U.S. may increase H-1B visas available to Indians

The U.S. government is considering a substantial increase in the number of H-1B visas available to Indian professionals, Robert Blake, deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Delhi reportedly told a meeting hosted by the Delhi-based Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM)

The new thinking by the U.S. about hiking the number of H-1B visas to Indian professionals is based on its recognition of their contributions in the fields of accounting, software, engineering, science, architecture and law, ASSOCHAM said in a press release Thursday.

U.S. embassy officials in Delhi were not immediately available to confirm Blake's reported remarks.

The H-1B visa issue has proved contentious with both Indian and U.S. IT companies demanding an increase in the number of H-1B visas allowed. A congressional cap on the number of foreign workers allowed to enter the U.S. on H-1B visas reverted to pre-dot-com boom levels of 65,000 visas on Oct. 1, 2003 -- the start of the U.S. federal fiscal year 2004 -- after the U.S. Congress did not extend an earlier limit of 195,000.

Congress passed legislation last year allowing 20,000 more H-1B visas for this year for applicants with graduate degrees from U.S. universities.

The Indian software and services industry uses H-1B visas to send engineers to work on-site at customer premises in the U.S. The cut in the number of H-1B visas would only accelerate the shift of work offshore to India, as U.S. companies would be compelled to move offshore for cost savings, industry sources in both the U.S. and India have cautioned. Last year, the H-1B quota of 65,000 was exhausted on Oct. 1, the first day it opened.