Since 2007, more than 1 million immigrants have been granted green cards each year, except during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The series of events has put a spotlight on the US’ H1B visa program, which primarily benefits Indian workers. This program allows U.S. employers to hire skilled foreign professionals for specialized roles.
A month-old post about X by Sriram Krishnan, a Chennai-born engineer who was recently appointed as an AI advisor to the US government by President-elect Donald Trump, went viral.
Editorial |Visa Policy: About President Trump’s Immigration Policy
Krishnan urged Elon Musk, who will be advising the Trump administration on cutting unnecessary regulations, to eliminate country caps on green cards and “unlock skilled immigration.” This sparked debate, with both pro-immigrant and anti-immigrant voices influencing the H1B visa program. Far-right activist Laura Loomer was among those who criticized Krishnan’s appointment and the H1B program.
Earlier this month, Bloomberg published a detailed report featuring US-born former employees of India-based IT company Cognizant Technology Solutions, who said that “H1B employees were treated more favorably than US employees. “I was,” he claimed. In October, a US jury found the tech giant guilty of discriminating against non-Indian workers.
Earlier this year, several Tata Consultancy Services employees in the United States filed a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, alleging racial discrimination and preferential hiring of individuals with H-1B visas.
Amid continued criticism of the H1B program, President Joe Biden’s administration last week introduced new rules to make it easier for U.S. companies to hire foreign workers. This change also made it easier for individuals to transition from an F-1 student visa to an H1B visa.
In this context, a recent study by Pew Research Center is important. It found that 30% of U.S. adults support increasing legal immigration, 46% prefer to maintain current levels, and 22% support decreasing it.
Figure 1 shows the percentage of U.S. adults who want legal immigration to increase, decrease, or stay the same.
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Americans ages 18 to 29 showed strong support for increasing legal immigration, with 50% in favor and 10% favoring a decrease. However, only 20% of people over 50 supported the increase. Nearly 30% supported the cuts.
Responses were also divided along political lines: 30% of Republicans supported reducing legal immigration, compared to just 14% of Democrats. White Americans had the least support for increasing legal immigration.
The survey also found that about 4 in 10 Americans believe that high-skilled workers should be given priority when deciding who can legally stay in the United States. (Figure 2).
Importantly, Musk recently responded to a post by a CEO of a US-based company advocating raising the cap on H1B visas to attract more “top talent” by saying he “agrees” on X. That’s what I replied.
Amid calls for higher caps on temporary worker visas, the number of immigrants granted legal permanent residence through green cards returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2023 (Exhibit 3).
Approximately 1.2 million immigrants will obtain green cards in 2023, an increase of approximately 155,000 compared to 2022.
Since 2007, more than 1 million immigrants have been granted green cards each year, except during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2023, 197,000 people will be given employment-based green cards, typically issued to highly skilled foreign workers or those to fill labor shortages.
Although a significant portion of Republican voters support cutting legal immigration, Mr. Trump’s team and the tech industry have advocated increasing immigration to meet demand for skilled workers.
issued – January 1, 2025 7:00 AM IST
