US says TCS, Infosys apply for very large number of visas, accuses them of violating H-1B visa norms

A senior official in the US has accused Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys of violating H1-B visa norms, saying they put in extra tickets in lottery system more than they get.

As per a transcript of a briefing, posted on White House website, the senior official said TCS and Infosys corner lion's share of H-1B visas.

"You may know their names well, but like the top recipients of the H-1B visa are companies like Tata, Infosys, Cognizant -- they will apply for a very large number of visas, more than they get, by putting extra tickets in the lottery raffle, if you will, and then they'll get the lion's share of visas," the senior official said, according to transcript of the briefing posted on White House website.

Responding to a follow up on why Indian companies were singled out for a mention, the White House response said Tata Consultancy Services, Infosys and Cognizant were the top three recipients of H-1B visas.

"And those three companies are companies that have an average wage for H-1B visas between USD 60,000 and USD 65,000 (a year). By contrast, the median Silicon Valley software engineer's wage is probably around USD 150,000," the official said.

He said contracting firms that are not skills employers, who oftentimes use workers for entry-level positions, capture the lion's share of H-1B visas. "And that's all public record."

All the three Indian firms refused to comment on the US administration comment.

The official said H-1B visas presently were awarded through random lottery with about 80 per cent of H-1B workers being paid less than the median wage in their fields.