Engaging with US administration, IT industry to find way forward on H-1B issue: Govt sources
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that will raise the fee for H1-B visa applications to a steep $100K annually. The H-1B visa fee ranges from about $2,000 to $5,000, depending on employer size, other costs.
The Indian government is engaging with the IT industry and the US administration to find a way forward on the H-1B issue, sources said on Saturday, noting that the application fee increase hits American companies even harder as they are significant users of these visas for highly-skilled professionals.
US President Donald Trump on Friday signed a proclamation that will raise the fee for H1-B visa applications to a steep $100,000 annually. The H-1B visa fee ranges from about $2,000 to $5,000, depending on employer size and other costs.
Sources said the Indian government is actively engaged with the US government, the IT industry, and the association Nasscom to arrive at a way forward on this.
Sources pointed out that, given that US companies are major users of these visas, they, too, are actively engaging with the US government on the matter.
Industry body Nasscom said the US' move to raise the H-1B visa application fee to $100,000 will impact India's technology services companies, as business continuity will be disrupted for onshore projects that may require "adjustments".
Former Infosys CFO and industry veteran Mohandas Pai also said the US move to impose a steep annual fee on H-1B visa applicants will dampen fresh applications by companies and may accelerate offshoring in the coming months.
A look at the USCIS website shows that for FY25 (data as on June 30, 2025), Amazon topped the list of H-1B visa approvals at 10,044.
In that list of top-ten beneficiaries, TCS (5,505) is at the second spot, followed by Microsoft Corp (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Cognizant (2,493), JP Morgan Chase (2,440), Walmart (2,390) and Deloitte Consulting (2,353).
The top 20 list includes Infosys (2,004), LTIMindtree (1,807), and HCL America (1,728).
Edited by Jyoti Narayan