtha</keyword> said that some of his friends from <keyword id="101399" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Stanford-University">Stanford University</keyword> had their ideas and capacities limited because of lack of a startup visa. "These were highly trained, best minds in the world. They wanted to do product startup in the Valley. Unfortunately, because of being a foreign national, even a top university graduate does not get the same options as rest of her US classmates. This is regressive and it deprives the US from significant value creation and job creation. Startup visa was a big hope," he told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/entrepreneurship/us-decision-to-delay-startup-visas-to-impact-indian-entrepreneurs/articleshow/59552511.cms">ET</a>.

Delay in US startup visas not good for Indian entrepreneurs

Although US President Trump is being blamed for increasing protectionism and tightening visa rules for <keyword id="1168691" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-techies">Indian techies</keyword>, reports have come up that suggest a sharp decline in <keyword id="6357549" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Indian-IT-companies">Indian IT companies</keyword> using H-1B visas in 2016 itself. During <keyword id="15962" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Barack-Obama">Barack Obama</keyword>'s last year as US president, top seven India-based IT companies received only 9,356 new H-1B visas, 37% down from previous year, says an analysis by the <keyword id="606579" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="National-Foundation-for-American-Policy">National Foundation for American Policy</keyword> (<keyword id="663584" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="NFAP">NFAP</keyword>). These visas were for petitions filed during the April 2016 H-1B filing period, which were approved for individuals to start work on October 1, 2016 (the start of 2017 fiscal year). As per NFAP, the decline somewhat shows industry trends, particularly in digital services like cloud computing and artificial intelligence, because of which less manpower is required to serve US clients. Other than this, the fall in numbers could be because of IT services companies choosing to hire more local talent than international. As the lottery system goes, the more applications a company files, the higher are its chances of obtaining more visas. It simply means that the reason behind India-based companies getting fewer visas is the less number of applications filed by them. (Image source JawBreaker NYC)

Indian IT companies had decreased reliance on H-1B visas in 2016 itself

<ul><li>The Indian IT companies — <keyword id="28721" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Cognizant">Cognizant</keyword>, <keyword id="10863" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="CapGemini">Capgemini</keyword>, Accenture, Wipro and <keyword id="6354512" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Infosys">Infosys</keyword> — faced over 30% visa rejections during the first three quarters of 2020 fiscal, shows a survey by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP). </li><li>With most of its workforce in India, Cognizant witnessed maximum denial rate at 60%.</li><li>NFAP reported a fourfold increase in the US visa rejections as compared to 2015 fiscal — at 24%. </li></ul>Under the Trump administration, increasing rejection rates for <keyword id="931341" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="H1-B-visas">H1-B visas</keyword> is throwing up hurdles, especially for the IT majors. The Indian IT companies — Cognizant, Capgemini, Accenture, Wipro and Infosys — faced <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/business/story/us-makes-getting-h-1b-visa-harder-indian-techies-hit-1614037-2019-10-30">over 30% visa rejections</a> during the first three quarters of 2020 fiscal, shows a survey by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP). Cognizant witnessed maximum denial rate at 60%. In 2018, Cognizant faced nearly 3,548 rejections for work visas extension, which is so far the highest for any company hiring foreign employees. “The denial rates for H-1B petitions have increased because USCIS has changed the standards for approval without new regulations or Congress passing a new law,” Stuart Anderson, executive director of NFAP <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/nri/visa-and-immigration/a-fourth-of-all-new-h-1b-visa-requests-rejected/articleshow/71812876.cms">told</a> ET. The study data is in contrast with the data by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which said that the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/despite-tighter-norms-the-us-approves-389000-h1-b-visas-this-year/articleshow/71574716.cms">US approved more H1-B visas</a> this year — both entry level and work visa extensions. It said that it extended over 389,000 visas in 2019 fiscal — higher than 335,000 visas approved last year. NFAP data says that US visa rejections grew from 6% in 2015 to 24% in 2019. Indian IT employees account for over 70% of the H1-B visas. Adding to this, the US also announced that it will prefer professionals with a US master's degree when it comes to extending visas. Last year, Deloitte Consulting and Apple received the most number of H1-B visas, while only HCL from India made it to the top 10 list with a total of 5,085 certifications in the US, a<a href="https://trak.in/tags/business/2019/02/16/deloitte-apple-grab-most-number-of-h1b-visas-hcl-only-indian-company-in-top-10-list/">ccording to</a> data with the US Department of Labour. H1-B work visas are initially provided for three years — but can be extended for a similar term later. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/despite-tighter-norms-the-us-approves-389000-h1-b-visas-this-year/articleshow/71574716.cms">Despite tighter norms, the US approves 389,000 H1-B visas this year</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-us-government-wants-to-check-social-media-handles-before-giving-a-green-card/articleshow/71003314.cms">The US government wants to check social media handles before giving a green card</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indians-studying-in-the-uk-have-doubled-in-the-last-three-years/articleshow/70804829.cms">Indians studying in the UK have doubled in the last three years</a>

H-1B visa rejection rates rise sharply — 30% of Cognizant, Capgemini, Accenture, Wipro and Infosys applications denied

The much sought-after Indian talent is moving to <keyword id="6356687" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="canada">Canada</keyword> from the US due to the country's outdated immigration policies, particularly on H-1B visas, experts have told <keyword id="641968" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="American-lawmakers">American lawmakers</keyword>. This is mainly because of the per-country quota on issuing the employment-based Green Card or permanent residency, the experts said on Tuesday, urging the <keyword id="55355" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="US-Congress">US Congress</keyword> to act fast to prevent the Indian talent from moving to Canada from the United States. Without Congressional action, the total backlog for all three employment-based categories for Indians would increase from an estimated 9,15,497 individuals currently to an estimated 21,95,795 individuals by fiscal 2030, executive director of <keyword id="606579" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="National-Foundation-for-American-Policy">National Foundation for American Policy</keyword> Stuart Anderson said. "We should let that number sink in: Within a decade, more than 2 million people will be waiting in line for years or even decades for employment-based <keyword id="407619" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="green-cards">green cards</keyword>," he submitted in his testimony before the House Judiciary Committee-Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship. Testifying before the panel on "Oh, Canada! How Outdated US Immigration Policies Push Top Talent to Other Countries," Anderson said that highly skilled foreign nationals, including international students, are choosing Canada over America. "This has happened in response to how difficult it is to work in the United States in H-1B status or gain permanent residence, and the comparative ease of international students and foreign nationals working in temporary status and then acquiring permanent residence in Canada," he said. The H-1B visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise. Technology companies depend on it to hire tens of thousands of employees each year from countries like India and China. The number of international students from India enrolled in graduate-level computer science and engineering at US universities declined by more than 25 per cent between 2016-17 and 2018-19 academic years, according to an analysis of US government data by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP). To place the significance of the decline in context, international students represent approximately 75 per cent of the full-time graduate students at US universities in computer science, and in the 2016-17 academic year, two-thirds of the international students at the graduate level in computer science at US universities were from India. At the same time, fewer Indian students were coming to America, the number of Indian students attending Canadian universities rose from 76,075 in 2016 to 1,72,625 in 2018, an increase of 127 per cent, according to the Canadian Bureau for International Education, he said. "In sum, Canada's immigration policies are much better than America's for facilitating the entry of talented individuals. Congress established America's policies in 1990, before smartphones, e-commerce, social media, cloud computing and the daily use of the internet exploded the demand for high-skilled technical labour. "The world has changed since 1990, the US immigration policy has not," Anderson said. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-nord-2-india-launch-confirmed-powered-by-dimensity-1200-ai-chipset/articleshow/84203973.cms" style="">OnePlus confirms Nord 2 will have a new chipset that will give users a better camera and gaming experience</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/oneplus-nord-2-renders-specs-launch-date/articleshow/83946158.cms" style="">OnePlus Nord 2 renders give us the best look yet at the upcoming affordable smartphone</a>

Indian talent moving to Canada from the US because of outdated H-1B immigration polices, experts tell American lawmakers

<ul><li><keyword id="6372077" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="nasscom">NASSCOM</keyword> expects Trump to issue more and more H-1B visas to Indian nationals and Indian companies in the US. </li><li>USCIS data showed petitions increased from 6% in FY2015 to 24% in the first three-quarters of FY2019 for <keyword id="6358066" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="h-1b-visa">H-1B visa</keyword> denial. </li></ul>US President <keyword id="6354484" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Donald-Trump">Donald Trump</keyword> and PM <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Narendra-Modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> will be meeting again this week in Gujarat, after their Houston event. Ahead of Trump's visit, IT industry body Nasscom has their requests laid out for the US administration. At the <keyword id="8769102" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="nasscom-technology">NASSCOM Technology</keyword> and Leadership Forum (NTLF), its president Debjani Ghosh said, “I think the biggest task of recommendation to the US and the President (Trump) would be, in this digital world we have to treat high skill talent mobility separately from immigration. We cannot treat high skill talent mobility as an immigration problem.” She added that “most H-1b visas are going to US companies and not to Indian companies. But India is contributing a lot to innovation in the US and the country has to recognize that. The narrative has to change”. Ghosh believes that the US has a huge shortfall in talent in stem and technology, and is dependent on India for “talent”. According to the data from the <keyword id="5700277" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="United-States-Citizenship">United States Citizenship</keyword> and Immigration Services (USCIS), Trump’s policy to ‘Buy American, Hire American’ is mitigating visa petitions only from Indian IT firms like Capgemini, Cognizant and Infosys. US based firms like Facebook and Amazon, on the other hand, are having no troubles bringing home talent from India. 
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 The National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) analysis of USCIS, denial rates for H-1B petitions increased to 24% in FY2019 from 6% in FY2015 for new H-1B petitions. According to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/us-h-1b-visa-rejection-rate-may-trigger-tech-ma/articleshow/69721592.cms">NASSCOM</a>, the Indian IT firms contribute $58 billion to the US GDP, which is higher than what six individual US states contribute. Most of the Indian work with more than 75% of the Fortune 500 companies — the majority of which are American enterprises.

Donald Trump should see the H-1B visa issue differently, says India's IT lobby

<ul><li>H1-B denial rates for initial petitions have increased from 6% in 2015 to 32% within the first quarter of 2019. </li><li>Attorneys and employers believe it’s because the United States Citizenship and Immigation Services has increased the standard of proof the approval of H1-B visas.</li><li>Top companies, like Amazon, witnessed their denial rate skyrocket from 3% to over 30% for continuing H1-B petitions.</li></ul>Denial rates for H-1B petitions is at an all time high and attorneys believe its because the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has <a href="https://www.uscis.gov/h-1b-data-hub">increased</a> the standard of proof for approval without the requisite legal authority. H1-B denial rates for initial petitions have increased four times between 2015 to 2018, from 6% to 24%. The denial rates have spiked further to 32% in the first quarter of 2019 . An analysis by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) <a href="https://nfap.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/H-1B-Denial-Rates-Past-and-Present.NFAP-Policy-Brief.April-2019.pdf">states</a> that, in contrast, denial rates have never exceeded 8% in the years between 2010 and 2015. 
 
 
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 Even for people who already have H-1B visas, the denial rate for continuing petitions have trebled to 18% from a mere 3% in 2015. For eight years, between 2009 to 2017, the upper threshold for denial rates for such requests was 6%. 
 
 
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 The e-commerce giant, Amazon, saw a 17% denial rate on 228 H1-B petitions for continuing H1-B. In fact, almost every top employer on USCIS’ list saw an increase in their denials — in some cases, jumping from 2% to over 30%. Trump said that he wanted more ‘highly skilled’ immigrants to come to the US when he <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-executive-order-buy-american-hire-american/">issued</a> the ‘Buy American, Hire American’ executive order in 2017. Indian applicants, in particular, have a lot at stake. Over 75% of all H-1B visa applications <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indians-accounted-for-75-of-all-h1b-visas-in-the-us-in-the-last-two-years/articleshow/64079333.cms">between</a> 2016 and 2018 were from India. The April 2017 executive order <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/trump-may-have-an-ugly-surprise-for-h-1b-applicants-and-indian-it-companies/articleshow/67552613.cms">left</a> 65,000 people out of the general quota reducing the number of visas available to less-skilled workers usually employed by the Indian IT companies. But, in reality, lawyers have <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/trump-said-he-wanted-more-highly-skilled-immigrants-to-come-to-the-us-but-skilled-educated-foreign-workers-are-leaving-the-us-dejected-saying-trump-doomed-their-american-dreams-leaving-businesses-in-the-lurch-/articleshow/68234469.cms">observed </a>an increase in the denial rate of H1-B visas for skilled applicants as well. Dejected candidates have reportedly been <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/skilled-foreign-workers-are-giving-up-on-their-american-dreams-and-turning-to-canada/articleshow/68659342.cms">shifting</a> their aspirations to aim for a Canadian visa. The sudden and sharp increase in H1-B denials raises serious legal and policy questions <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2019/04/10/new-data-show-h-1b-denial-rates-reaching-highest-levels/#36bccee6797f">according</a> to Willam Stock, a founding member of Klasko Immigration Law Partners, who reviewed the data for Forbes. Stock explains, "One thing that is clear to me is that the data backs up what employers have been saying for the last two years: USCIS has raised the legal standard they use to decide whether enough evidence has been presented with petitions to approve them, without any legal authority to do so and without any notice to the public." The consequence of such high denial rates can have an impact on international students, expanding businesses, and applicants awaiting their green card approval. NFAP noted that only 20% of full-time computer science and electrical engineering students in US universities are actually citizens of the US. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/skilled-foreign-workers-are-giving-up-on-their-american-dreams-and-turning-to-canada/articleshow/68659342.cms">Skilled, foreign workers are giving up on their American dreams - and turning to Canada</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/Rejections-for-standard-work-visas-have-shot-up-under-the-Trump-administration-but-some-companies-have-avoided-the-trend/articleshow/68143712.cms?utm_source=ten_minutes_with&amp;utm_medium=Referral&amp;utm_campaign=Content_Patnership">Rejections for standard work-visas have shot up under the Trump administration, but some companies have avoided the trend</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/indians-accounted-for-75-of-all-h1b-visas-in-the-us-in-the-last-two-years/articleshow/64079333.cms">Indians accounted for 75% of all H1B visas in the US in the last two years</a>

US Immigration is denying more H1-B visas than ever before — without notice or authority

A US-based think tank has claimed US President <keyword id="6354484" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Donald-Trump">Donald Trump</keyword>’s H1-B visa diktat is based on incorrect data and majority of H1-B professionals were paid less. An official from Trump’s administration stated nearly 80% of H-1B workers were paid less than the median wage in the sector. A study by National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP) claimed there were few low-paid H-1B workers, which contradicts with US government data, which counted more low-paid H1B visa workers than there actually are. The study said foreigners on H-1B visa who are paid less-than-median American salary provide cost advantage to employers who do not prefer American workers for same jobs. This leads to Americans losing their jobs to foreigners. "This statistic is misleading as it relies on a Department of Labor database that includes multiple applications for the same individuals since a new filing is generally required when an H-1B professional moves to a new area," the study said. "The wages listed in the DOL database are generally only the minimum that a company is required to pay under the law. Employers are required to pay the higher of the prevailing wage or actual wage paid to all other individuals with similar experience and qualifications for the specific employment in question. That means wages listed in the DOL database typically understate an individual H-1B visa holder's actual salary," says the study.

Donald Trump’s crackdown on H1-B visa professionals is based on incorrect data

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission via Associated PressAkayed Ullah, the suspect in the explosion near New York's Times Square on Monday, Dec. 11, 2017.</div></div></div><ul><li>Akayed Ullah, the suspected Manhattan bomber, benefited from "chain migration," the Trump administration said.</li><li>Ullah entered through a family-based immigration category that many conservatives and immigration critics want eliminated.</li><li>Advocates say the program is a proud part of American history, and takes far too long to be considered a threat.</li></ul> The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/explosion-new-york-citys-port-authority-bus-terminal-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">attempted suicide bombing</a> in New York City on Monday prompted a fresh wave of condemnation for family-sponsored immigration, which allowed the suspected terrorist to legally enter the United States from Bangladesh in 2011.Authorities say Akayed Ullah, the 27-year-old suspect, strapped a makeshift pipe bomb to his chest and partially detonated it in a passageway in the heart of midtown Manhattan, mildly injuring three and causing thousands of commuters to flee before the NYPD neutralized him. <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/akayed-ullah-wrote-about-trump-on-facebook-before-nyc-bombing-2017-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Federal prosecutors charged Ullah</a> with supporting a terrorist organization and using a weapon of mass destruction.President Donald Trump, along with scores of conservatives and immigration critics, blamed the attack on what he described as "lax" immigration policies. Some have argued that the attack could have been prevented under the provisions of a proposed bill known as the RAISE Act, which seeks to curb legal immigration to the US by half."Today's terror suspect entered our country through extended-family chain migration, which is incompatible with national security," Trump said in a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/12/11/statement-president-donald-j-trump-regarding-todays-attack-new-york-city" target="_blank" rel="noopener">statement released by the White House</a>. "America must fix its lax immigration system, which allows far too many dangerous, inadequately vetted people to access our country … Congress must end chain migration."<h2>What is chain migration?</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Joe Raedle/Getty ImagesDonald Trump.</div></div></div>Chain migration is a term almost exclusively used by immigration hardliners when referring to the family reunification part of the US immigration system.It lets US citizens or lawful permanent residents (people with Green Cards) to sponsor close family members to join them in the US.Prominent groups that advocate for stricter immigration policies - like the <a href="https://www.fairus.org/issue/legal-immigration/chain-migration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Federation for American Immigration Reform</a> and <a href="https://www.numbersusa.com/solutions/end-chain-migration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">NumbersUSA</a> - have frequently denounced chain migration, describing it as a process that admits "indefinite" numbers of unskilled immigrants based on family connections alone. They say it prompts foreigners to view US immigration as a "right or entitlement."But those criticisms ignore the country's history of immigration, which has always allowed Americans to bring in their relatives, according to Stuart Anderson of the National Foundation for American Policy, a non-partisan think tank."The term 'chain migration' is a contrived term," Anderson told Business Insider. "It's just part of every single immigration category in every country in the world, that when the principal person is sponsored, they're allowed to bring their spouse and minor child with them. They're not gladiators or something, they're human beings. They're going to have family members."Immigration proponents typically describe family-based immigration as essential in helping new immigrants assimilate into US society. The <a href="https://www.americanimmigrationcouncil.org/research/advantages-family-based-immigration" target="_blank" rel="noopener">American Immigration Council</a>, for instance, argues that newcomers who can bring family members with them when they immigrate to the US have stronger social and economic support."It would almost seem opportunistic to use the case of one person out of the millions of people throughout US history who've come in by being sponsored by a family member to try to eliminate a particular category," Anderson said. "Particularly when this individual, from everything we know, did not present any problems at the time they came into the country but became radicalized in the last few years."<h2>How chain migration applies to the NYC bomber</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_left"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/APTOPIX-NYC-Subway-Platform-Explosion/d6b20737152d439cbc9ca7dfe842ce57/1/1">AP Photo/Andres Kudacki</a>The scene near New York's Times Square following the explosion on Monday.</div></div></div>Ullah entered the US in 2011 and received permanent residency under an immigration program known as the fourth family-based preference, <a href="https://twitter.com/SpoxDHS/status/940361415910744064" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Homeland Security spokesman Tyler Houlton said on Monday</a>.This year, most foreigners immigrating to the US under the fourth preference category waited in line for 13 years to come. But wait times can last as long as 23 years, depending on which country the immigrants are originally from.It's unclear when exactly Ullah's family first petitioned for their immigrant visas, but it's likely they, too, waited in line for years before their 2011 entry. <a href="https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/visa-bulletin/2018/visa-bulletin-for-december-2017.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">State Department data</a> show that people who are currently being issued immigrant visas for that same fourth preference category have been waiting in line since at least 2004.The "preference" in this case refers to the four family-based immigration categories, the last of which allows foreigners to apply for immigrant visas if their sibling is a US citizen.Because those immigrants are allowed to bring their spouses and minor children, which is how Ullah gained entry, the process is often viewed by critics as allowing a "chain" of extended family members to immigrate to the US.<h2>Millions of applicants and years-long backlogs</h2><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Andrew KellyA member of the New York Police Department's Bomb Squad walks through the 42nd Street subway station beneath the New York Port Authority Bus Terminal following an attempted detonation during the morning rush hour, in New York City, New York, U.S., December 11, 2017.</div></div></div>Immigration hardliners' theory that scores of newly naturalized US citizens are sponsoring endless strings of family members has been roundly <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/stuartanderson/2011/10/16/the-myth-of-chain-migration-2/#a1e58b64562d">criticized by immigration experts</a>.The US's visa and green-card backlogs alone ensure that many prospective immigrants face painstakingly long waiting periods before being admitted to the country or given permanent residency - a significant barrier in trying to get more family members to join them.Family-based immigration is not an immediate process, and it can take years or even decades for immigrant visas to be made available and processed.This is because the federal government applies strict numeric quotas to most family-based preference categories, resulting in years-long line-ups that eligible immigrants must wait in before their applications are approved.For instance, the fourth preference category that Ullah's family waited in currently only allows 65,000 people to enter per year. Yet there's a backlog of nearly 2.5 million applicants, according to an upcoming NFAP report viewed by Business Insider.Beyond the issuance of immigrant visas, once an immigrant arrives in the US on a visa, it takes <a href="https://www.uscis.gov/greencard/green-card-processes-procedures" target="_blank" rel="noopener">additional time to receive a green card</a> that denotes permanent residency. After that, permanent residents typically have to wait <a href="https://www.uscis.gov/us-citizenship/citizenship-through-naturalization/path-us-citizenship" target="_blank" rel="noopener">five years</a> before they may apply to become US citizens.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Associated Press/Manuel Balce CenetaSen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., left, with Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., speaks during a <keyword id="6355005" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="News">news</keyword> conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017</div></div></div>The ongoing debate over family-based immigration could signal a bump in the road for any immigration deal between Republicans and Democrats.The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/daca-lindsey-graham-dick-durbin-urge-action-on-dream-act-trump-immigration-news-2017-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">bipartisan Dream Act</a>, reintroduced in Congress in September by Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin and Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, includes a pathway to citizenship for young unauthorized immigrants, whose protections under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program will be phased out over the next six months.Immigration critics have argued that any pathway to citizenship offered to those immigrants would inevitably allow them to sponsor relatives - in some cases that could include their parents who first brought them to the US as children. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/tucker-carlson-fox-news-democrat-ignition-mayor-most-corrupt-candidate-2017-12">Fox News' Tucker Carlson - a registered Democrat - explains why he always votes for the most corrupt mayoral candidate</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

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Low H-1B visa limit affecting employers: National Foundation for American Policy

IANS

Delay in US startup visas not good for Indian entrepreneurs

BI India Bureau

Indian IT companies had decreased reliance on H-1B visas in 2016 itself

BI India Bureau

H-1B visa rejection rates rise sharply — 30% of Cognizant, Capgemini, Accenture, Wipro and Infosys applications denied

Prerna Sindwani

Indian talent moving to Canada from the US because of outdated H-1B immigration polices, experts tell American lawmakers

PTI

Donald Trump should see the H-1B visa issue differently, says India's IT lobby

Navdeep Yadav

US Immigration is denying more H1-B visas than ever before — without notice or authority

Prabhjote Gill

Donald Trump’s crackdown on H1-B visa professionals is based on incorrect data

BI India Bureau

Conservatives are up in arms about 'chain migration', how they say the NYC bombing suspect entered the US - here's how it works

Michelle Mark

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