00:00And within a day after announcing a major hike in H-1B visa fees, the White House has issued a clarification.
00:05It now says that that $100,000 charge is not an annual fee, but a one-time payment.
00:11U.S. Department of Labor has posted a video regarding this.
00:13It says that the move is part of Project Firewall, the plan to ensure skilled jobs for Americans first,
00:19ending decades-long America last policies and what they say, abuse of H-1B visas.
00:30Well, the clarification came from White House Press Secretary Karen L. Levitt,
00:35who said that the fee only applies to new visas and not renewals or current visa holders.
00:40She added that those who already hold H-1B visas and are currently outside of the U.S.
00:45will not be charged $100,000 to re-enter the U.S.
00:51This move by Donald Trump's administration is expected to hit India the most,
00:56as 71% of over 400,000 H-1B visas approved in 2024, just last year, were received by India.
01:05The Indian Foreign Ministry has warned of humanitarian consequences for families impacted by the disruption
01:11and urged U.S. authorities to reconsider their decision while instructing all Indian missions and posts
01:17to provide assistance to Indian nationals traveling back to the United States within the next 24 hours.
01:22It further said that both India and the U.S. have a stake in innovation and creativity,
01:27and the two sides must consult on the best path forward.
01:31About 85,000 H-1B visas are available each year through a lottery system.
01:36Among the recipients this year, Amazon got more than 10,000 visas, the highest of any tech company.
01:42Other big names include Microsoft, Apple, Google.
01:44The administration argues that many H-1B workers are paid around $60,000 a year,
01:50which is well below what U.S. tech workers typically earn.
01:54The goal, say officials, is to ensure foreign workers are truly high-skilled
01:58and prevent undercutting U.S. wages.
02:01Also notable here is that in 2024, lottery bids for H-1B visas fell by nearly 40%
02:07after the U.S. citizenship and immigration services cracked down on abuses
02:10such as submitting multiple applications to increase chances.
02:13The U.S. Commerce Secretary, Howard Leutnick, defended the move to hike the fee
02:19and said that either the person should be valuable enough to work in the United States
02:23or they should head home.
02:25Donald Trump has accused companies of exploiting the H-1B system
02:29to replace U.S. jobs with cheaper foreign-skilled workers
02:32and has cited rising unemployment among American graduates behind his policy.
02:37But then tech billionaire Elon Musk had his two bits to share.
02:41He is warned that the U.S. does not have enough homegrown talent
02:44to meet the demand in critical tech sectors.
02:48JP Morgan, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, they have all issued internal advisories
02:52telling foreign workers to stay in the U.S. and avoid international travel for now.
02:55All right. Joining me on the broadcast now is Ankush Sabarwal,
03:11who is the founder and CEO of Korova and Bharat GPT.
03:17Ankush, thanks so much for making time and joining me here on the broadcast.
03:19Now, this sudden change in the fee format from a recurring cost
03:23to one time within hours that change has happened.
03:26Is this course correction? Is this damage control?
03:29Have they not thought these policies through? Give me your thoughts.
03:33See, I'm also reading in the news, but if you see,
03:38of course, maybe the course correction and you see the companies
03:43and the media reacted to it, but I see, you know, it's positive
03:50for both the countries. I see that way.
03:54If you see, it's course correction and why someone has to take the benefit
03:59of the cheap labor available outside the U.S.
04:04So I think, so now it's, now it's level playing field has been set up.
04:11I think that's, that's good. And if you see who is suffering,
04:14if you, and I think the report which I was just watching,
04:17which you were reading, also the companies are the U.S. companies, right?
04:22So I understand 70% of the H1B visa holders are in India,
04:28but see who is getting benefited end of the day.
04:31I think it's, it's mainly the U.S. companies.
04:35I think maybe the course correction, this is a course correction,
04:39of course, for the U.S. Maybe, maybe the price would increase,
04:43maybe the cost arbitrage is not there.
04:46And who would be suffering?
04:48Probably the U.S. companies who would be paying more to the employees
04:52and probably the margins would reduce or probably the prices would increase.
04:56And eventually the U.S. companies will have to pay more
04:59more for the same work.
05:01And maybe the end of the day, the consumers, right?
05:04Who are the end consumers of those companies who suffer.
05:08So ultimately, this is for the U.S. who will have to pay more for this kind of decision.
05:13But how I see good for India,
05:15so maybe for the quick decision, if people want to go out, the good people, good professional,
05:22I think they will ask themselves a couple of times or probably 10 times, should they go or not?
05:27Because India also has huge opportunities.
05:31So I stay positive.
05:32I think now, just at the spur of the moment, someone is giving you visa,
05:36maybe five times more than the paycheck you get in India.
05:40Short term, it looks very good.
05:42But the long term, people were not thinking earlier.
05:45Now they will think.
05:46All right.
05:46I hear your point, Ankush.
05:48But, you know, and you mentioned this, you know,
05:51if you can just elaborate a little further on the implications here,
05:53because we understand that India, of course, Indian origin workers are going to be impacted.
05:58And as you mentioned, is the U.S. firms, which are also going to get impacted a lot,
06:01because Indian techies, they are that good.
06:04And because of that, they earn that kind of money and they earn those positions.
06:07They get those positions there in the U.S. firms as well.
06:11Majority of them come from India and they are extremely skilled.
06:14India and China, essentially.
06:16So at this point, who stands to be impacted?
06:19Who all, rather, stand to be impacted?
06:21Because there are humanitarian consequences, as the Indian side has warned now.
06:25Yeah, so that is one aspect.
06:28I think if 400,000 H-1B visa and 70% are Indian,
06:33I think the impact is not for the people who are already there,
06:36who have already got the petition filed, right?
06:38So I think currently there is no benefit for the beneficiaries.
06:42It's for the future, right?
06:43It's from today.
06:45Yeah, new visas.
06:45Yes.
06:46Yeah.
06:47So I don't think that claim, it's kind of hurting anyone's human rights or something.
06:53So it's for the new entrants, new employees, and students getting into the work life.
06:59And should they go to the U.S.
07:01or they try to make their livings here in India?
07:04So current, I think, see, I think more than a decade ago,
07:09one and a half decade ago, even,
07:10I got that H-1B visa, got, it was a lottery system and not sure now, right?
07:18I got, I got selected.
07:20So, that time.
07:23So now, so now you see only for those people.
07:28So we have to see whether, who was paying for that, right?
07:33So, I think if I had to go, I've not been to the U.S. on H-1B, I went to B-1.
07:39But who was paying for my petition?
07:41It was the U.S. company.
07:43Though I was working for the Indian company,
07:45but the U.S. company was paying for the fees.
07:48So, so it was a small fees that time and maybe my salary.
07:53And now on top of it, it's $100,000.
07:55So who would pay?
07:56So it's a U.S. company who's calling you.
07:59They would pay.
07:59Right.
08:00Right.
08:01All right, all right, Ankush.
08:05Thanks so much for joining me here on the broadcast.
08:07That was Ankush Sabarwal, founder and CEO Korova and Bharat GPT joining me from Bengaluru.
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