US court rejects Trump-era H-1B visa proposal

(PTI) Washington, Ta. 13

A US federal court has rejected a proposal to use the Trump-era pay-based selection process to replace the current lottery system for H-1B visa selection. The cancellation of this proposal will bring a lot of relief to Indian professionals. Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolfe rejected then-President Donald Trump's proposal on the grounds that he was not legally working in his position when the Northern District Court in California filed the motion.

The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant visa that allows foreign professionals working in American companies to stay in the United States. Thousands of Indian professionals go to the US to work on these visas. The United States has set a limit of 5,000 H-1B visas per year. Apart from this, 30,000 are reserved for professionals with higher degrees. US President Donald Trump changed his H-1B visa policy towards the end of his term. He proposed to implement a salary-based selection process instead of the current lottery system. However, his proposal was strongly opposed.

Judge Jeffrey S. of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. White on Wednesday granted the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's application challenging the Trump administration's proposed H-1B visa in court. Under the current system for H-1B visas, foreign professionals are selected on an earlier basis and through a combination of lotteries.

At the end of his term, then-US President Donald Trump proposed a pay-based selection process for H-1B visas. At the time, USCIS said it would implement a pay-based H-1B visa selection process that puts the interests of American workers first, and would ensure that only highly skilled foreign workers benefit from the temporary employment program. The H-1B visa issuance rule was originally enacted on March 6, 2021. But in response to the Biden administration's regulatory freeze, the Department of Homeland Security extended the date of implementation of the proposed rule to December 31, 2021.

On the other hand, the American Citizenship and Immigration Services said in a recent statement that we need to select more applications by fiscal year 205. Only applicants with optional registration for FY 207 can apply for H-1B work visa. The first application limit for those who registered for FY 207 was from April 1, 2021 to June 30, 2021.